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The Indiana Jones Movie and Score poll 2012


Jay

The Indiana Jones Movie and Score poll 2012  

58 members have voted

  1. 1. Which Indiana Jones FILM is your favorite?

    • Raiders of the Lost Ark
    • Indiana Jones and the Temple of Doom
    • Indiana Jones and the Last Crusade
    • Indiana Jones and the Kingdom of the Crystal Skull
      0
  2. 2. Which Indiana Jones FILM is your LEAST favorite?

    • Raiders of the Lost Ark
      0
    • Indiana Jones and the Temple of Doom
    • Indiana Jones and the Last Crusade
    • Indiana Jones and the Kingdom of the Crystal Skull
  3. 3. Which Indiana Jones SCORE is your favorite?

    • Raiders of the Lost Ark
    • Indiana Jones and the Temple of Doom
    • Indiana Jones and the Last Crusade
    • Indiana Jones and the Kingdom of the Crystal Skull
      0
  4. 4. Which Indiana Jones SCORE is your LEAST favorite?

    • Raiders of the Lost Ark
    • Indiana Jones and the Temple of Doom
    • Indiana Jones and the Last Crusade
    • Indiana Jones and the Kingdom of the Crystal Skull
  5. 5. Box set vs individual releases?

    • I plan to eventually buy the box set of all 4 movies on Blu ray
    • I plan to eventually buy individual releases of the entries I like on Blu ray (when they become available)
    • I won't be buying any blu rays because even though I have a Blu Ray Player, I own the DVDs of the movies and that's good enough for me.
    • I won't be buying any blu rays because I don't own a Blu Ray player, otherwise I probably would.
    • I won't be buying any blu rays because I don't like any of these movies enough to want to own them.
      0


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Picking my favorites was easy - Raiders for both film and score.

The film is sheer perfection, and as far as I'm concerned, it's the only "real" Indiana Jones film that's ever been made. None of the others have gotten it right, although there are significant elements of each that I really like (yes, even KOTCS). Raiders has an exquisitely restrained sense of humor, fantastic cinematography, some really thrilling yet believable action setpieces, and that intangible sense of coolness that ties it all together.

For score, it's much closer, but I ultimately like each score a little less than the one that came before it, making Raiders my favorite here, too. I'm not even going to bother trying to put its amazingness into words, but I will say that TOD has become a very close second, and it's rather remarkable that Williams managed to write a score that simultaneously fits a terrible movie and gives Raiders a run for its money. That takes skill.

Choosing my least favorites is a lot harder. Well, at least for film. For score, it's KOTCS, though I don't hate it or anything. It just brings the least to the table.

But choosing my least favorite film is tough. All the films except Raiders try too hard to be funny at times, with disastrous results. TOD tries too hard to break the mold, TLC tries too hard to glue it back together again, and KOTCS made the inexcusable mistake of bringing aliens into the mix. At the end of the day, TLC isn't a contender for my least favorite, despite its many flaws, so it's down to the bizarre disappointment of TOD or the not-unexpected ho-hum-ness of KOTCS. I voted for TOD (an unpopular choice, I know) because it was the bigger disappointment for me. It wasn't made that long after Raiders, and it could have been amazing, but instead, we got this annoying, unfunny heap of suckiness that only occasionally achieves greatness (e.g., the mine car chase). By KOTCS, I wasn't really expecting a real Indy film, so it didn't disappoint. I just enjoyed it for what it was.

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Favourite film is Raiders of the Ark and favourite score is Temple of Doom.

As for worst film, I had a hard time picking between Temple of Doom and KOTCS...I couldn't really enjoy both films much. And while KOTCS was really screwed up by the aliens, I think I might just go with the former for now...

For least favourite score, its KOTCS. Its a strong score mind you, but clearly Williams wasn't very passionate about it and it doesn't match the greatness of its predecessors.

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What flaws does TOD have?

+1

And don't say it's too dark, scary or blame Willie Scott. Willie Scott is perfect, because she is NOT Marion.

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The film had shallow characters with the dumb blond and that infuriatingly annoying Short Round. The whole "primitive indians" concept was a bit much for me. Come on, the Indian banquet was far too silly (you know, the one with the eyeballs and all that crap). And God some of it was just too bizarre that the film becomes ridiculous. I get it, they tried to take Indy in a different direction, but frankly it didn't work for me, and in my opinion, its the weakest of the trilogy. It just might be the weakest film in the franchise, although I still have a hard time deciding between this and KOTCS....

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TOD might not be the best movie, but it's the one everyone remembers around here in Portugal when someone mentions Indiana Jones. And I think it's due mostly to the heart ripping scene and the banquet. That's as memorable as movie moments get

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The film had shallow characters with the dumb blond and that infuriatingly annoying Short Round. The whole "primitive indians" concept was a bit much for me. Come on, the Indian banquet was far too silly (you know, the one with the eyeballs and all that crap). And God some of it was just too bizarre that the film becomes ridiculous. I get it, they tried to take Indy in a different direction, but frankly it didn't work for me, and in my opinion, its the weakest of the trilogy. It just might be the weakest film in the franchise, although I still have a hard time deciding between this and KOTCS....

Flaws would suggest that the film makers tried to do something and screwed up.

Willie is supposed to be a shallow blonde, Short Round is supposed to be overbearing yet lovable. Those Thugees are far more scary as villians as either the Nazis or the Russians (political correctness be damned).

Also, the banquet is supposed to be over the top.

Temple of Doom might be the most misunderstood Spielberg film, even Spielberg does not seem to understand it any more.

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The film had shallow characters with the dumb blond and that infuriatingly annoying Short Round. The whole "primitive indians" concept was a bit much for me. Come on, the Indian banquet was far too silly (you know, the one with the eyeballs and all that crap). And God some of it was just too bizarre that the film becomes ridiculous. I get it, they tried to take Indy in a different direction, but frankly it didn't work for me, and in my opinion, its the weakest of the trilogy. It just might be the weakest film in the franchise, although I still have a hard time deciding between this and KOTCS....

Flaws would suggest that the film makers tried to do something and screwed up.

Willie is supposed to be a shallow blonde, Short Round is supposed to be overbearing yet lovable. Those Thugees are far more scary as villians as either the Nazis or the Russians (political correctness be damned).

Also, the banquet is supposed to be over the top.

Temple of Doom might be the most misunderstood Spielberg film, even Spielberg does not seem to understand it any more.

Amen.

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The film had shallow characters with the dumb blond and that infuriatingly annoying Short Round. The whole "primitive indians" concept was a bit much for me. Come on, the Indian banquet was far too silly (you know, the one with the eyeballs and all that crap). And God some of it was just too bizarre that the film becomes ridiculous. I get it, they tried to take Indy in a different direction, but frankly it didn't work for me, and in my opinion, its the weakest of the trilogy. It just might be the weakest film in the franchise, although I still have a hard time deciding between this and KOTCS....

Flaws would suggest that the film makers tried to do something and screwed up.

Willie is supposed to be a shallow blonde, Short Round is supposed to be overbearing yet lovable. Those Thugees are far more scary as villians as either the Nazis or the Russians (political correctness be damned).

Also, the banquet is supposed to be over the top.

Temple of Doom might be the most misunderstood Spielberg film, even Spielberg does not seem to understand it any more.

Fair enough. But personally I don't think they should have gone to those levels of "over the top-ness". Like Karol pointed out, it has that whole "tacky 80s" vibe to it, and too much so in my opinion.

IF I may be bold enough to say so, I'd say Temple of Doom is the most outdated film of the franchise. Its hard to take much of it seriously. Meanwhile, Raiders of the Ark is still awesome.

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There's something about that dated look and feel which makes Temple of Doom EXTREMELY appealing.

It's like the best pulp adventure ever made.

That I have to agree with. I'm not in love with TOD, but I can't say it's not entertaining every time I watch it.

Karol

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There's something about that dated look and feel which makes Temple of Doom EXTREMELY appealing.

It's like the best pulp adventure ever made.

I've been saying this for years. It's a film that's like... some Burroughs novel. I'm not sure how to explain it right now. Lots of things in the film are historically wrong and I'm always under the impression that is all on purpose. As if it was some serialized novel of the time they didn't have access to this or that information and made shit up, and set stories in the unexplored jungles, with scary serious villains and Indy like heroes, and lots of fights, and the girl. Damn, it's just like that.

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It was impossible to make that movie in any other decade than the eighties.

I thought they tried to do that with Pirates of the Caribbean. And failed.

Karol

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There's something about that dated look and feel which makes Temple of Doom EXTREMELY appealing.

It's like the best pulp adventure ever made.

I've been saying this for years. It's a film that's like... some Burroughs novel. I'm not sure how to explain it right now.

You didn't have to explain it - I knew EXACTLY what you were getting at. You couldn't be more right. Marvellously (and unwittingly) you have just managed to sum up the essence and appeal of the film in a nutshell.

It was impossible to make that movie in any other decade than the eighties.

I thought they tried to do that with Pirates of the Caribbean. And failed.

Karol

They tried again with KotCS. And failed harder than we ever dared to imagine.

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There's something about that dated look and feel which makes Temple of Doom EXTREMELY appealing.

It's like the best pulp adventure ever made.

That I have to agree with. I'm not in love with TOD, but I can't say it's not entertaining every time I watch it.

Karol

At times, the film succeeds as a guilty pleasure, but thats it. It never matches the fun and entertainment value of the other entries in the trilogy.

I agree, its larger and louder then life, and just so exiting/scary/funny.

Maybe when I first watched it....although even then I was never a big fan. Now, I just find most of it laughable...but hey, its just my opinion and I'm glad that many of you found some worth in that....____ film. I have no word to describe it without having an angry mob hate me forever on this board (probably led by Stefan) ;)

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Wanna stay kids as long as we can,

that's our plan ! Pretty neat plan !

Then when it's time to be a man,

we're not gonna grow up !

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The last time we had a discussion about this, my vote for both best film and score was TLC. Since I've already explained my love for that film several times, I won't bother rehashing.

What has changed since then (it's been a couple of years) is my preference for TOD over KOTCS. I still like KOTCS about as much (I've only seen it once, in the theater - I've been holding out to watch all four on Blu-ray). However, my opinion of TOD has improved after watching it again last year. The opening "Anything Goes" sequence alone is enough to put it above KOTCS. Also, I appreciate Willie, Short Round, and the overall darkness of TOD much more now that I'm a bit older.

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Sorry Jason, I haven't watched the film or consulted the sheet notes in decades.

Before pointing out every mistake we make, Jason has to wash his hands with Dettol, wipe his hands with a blue cotton towel, spin around his own axis counter clock-wise seven times and roll his eyes i both directions

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Best film: Raiders

Best score: Raiders or Last Crusade

Worst film: KotCS

Worst score: either Temple of Doom or Kingdom of the Crystal Skull

I don't have a Blu Ray player, otherwise I would probably get the new box set if it were cheap enough.

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Temple of Doom eligible for worst score?!

Pourquoi?!

It's great, but at times it can be a little too grating. Some of the action music overuses Indy's theme. Whereas in KotCS Indy's theme is all over the place, but it's done in such clever, camouflaged ways that it makes it more interesting. Pretty much all of "Whirl Through Academe," "The Adventures of Mutt," and the source music from "Journey to Akator" are based on the Raiders March. It's very prominent in "Ants!" also. I prefer that to the much more obvious presentations of the theme in ToD. In fact, if we were just judging action music I'd easily say that KotCS beats ToD.

If I had to choose I would say ToD is the better score, because the non-action stuff is superior to most of KotCS' non-action and I prefer ToD's themes, but it's too close to call for sure.

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TOD ftw!!!

Best Adventure film, best Indy film, best Indy score and second best JW score! :worship:

In fact, if we were just judging action music I'd easily say that KotCS beats ToD.

?!?!?!?! No comment too!!! ........

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Mind you, both contain great action music. And I will concede that "Grave Robbers" is the worst action cue in IJ history. So maybe it's not "easily," but it's still decisively.

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Sigh....(gathers strength).....

For the most part the action music of KOCS is adequate, decent, at times good (Ants). But it lacks the giddy, over the top awesomeness that runs through the veins of every single note in TOD.

Please try to understand before one of us dies!

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Raiders of the Lost Ark is my favorite film. I'd go as far as to call it Spielberg's best; his best realized movie.

The Last Crusade is my favorite score, though all three are pretty much interchangeable. Each of them are almost representative of different parts of the Indy myth.

Crystal Skulls is my least favorite film and score. I don't hate either, in fact, I can point to things that I like about them (the score much more so than the film). But as a whole it's just underwhelming.

I'll get the box set at some point. Maybe for Christmas.

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Sigh....(gathers strength).....

For the most part the action music of KOCS is adequate, decent, at times good (Ants). But it lacks the giddy, over the top awesomeness that runs through the veins of every single note in TOD.

Please try to understand before one of us dies!

What he said!

As good as KOTCS is, its lacking in the spirit, the energy, the awesome themes (although KOTCS has good themes) and the brilliant action that TOD has.

I didn't pick TOD as my favourite Indy score for just ANY reason you know ;)

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Sigh....(gathers strength).....

For the most part the action music of KOCS is adequate, decent, at times good (Ants). But it lacks the giddy, over the top awesomeness that runs through the veins of every single note in TOD.

And that's definitely one of the reasons why ToD is so fun to listen to. But the mood, atmosphere, and accessibility is not the only thing that I consider when deciding the quality of the music. KotCS' action music gives you more to chew on after the initial listen. There's a lot of stuff that can only be discovered through something more than passively listening (not that there's anything wrong with passive listening, but the impression it gives is only one of the facets that determines quality, IMO). KotCS also, in my opinion, develops the character themes in a more clever way than ToD's music.

Also, I think KotCS wins even on the passive listening level. Maybe it's just because there's a lot more action music in ToD, it gets less "new" after a while.

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What flaws does TOD have?

Willie is at the top of the list. She's seriously annoying, and not in an endearing or funny way. Indy's character is also totally different from his character in Raiders. The overall tone just totally discards what Raiders had going for it, instead favoring this over-the-top bizarreness that just irritates me. I can appreciate them trying to go in a different direction, but they could have at least kept what worked in Raiders while taking the story in new, interesting directions (like ESB did with Star Wars).

There are also little annoyances like occasional bad VFX, the fake-looking corpses in the tunnel, and so forth.

And for the record, I've never thought TOD was too dark. Raiders may not feature an evil Indian cult, but the tone of the film is darker, and it's a better film as a result.

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What flaws does TOD have?

Willie is at the top of the list. She's seriously annoying, and not in an endearing or funny way. Indy's character is also totally different from his character in Raiders. The overall tone just totally discards what Raiders had going for it, instead favoring this over-the-top bizarreness that just irritates me. I can appreciate them trying to go in a different direction, but they could have at least kept what worked in Raiders while taking the story in new, interesting directions (like ESB did with Star Wars).

There are also little annoyances like occasional bad VFX, the fake-looking corpses in the tunnel, and so forth.

And for the record, I've never thought TOD was too dark. Raiders may not feature an evil Indian cult, but the tone of the film is darker, and it's a better film as a result.

Yay! I'm not alone :P

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I've never been annoyed by Willie. I find her deliciously annoying in universe. Indy's character I find, dare I say, a bit cooler sometimes than in Raiders. The fact that the overall tone just rescues the main character from Raiders and discards a bit of the tone of it is where the film shows its balls.

I've never found it particularly dark either.

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What flaws does TOD have?

Willie is at the top of the list. She's seriously annoying, and not in an endearing or funny way. Indy's character is also totally different from his character in Raiders. The overall tone just totally discards what Raiders had going for it, instead favoring this over-the-top bizarreness that just irritates me. I can appreciate them trying to go in a different direction, but they could have at least kept what worked in Raiders while taking the story in new, interesting directions (like ESB did with Star Wars).

There are also little annoyances like occasional bad VFX, the fake-looking corpses in the tunnel, and so forth.

And for the record, I've never thought TOD was too dark. Raiders may not feature an evil Indian cult, but the tone of the film is darker, and it's a better film as a result.

I think the film is an absolute thrill. Bad effects and cheesy props are not unique to Temple of Doom. They're in all the Indy films, and I think the series is better for it. The cheesiness is part of its charm (and for the doubters, I even heard John Williams admit that there's bit of camp in each Indy film).

I don't mind Willie, I find her annoyiness to be pretty funny, but that's more a matter of taste.

As for Indy's character, it is a prequel, so the difference makes sense. And even if he claims initially that he's only after "fortune and glory," we do get a lot of hints at the ragged friendliness that we would see in Raiders and LC--he did, after all, catch a pick pocketer and decide to help the poor thief rather than punish him. Anyways, the place he ends in ToD is pretty much the place he begins at in Raiders, so I think it works.

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