On a $20 million budget, Raiders of the Lost Ark grossed over $380 million worldwide and was 1981’s highest-grossing film. The film also got universally positive reviews and won 5 Academy Awards, including Best Director and Best Picture nominations. Naturally, with all that success, Paramount wanted a sequel, so Steven Spielberg and George Lucas went to work. However, rather than using Nazis as the villains, Lucas decided to make the next film a prequel set in India. Lucas and Spielberg also made this entry darker, much like The Empire Strikes Back, the second Star Wars movie. In place of Lawrence Kasdan and Philip Kaufman, Lucas hired Willard Huyck and Gloria Katz to write the screenplay. Harrison Ford returned to the iconic role, accompanied by a relatively-unknown Kate Capshaw and a 12-year-old Ke Huy Quan. After a five-month shoot, Indiana Jones and the Temple of Doom hit theaters in May 1984.
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Synopsis
Taking place in 1935, Indian Jones (Harrison Ford) narrowly escapes a group of thugs in Shanghai who nearly poisoned him. Accompanied by lounge singer Willie Scott (Kate Capshaw) and his sidekick Short Round (Ke Huy Quan), Indy lands in India. They arrive at the village of Mayapore, where the children are gone, and the people are dying. The villagers beg Indy to retrieve a stolen sacred stone and rescue their children, and he agrees. Indy believes the stone is one of the five Sankara stones, so he, Shorty, and Willie travel to Pankot Palace. They stumble across an ancient cult known as the Thuggee, led by the high priest Mola Ram (Amrish Puri). The cult has three Sankara stones, and they’ve enslaved the children to find the other two in the caves below. It’s up to Indiana Jones to stop the cult, save the kids, and bring back the stone.
Review
Since its release, Indiana Jones and the Temple of Doom has been the subject of much criticism and controversy. The film was so dark and macabre that the MPAA created the PG-13 rating at Spielberg’s request. On the one hand, it’s commendable that Spielberg and Lucas made this entry so dark and twisted. On the other hand, they might’ve lost sight of what they were doing in trying to make it so dark. Part of the issue is that the tone is wildly inconsistent, going from dark to light-hearted without a moment’s notice. It also doesn’t help that some of its darker material, especially in the second half, unintentionally depicted Indian people negatively. To the filmmakers’ credit, most of the criticized stuff was meant to be a joke that subverted expectations. Plus, the only Indians who do this are meant to be villains, so you’re not supposed to like them.
Aside from that, this is still an entertaining adventure film, even if it lacks the original’s freshness. Harrison Ford is excellent as always as the fearless archaeologist, and we see him turn dark at one point. Future Oscar winner Ke Huy Quan is fun as Indy’s sidekick, and he has fantastic chemistry with Harrison Ford. Despite the criticisms she’s been unfairly given, Kate Capshaw is hilarious as Willie Scott, the polar opposite of Karen Allen. Her whining and complaining are so over-the-top that, while it can get annoying, it’s often more funny than bothersome. The action sequences are great, the villains are just as menacing, and John Williams’ score is phenomenal. Admittedly, some blue screen compositing shots stick out negatively, but it’s not enough to deter the movie. Overall, Indiana Jones and the Temple of Doom is an imperfect but entertaining thrill ride that might traumatize your kids.
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