Growing up, Indiana Jones and the Last Crusade was my favorite of the trilogy. As an adult, it’s not anymore, Raiders of the Lost Ark is, but I realized that it’s certainly the more kid-friendly entry of the three as it regularly veers right into cartoon territory.
Also, I probably loved it a bit more because of recency bias as it was the only one I was old enough to wait for it when it came out. I didn’t see him in the theater I think—I don’t remember—but I’m pretty sure my father rented the movie, especially because Sean Connery was quite popular in my house.
When Dr. Henry Jones Sr. suddenly goes missing while pursuing the Holy Grail, eminent archaeologist Indiana must team up with Marcus Brody, Sallah, and Elsa Schneider to follow in his father’s footsteps and stop the Nazis from recovering the power of eternal life.
Structurally, Indiana Jones and the Last Crusade is built like Raiders of the Lost Ark. From start to finish, it’s Indy jumping from one clue to another with the villain of the story always sweeping in at the last moment to steal from him what he had found. Until the end where the arrogance and greed of the bad guys led them to a face-melting conclusion.
The truth is, it works very well. You barely notice it. Indiana Jones and the Temple of Doom did something different and it was not that well received, so it’s understandable that Spielberg and Lucas went back to what was successful the first time around. Changing the character dynamics made all the differences though.
Even if Sean Connery makes his first real appearance one hour into the movie, the Last Crusade is clearly about the relationship between Henry Jones Sr. And Henry Jones Jr.—the joke about Indiana’s name is certainly one of the most memorable pieces of comedy from this series. The way the Indy acts like a child wanting his father’s approval every time they are together is just priceless. Harrison Ford and Sean Connery formed a great pair. I don’t know if that was the case, but it looks like they had a lot of fun going at each other.
So, we’ve got an emotional drive for the story, but it’s still an Indiana Jones movie. There’s the woman. Alison Doody is the traitorous Elsa Schneider who doesn’t even have to be compared to Marion as her role here is quite different. It’s a complicated one as she honestly likes the Jones, father, and son, but she wants the Grail more than anything else. She’s not the damsel in distress or just an evil witch. She’s in the middle, trying to get her way, stuck between her alliances and affections. That’s an interesting change.
Other elements are not changed but amplified. It goes to the point that, more than the previous two, this one sometimes really feels like a live Tintin movie—but without Snowy. Maybe it’s the action scenes that go a bit too cartoonish or the way Indy follows the clues, or the writing of the supporting characters like Marcus (Denholm Elliott), Walter Donovan (Julian Glover), or Kazim (Kevork Malikyan), the leader of the Brotherhood of the Cruciform Sword. I don’t know exactly what to pinpoint to as it feels like it’s a combination of a lot of little (and not so little) elements, but I grew up with Tintin so I’m probably biased in some way.
Whatever it is, Indiana Jones and the Last Crusade is one hell of an adventure. It starts fast and hard with the young Indiana Jones and the train sequence, then we jump from one place to the other at a great pace. Everything is full of details—the sets, the costumes, the dialogs—and Spielberg never fails to deliver the thrills with the way he built the action scenes while leaving enough space for the actors to banter and add touches of physical comedy.
Not ten years had passed since the first installment, but this sequel is strangely nostalgic at times. There are numerous references to Raiders of the Lost Ark, a lot is done to put Indiana Jones as a character in perspective with backstory elements that give the impression that everything that was needed to be said is here. Even the “We named the dog Indiana” line at the end is a way to answer the question we didn’t necessarily have.
After that, it didn’t feel like Indiana Jones was coming back for more adventures. But he did in The Young Indiana Jones Chronicles. I will not write about it though, I’m stopping here.
THE ON MY SHELF COLUMN LOOKS BACK AT ALL THE MOVIES IN MY BLU-RAY COLLECTION.
