Indiana Jones and the Last Crusade
Composite Score: 83.32
Starring: Harrison Ford, Sean Connery, Alison Doody, Denholm Elliott, John Rhys-Davies, Julian Glover, River Phoenix, Michael Byrne, Kevork Malikyan, and Robert Eddison
Director: Steven Spielberg
Writers: Jeffrey Boam, George Lucas, and Menno Meyjes
Genres: Action, Adventure, Family
MPAA Rating: PG-13
Box Office: $474.17 million worldwide
Why should you Watch This Film?
Indiana Jones and the Last Crusade is the third film in the Indiana Jones franchise, this one following the titular archaeologist as he helps his father seek the Holy Grail. The follow-up to the less-than-stellar sequel to Raiders of the Lost Ark, The Last Crusade brings back a couple familiar faces from the first Indiana Jones film to help seek the Grail while introducing some new characters as well to flesh out the story. Though the film is predominantly an action/adventure film in concept, in practice, it ends up being more of a story about fathers and sons and the impact that such relationships can have on a person – in this case, showcased by the characters of Indiana Jones and his father Henry Jones, Sr., played by Sean Connery. The film’s balance of humor, action, fantasy, and history help to make it one of the classic adventure films.
Why shouldn’t you Watch This Film?
As is the trend in third films of blockbusters, The Last Crusade suffers at times from odd pacing, an overstuffed narrative, and perhaps a bit too much fan-service (see Return of the Jedi or Pirates: At World’s End for reference). Please note, I am not saying that third films are inherently bad, and in fact, I tend to like third films quite a bit – both films I just referenced are in my top 100 favorites. In this case, and in the case of most other films in this situation, the popularity of the film franchise can take something away from what could otherwise be a fairly concise and high quality story. In the specific case of Crusade, most of its issues are showcased in the opening sequence with young Indiana Jones (River Phoenix) basically becoming his adult self over the course of one chase scene. It’s a fairly unnecessary bit that just pays some service to fans by having him use a whip and become scared of snakes and get a scar on his chin. A simpler cut of the opening sequence could still have accomplished the narrative goal of introducing the complex relationship between Indy and his father without the fluff of a circus train.
I suppose the other goal of the opening sequence was to provide an action hook in an action film that doesn’t really have an action scene until a boat chase sequence almost a third of the way through the film. As I mentioned, the film is oddly paced with an incredibly slow first act that turns into a full-on chase sequence for basically the entire back half of the film until they reach the cave where the Grail is located. Don’t get me wrong, I love the action and chases, but it feels like a lot of exposition for what ends up as a kind of understated Mad Max film.
So wait, why should you Watch This Film?
Pacing and bloating issues aside, The Last Crusade is a great adventure film, living up to the hype (in my opinion) of a film about the quest for the Holy Grail’s modern conclusion. The intrigue of the brotherhood of Grail protectors, the villainous Nazis, the many reasons for each character’s pursuit of the Grail, and the culmination of the film in the Grail trials all make the film into a compelling adventure that feels right out of a classic adventure novel. It’s pulpy, funny, and eventually fast-paced in a way that makes it an easy comfort watch that I don’t know that I’ll ever get fully tired of.
The true heart of the film that makes it as great as it is, though, is the relationship between the Doctors Jones – Harrison Ford’s Indy and Sean Connery’s Henry. From the conclusion of the young Indy sequence when he arrives at home in a rush to tell his father about the stolen artifact and his father’s insistence upon slowing him down, the conflict between the two men becomes clear. Henry Sr. is a historian, fascinated by facts, figures, and stories, whereas Henry Jr. (Indiana) is an archaeologist with love for the tactile things of the world, still passionate for fact but more so his ability to prove fact. As the men are reunited in the film’s second act, their relationship becomes a bit more fleshed out as we learn about Henry Sr.’s obsession with the Holy Grail and Indiana’s resentment of his father’s aloof parenting style, particularly after his mother’s death (implicitly to cancer). As the pair evade capture time and again together, the story brings each closer to the other, showcasing the father’s love and pride for his son and the son’s admiration and love for his father, culminating in the climactic sequence of Indiana going into the heart of the Grail cave to save his father. The touching story of the two men carries the otherwise simple story of a treasure hunt to a place of emotional resonance and lasting greatness in the archives of film.
Indiana Jones and the Last Crusade is a great action/adventure film about hunting for the Holy Grail that is made better by its story about the evolving father-son relationship between Indiana Jones and his father Henry, which takes the film to a level worthy of a place among the Greatest Films of All Time. Though not as concise as The Temple of Doom and not quite as iconic as Raiders, The Last Crusade carves its own unique path in the action/adventure genre and earns its stripes. This film is currently available to stream on Amazon Prime Video if you are looking to give it a watch.
