This one gets the silver medal

Rating: 8/10 (31 January 2008)

The most challenging part of writing an Indiana Jones sequel is probably coming up with a Macguffin that can rival the Ark of the Covenant. Originally Lucas wanted to make this movie about a haunted house, but since Spielberg had already produced Poltergeist he had no interest in making another one. The only artifact they could think of was the holy grail, but they were concerned it would be too feeble, so Spielberg came up with the idea to make this movie about Indy and his father. This decision turned out to be the film's greatest strength, and elevated it above the Temple of Doom.
The Last Crusade went in the direction of a character study. Sean Connery plays a stiff, strict, yet eccentric Henry Jones Sr., who has been estranged from his son for twenty years. He disapproves of just about everything his son does. While their relationship is written just like every other father/son relationship in a Spielberg movie, Connery and Ford have wonderful chemistry, and their scenes are funny and touching. Henry Jones Sr. is only rivaled by Marion Ravenwood for the title of best sidekick in my opinion. Nevertheless the strength of the father/son story really only demonstrates how weak the treasure hunt plot is. While it's better than the search for the Sankara stones, the grail story lacks the mystery and danger of the Ark. It is sort of in the background for a great deal of the film.
Spielberg and Lucas wanted to make this movie the lightest in the series, since there was really no other direction they could go. The humor in this movie is probably one of the more divisive aspects of the film. Some might find it too distracting, but I found it very entertaining. The action scenes are very fun but they are also somewhat smaller than the previous movies, except for the final tank chase scene. I think that by the time you make a third movie in any series it becomes a little difficult to top yourself. The love story isn't as strong as Raiders, since Indy seems to fall for Elsa Schneider a little too easily. She was more interesting than Willie Scott though. Another more controversial aspect of Last Crusade was the return of the Nazis, since people don't like it when sequels are too similar to the original. I don't think this really hurt the film though. Walter Donovan is sort of a second rate Belloq but I would say the Nazi Colonel Vogel was more threatening than the Nazi commander in the first film.
Indiana Jones and the Last Crusade also features a short introduction to a young Indiana Jones, who was played by the late River Phoenix. Unfortunately I think he died before the Young Indiana Jones T.V. series was made. John Rhys Davies returns as Sallah for a much smaller part, but it is still nice to see him. All in all, the Last Crusade is an enjoyable romp that was once a fine end to the series, but now that Indiana Jones 4 is coming out in a few months, we will see if it can retain its silver medal.