The Father, the Son and the Holy Grail...

Rating: 8/10 (10 October 2016)

The third installment of the "Indiana Jones" series is another epic ride through human civilization's most ominous mysteries, especially one that awaited for centuries a modern scholar with the intrepidity of a knight, to unveil its treasure. "The Last Crusade" deserves such a religious title because religion and esotericism have always been part of Indiana Jones' quests, though he insists that facts are what matter the most, you can count on Spielberg and Lucas to mix up these almighty facts with the most thwarting oddities.
"Temple of Doom" was perhaps the most outrageously over-the-top while depicting the heights of barbarity reached by mysticism, but I liked it for these specific reasons, it was like Spielberg wanted to push his character even further than in the first film, getting rid of conventional enemies like Nazis and putting him in such a hostile territory never would a theater's seat feel so comfortable and cozy. I suspect "Temple of Doom" wouldn't have been as successful had it stuck to the original format, and I suspect "Crusade" wouldn't have been successful if "Doom" wasn't made that way, because its the kinship with the first film (proving that Spielberg and Lucas heard their detractors) that provided the premise of a back-to-roots Indy, with more fun and outdoor escapades than these dark arenas where hearts were removed and monkey brains eaten.
This is why "Crusade" didn't exactly excite me like the first or the second, it had too many déjà- vu inducing moments and the quest for the Holy Grail, while beautifully set-up and supported by convincing historical data, had too much resemblance with the "Ark Covenant" MacGuffin. It was obvious we were being served a different meal with the same ingredients though less spicy than the second opus. But the film took five years to be made, and Spielberg and Lucas checked many scripts before finally picking the 'Crusade' one, they didn't make any sequel, they knew they add to inject some novelty.
Had they kept the sidekicks, Sallah (John Rhys-Davies), Marcus Brody (Denholm Elliott), the Nazis and the supernatural quest, the film would have been a pale copy of "Raiders", but back then, there was a movie veteran who knew how to steal scenes and give them a fresh air. He had just done it with "The Untouchables" and he was doing it again with "Crusade". As Henry Jones Sr., Sean Connery plays the iconic adventurer's father, he's like a Victorian straitlaced teacher, who cannot have the name of God said in vain, who can slap his boy and call him 'Junior', and the best thing about it, is that Indy doesn't rebel.
It takes forever to get them together but when Ford and Connery appear on the screen, the chemistry is immediate because Ford has this particular ability to play heroes without really feeling like a hero, he's just a guy who does his job, trying to overcome the obstacles one by one, but his father, is one figure he can't overcome. He makes his father feels like one, and in one facial expression, the cool hero becomes Daddy's boy. Jones Sr. reveals new dimensions in Indy himself, as a boy who's been transmitted the passion for science, history and discipline, and this contrasts so well with his easygoing nature that we feel like the best discovery about the film isn't the Grail, but Indy.
So, despite my previous criticism, I consider this film as triumphant as the others because it did exactly what we expect from sequels, going back to the roots, the film opens with a fine opening sequence, with the late River Phoenix playing young Indy, he takes a cross stolen by grave robbers, and over the course of a thrilling chase on a speeding train, we discover the origin of Indy's scar in the chin, his scare of snakes, his legendary fedora, his father being one of these sacred figures he can't conquer and last but not least, that over the course of science, some things are worth being abandoned because there is more to learn in the intangible.
It does feel corny but trust Spielberg and Lucas, they know where the action is leading. They provide great sequences that have nothing to envy from the first ones, from the catacombs of Venice to the Middle-East Desert, aboard a speedboat, a zeppelin, a plane or a tank, the two men fight with their skills and weapons and Henry Jones Jr. has a few shining moments while remaining true to his character. Connery didn't want to play a kind of goofy and mad scientist, but more of a respectable figure who'd be responsible for Jones Jr.' being. And we finally get it at the climactic moment where for the first time, he calls his son by his first name, and Ford's reaction is the film's emotional reward. I take any conventional action sequence if it leads us to this.
So, this is what I take from the film, the magnificent bond between the Joneses, and the casting of Sean Connery, although slightly older than Ford, was the best possible homage to the own adventurer he played in his youth, the iconic James Bond. Ford was no newcomer in 1989, but there's a great torch-passing vibe in the film that makes it all worth to watch. Indy might not have taken a trophy with him but he discovered more in this adventure than all the previous ones.
It's a sort of coming-of-age story with clearly Lucas' stamp here, unless I'm reading too much by seeing some Luke and Anakin Skywalker's vibes between the two., or am I just having fun mixing two cinematic myths, concocted by two great filmmakers, two big boys who never forgot that we all are someone's little boy or girl. Maybe it's in this film, that we can understand the secret of Spielberg and Lucas' appeal