DIRECTED BY STEVEN SPIELBERG | #11 "INDIANA JONES AND THE LAST CRUSADE" (1989)

[Music] hey guys and welcome into episode 11 of directed by Steven Spielberg considering the 34 current films that comprise Spielberg's filmography today marks the roughly one3 Mark in this journey throughout Spielberg career to mark this occasion is a return to the familiar with Indiana Jones and the Last Crusade starring Harrison Ford and Shan connory after the two previous drama based films I was very much looking forward to a return to the adventure genre where I believe that Spielberg's thrives most I Have Seen the Last Crusade many times now but it was an absolute pleasure to revisit this film once again for this series how does it stack up against the two previous indie films and Spielberg's filmography in general let's find out Indiana Jones in the Last Crusade begins with the young indiano played by River Phoenix discovering his passion for archaeology and the Relentless pursuit of historical Treasures The Narrative quickly shifts to 1938 where Indie learns that his estranged father Professor Henry Jones senior played by Shan connory has vanished while searching for the Holy Grail a legendary artifact said to Grant eternal life Indie embarks on a perilous journey across Europe racing against thy and Nazi forces who are also seeking The Grail for its immense power once reunited with his father the duo navigates a series of dangerous trials showcasing their unique blend of wit intellect and bravery along the way they encounter a host of friends and foes including Elsa Schneider and the Nazis and his friends Salah and Brody as they close in on the grail's location hidden within the Ancient Temple of Petra guarded by centuries old Knights Indie must Race Against Time to find the Grail and save his father the climax sees Indie facing a series of life-threatening challenges testing his faith courage and understanding of true immortality the film ends with Indie his dad Salah and bod riding off into the sunset with the Grail consigned to the depths of History the end I've lost count of the amount of times I've seen this film now but I still thoroughly enjoyed it upon this most recent viewing there's a number of things to analyze in the Last Crusade and fittingly the best place to start is at the beginning the flashback sequence with young Indie acts as a great Catalyst for the events and themes of this film setting up a number of key moments that will be paid off later on we learned where Indie got his iconic look the scar on his chin but most importantly we learn about Indy's strained relationship with his father in his formative years the central relationship and focus of this film fast forward to the future and we have a couple scenes that very much mirror moments from the first indie film we have an almost identical scene with Indie and Brody in the classroom discussing ind's Adventures once again and also an exposition sequence that in introduces the film's McGuffin in this case the holy grail and ultimately sets the events of the film In Motion it is worth noting that the Last Crusade does very much feel like a return to the formula of Raiders not just for the Nazis being the villains once again but also structurally as it's more of a globe trading Adventure as opposed to the wacky contained horror that is the Temple of Doom when analyzing this film one thing I noticed is that it doesn't have as many typical Spielberg Hallmarks as his other films particularly when compared to the previous Indiana Jones entries there's some Spielberg lights here and there a sunset shot a zoom in closeup but it doesn't feel as quintessentially SPI Bergan as his other films that's not an inherently bad thing but worth noting nonetheless with that said the Last Crusade has some absolutely fantastic scenes the castle sequence where Indie reunites with his father as they escape the Nazis expertly Blends action with humor you get great moments of banter between two great actors that clearly illustrates the train on their relationship whilst maintaining that light-hearted flare that the indie films have always exhibited the tank Chase in the third act Rivals the greatness of the truck Chase and Raiders upping the anti with the action and placing some serious Stakes on our main protagonist I love that it ends with a very emotional beat too showing Henry Jones cen's true feelings for his son despite his disapproval throughout the film it's a crucial moment that sets up the next scene which is in my opinion the best part of the film I'm speaking of course about the the three challenges that Indie must accomplish to find the holy grail and save his father within the Temple of Petra this is a fantastically made sequence that challenges Indie to his absolute core testing his knowledge faith and courage to the limits and what an amazing touch to make the Holy Grail the humblest cup among the options it's Testament to the film's understanding of the Christian subject matter that it's dealing with speaking of which it's worth noting the significance of the artifacts within each indie film if you haven't noticed each film focuses on a relic from a different major religion the Ark of the Covenant and Raiders relates to Judaism the shankara stones to Hinduism and of course the Holy Grail now to Christianity strange they didn't continue that theme in Kingdom of the Crystal Skull and dial of Destiny but back to that scene Indie chooses the right cup bringing back to his father saving his life before the temple starts to collapse this right here is the most touching scene in the film and indeed the Indiana series as a whole and it's the ultimate payoff here you have Indie hanging on for his life as he tries to grab the Grail just as Elsa unsuccessfully tried to do just moments before Henry senior initially calls out to him as Junior which he had done throughout the film and Indy's life to ind's disdain but he then calls him by his desired name Indiana which gains ind's attention before telling him to let it go what a moment the setup of course being that Indie always sought his father's approval and questions his father 's love for him but in this moment he finally realized his father's love for him just as Henry Senor realized not long earlier at the Cliff's Edge a fantastically executed payoff to a setup that rounds out the film and indies's character Arc very nicely now let's discuss performances Harrison Ford is great as always this time allowed to bring a more personal touch to his character playing off that strain Dynamic with his father but the standout is obviously Shan connory as Henry Jones Senor he brings that massive weight of Gravitas to the role whilst injecting a comedic flare unlike what we're usually accustomed to seeing with his characters he fits the tone of the film perfectly and brings real emotion to his more touching moments I do have some minor issues with the film I felt the humor whilst great at most parts does go a little far in some scenes whilst the indie films have always relied on humor to evoke light-hearted action it gets a bit too silly at times and pushes an otherwise cool scene into corny territory there are also some contrivances when it comes to the action particularly during the tank Chase when India is fighting off dozens of Nazis who assumably are equipped with guns but more often than not forget to use them in favor of engaging in hand-to-hand combat it's a minor flaw that you could fault many films for doing but it did bug me at times all in all Indiana Jones in the Last Crusade is an exceptional sequel that firmly holds its place within the series it's a return to India's roots of fighting Nazis and searching for abrahamic artifacts the film concludes in the most fitting way with the literal riding off into the sunset shot which perfectly concluded the trilogy it would be a shame if they made more but seriously despite my self-admitted appreciation for parts of kingdom of the Crystal Skull the ending to The Last Crusade is so perfect and should have never been touched again you could almost say that these three films belongs in a museum so do you and that is episode 11 of directed by Steven Spielberg done and dusted it was great to return to the adventure genre of Spielberg's Works after two very heavy-hitting drama films as a child I regarded the Last Crusade as my favorite Indiana Germans film but as I've grown up I've come to love Raiders and Temple of Doom that much more whilst I still very much love the Last Crusade if you've seen my Indiana Jones rankings videos you will know that I have it in third place behind Raiders and the Temple of Doom but quality wise I do place it on par with the Temple of Doom and so therefore I am going to to give Indiana Jones in the Last Crusade an8 out of 10 this places it in seventh place below the Temple of Doom and above the color purple so that concludes today's episode and I hope you've enjoyed it the next entry for episode 12 is a return to the drama genre of swords for the little known romantic fantasy film titled always starring Richard draus I have never seen this film before but I am very curious to check it out simply based on the genre description alone looking forward to that but until then I thank you all very much for watching and we'll talk to you next time bye

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Id: uMNzLm9GQEE

Length: 9min 3sec (543 seconds)

Published: Sat Jul 06 2024