Review: Indiana Jones and the Last Crusade (1989)

'I suddenly remembered my Charlemagne. Let my armies be the rocks and the trees and the birds in the sky...'

★★★★

"Indiana Jones and the Last Crusade" is the best Indiana Jones film and the last for the longest time. This movie was made for two reasons, the first after all the criticisms "Temple of Doom" faced, and to finish off the trilogy Spielberg promised Lucas to make.

"Indiana Jones and the Last Crusade (1989)" follows Indiana Jones (Harrison Ford), an adventurous archaeologist, on his mission to recover the Holy Grail, the cup alleged to have been used by Jesus at the Last Supper. The mission gets personal when Indiana's father, Dr. Henry Jones Sr. (Sean Connery), is kidnapped by Nazis who are also looking for the Grail. As Indy races against the clock, he encounters terrible traps, unearths ancient truths, and eventually discovers the whereabouts of the Grail. In the climax, Indy must navigate a series of life-threatening tests, putting his faith and fast thinking to the ultimate test, culminating in a touching and emotional father-son reconciliation.

I love this film for many reasons, and it's my favorite. Let's start off with the cast. Harrison Ford as Indiana Jones, John Ryes-Davis as Sallah, Denholm Elliott as Marcus Brody, continue to shine as always. With each new film, there's always new faces. Joining the cast are Alison Doody Elsa Schneider, Julian Glover as Walter Donovan. You may remember Julian Glover as General Veers in "The Empire Strikes Back" and the voice of Aragog in Chamber of Secrets. Also joining the cast include River Phoneix as young Indy, and former James Bond actor himself, Sean Connery. Talk about perfect casting here. George Lucas and Steven Spielberg knew what they were doing when casting their characters.

Casting Sean Connery was one of the greatest casting decisions. Part of the reason for casting Connery was Spielberg's long desire of wanting to direct a Bond film. Lucas based Indiana Jones on James Bond, so Spielberg decided that Connery was similar to Ford's character. Without looking at Bond, both Connery and Ford have insane chemistry. Despite their 12-year age gab, the two were perfect. Little moments to large moments, the two were insperable.

Much like every Indiana Jones film, there's always the darkest elements. But in this case, this is one of the funniest films. Most of it comes from Ford and Connery. Elliot and Ryes-Davis also get in some laughs. This is part of the reason why its my favorite. It's a great film to sit back and relax to. It's a great adventure film with some great laughs. As I watched it, I felt a sense of excitement because contemporary Hollywood escapist films have become too jaded and cynical, and they have lost the sense that you might stumble upon incredible adventures simply by going on a trek with your Scout group. It's a film I like to come back to whenever I feel fustrated with modern Hollywood films.

Like I said, this is unquestionably my favorite Indiana Jones movie. Harrison Ford and Sean Connery and make a convincing father and son. It has some fantastic action, adventure, comedy, and wonder-filled moments.