It just shouldn't have happened. Not that it wasn't a fun adventure, and there were a few redeeming qualities, like the nazi getting eaten by the ants, but the comedy came across as part of the adventure, rather than sidedish relief to the otherwise thrilling, scary, dramatic ride that a proper Indy film should be. The film jumped the shark as soon as LeBeouff showed up with the Actor Without A Cause get-up, which is inexcusable for Spielberg (but to be expected from Lucas). The son angle was also unacceptable. Please explain to me how these guys have watched films in the past 15 years and come to the conclution "everybody else is doing these story devices, so we should too." Rather than stepping up to the standards of filmmaking that they weined us on and building a better storyline mousetrap, they just copied the filmmaking generation they mentored by default but who couldn't continue the legacy. Seriously, if we didn't owe them for the firsdt 3 Star Wars and Indy 3, Jaws, Goonies, and Close Encounters, I'd say that I'd be out to kick Spielbergs ass. But he's just lost it, and I don't want to pick unnecessary fights with fillmakers (just ones who have it coming to them).

Indy 3 may have been the biggest departure of the series, but at least that one was designed to answer some of the mysteries of the character that had been established in the first two. And despite its flaws, it gave you insight into the hero's origins, some good adventures (not that this one didn't), references back to the previous entries, and the classic "ride off into the sunset" end shot. All that this one did was explain the mystery of a son that didn't need to exist! And a name like "Mutt Williams?". You can kiss my ass on that alone!

Not that this one didn't deliver on a few notes. I liked the idea that Indy was once a military man, but that should have been tied to his professor/adventurer identity better. Some of the action sequences were kinda cool, and I don't even mind the alien presence (at least they had the integrity for Indy to be a nonbeliever until a logical justification for him to believe), but the forest jeep chase was way too cartoonish, even for a Spielberg film. And nutshots are funny belong in Soth Park, Zucker, and Mike Judge worlds. Not here.

I don't think these guys (Spielberg-Lucas-Ford-Frank Marshall, and let's face it, that pretty much is the team) just called it in, but I do think it proves that they've lost their touch with audiences. Its sad that these filmmakers are going to be relegated to the era of our childhoods, but then again, nothing lasts. Forever. We all get old, tired, lose it, and retire. The Indy filmmakers have, they just didn't realize it, and neither did I, until I saw this film.

At the risk of quoting the actor who didn't appear in the film from a movie that had nothing to do with the franchise, "here endeth the lesson."