5 reasons to see Indiana Jones

Over the past month, respected publications such as the New York Times jumped on the bandwagon of early negative buzz for "Indiana Jones and the Kingdom of the Crystal Skull." But for industry insiders the word from mandatory distributor screenings was nothing new. Rumors have been flying for months, including that director Steven Spielberg was phoning it in and producer George Lucas was disappointed even after dumbing down the script himself. So, what a surprise then to actually watch "Kingdom" and realize, "Gee, it's not half bad." Granted, the movie's got a ton of problems, but it's easy to come up with five reasons why it still works and why you hope the whole gang comes back for more.

Harrison Ford's still got it: Even at 65 years old, Ford has a classic charisma that action stars half his age would die for. Sure, he's got a plethora of stuntmen to step in for lots of the tough stuff, but they were around 27 years ago on "Raiders of the Lost Ark," too. Unlike his last thriller, the horrid "Firewall," where it appeared he'd have a heart attack in the middle of the film, the longer he's on-screen in "Kingdom," the more you suspend your disbelief about his seniority and, once again, root for Indy to save the day.

Cate Blanchett's hilarious accent: Smartly mocked by Indiana Jones in a very early scene, Blanchett delivers a Russian accent that's hard not to giggle at. Luckily, she's playing her Soviet dominatrix so straight (the words "Tranny fierce!" come to mind) that she becomes more and more convincing as the movie wears on.

There are genuine thrills and surprises: Don't get me wrong, Spielberg, Lucas and the numerous screenwriters have included some cringe-inducing moments, such as when Mutt (Shia LaBeouf) swings across the jungle a la Tarzan, but for the most part the action scenes are inspired and filled with true tension. Early word was that the movie never allowed the viewer to think the main characters were in any true danger, but that's hardly the case.

It looks damn good: Most Spielberg films have amazing production values, but I was struck at how much better "Kingdom" appears than the last installment, "The Last Crusade." Many fans will say it's sacrilege to claim "Kingdom" cinematographer Janusz Kaminski, no slouch with two Oscars to his credit, outshined the legendary Douglas Slocombe, who shot the first three films. But, watching "Last Crusade" again, the only inspiration in that movie appears to be Sean Connery's performance. With the contributions of up-and-coming production designer Guy Dyas ("Elizabeth: The Golden Age"), "Kingdom" turns out to be the most authentic looking Indy film since "Raiders."

It doesn't feel anticlimactic: After almost 20 years since "The Last Crusade," there was concern that the reunion might feel forced like numerous other franchises that have outlasted their welcome in the 21st century (see "Rush Hour" and "Die Hard"). Far from it, "Kingdom" has enough pizzazz that you hope Lucas and Spielberg can convince Ford to don the fedora one more time. Lord knows we don't need a solo LaBeouf "Indy" movie.

So, the lowdown is that the latest Spielberg/Lucas collaboration may not live up to the quality of some of this summer's other blockbusters, such as "Iron Man," "Kung Fu Panda" (really) and (most likely) "The Dark Knight," but there are worse ways to spend two hours of your Memorial Day weekend than traveling around the world with Dr. Henry Walton Jones Jr.

"Indiana Jones and the Kingdom of the Crystal Skull" opens nationwide May 22