INDY 4: Ford Gives a Deadline?

[AndyDursin]

I agree with Harrison -- it's time to make it or forget it, before everyone is getting social security.

Harrison Ford has told George Lucas and Steven Spielberg that if they don’t get “Indiana Jones 4” off-the-ground next year – they can find themselves a new man to wear ‘the hat’.

The 63-year-old tells Contact Music that, “It's looking very good to do another one. I haven't felt this positive about it happening in a long time... but if it doesn't happen in the next two years we should all forget it."

The latest is that the film will begin shooting in Autumn this year.

Producer Frank Marshall says it’s a definite priority at the moment. "Way back when Harrison was being honored by the AFI when this all started, we were all standing backstage, we saw all the movies and everything and we were a little nostalgic and mellow and we said, 'You know, that was fun. We ought to do that. Let's try and do this." Marshall tells Zap2it.com.

"Well that was a while ago. And I think that what we want is we want it to be as good as the others. These are not stories based on anything, so it's taking a while. But I'll tell you, it's on the front burner and we're gonna decide to do this or not real soon. We're gonna have a script real soon and now it's a question of getting our schedules all to where we can do it," is all Marshall can promise. "There's four of us, so it's hard."
http://www.moviehole.net/news/20060118_ ... dline.html

[Paul MacLean]

I agree with Harrison -- it's time to make it or forget it, before everyone is getting social security.

The other thing is...when will this next Indy adventure take place? Both Connery and Ford (depite the hair color) are looking a little long in the tooth. It would have to be quite some time after the previous adventures.

I say set it in the 60s. Indy's love interest could be some far-out flower-child, who he follows to India in search of enlightenment, where they discover a Maharishi-like cult leader who calls on the supernaural power of an ancient talisman to dupe American youth. Henry would of course have to follow them and scold Indy for trying to be "part of the scene" and acting half his age.

Williams' score of course would employ a lot of sitar and jazzy electric organ!


Paul

[Eric W.]

I think this movie should have been made about 10 years ago or more.

It's too late already.

[Monterey Jack]

Terminator 3 aside, I can't think of any sequels made over a decade after the original that were any good (and T3 only worked because Schwarzenegger still looked pretty much the same as he did in T2). Indy 4 would be a Phantom Menace-level disappointment (could you imagine an Indy movie with Janusz Kaminski's blown-out backlighting and lens flares? ). Ford just does not convince in action movie roles anymore. Check out the trailers for Firewall, where the big action beat consists of...Ford turning around in a chair and spraying the bad guys with a fire extinguisher. Sorry, but Grampa Jones should remain retired.

[AndyDursin]

Terminator 3 aside, I can't think of any sequels made over a decade after the original that were any good (and T3 only worked because Schwarzenegger still looked pretty much the same as he did in T2). Indy 4 would be a Phantom Menace-level disappointment (could you imagine an Indy movie with Janusz Kaminski's blown-out backlighting and lens flares? ). Ford just does not convince in action movie roles anymore. Check out the trailers for Firewall, where the big action beat consists of...Ford turning around in a chair and spraying the bad guys with a fire extinguisher. Sorry, but Grampa Jones should remain retired.

LOL. I noticed Virginia Madsen is being cast as his wife in that one -- so we've reached the point where he's off playing dad to the '80s generation, and is on the Michael Douglas syndrome more or less

I mentioned Kaminski's cinematography before. Please don't let him anywhere near Indiana Jones, thank you very much. And Paul is right -- the movie would need to be set just about in the early-mid '60s since RAIDERS will be 25 years+ old by the time they get INDY 4 out.

My problem isn't so much them doing it -- it's that they've gone from one writer to another over the years and apparently to no success whatsoever. Remember when Jeb Stuart or Frank Darabont or Jeffrey Boam or (Insert Writer Here) were attached over the years? It's all great to get together and make another......but THE LAST CRUSADE felt like a rousing, fitting goodbye, and if they don't have a real good idea behind it, why bother.

[Carlson2005]

I know it's bucking popular opinion here, but I found Last Crusade tiresome, workmanlike and derivative. It's watchable and has one okay action scene (the tank scene, a virtual reprise of the truck chase from Raiders), but it was obvious they'd run out of inspiration and enthusiasm and were just there for the money. Considering Lucas is insisting the new one be shot on video and has script approval, I don't hold out any hopes for this whatsoever. It'll make Lucas a little richer, and give Ford his first hit in years, but apart from that all it'll do is tarnish the trilogy. I think they should just drop it and get on with something they're all genuinely interested in instead.

[mkaroly]

As much as I'd like to hear a new RAIDERS score by Willaims, I must admit that Lucas' involvement has me very nervous. I did not like the prequel STAR WARS films and felt Lucas was a detriment in all areas of those films. Any control he exerts on this new film is not good. I'm going back and forth as to whether or not I want to see this released- but Ford is past it and he knows it. I agree that if you're going to do it, do it now or forget about it.

I did like LAST CRUSADE though- beautiful music and very beautiful religious subtext with the Grail sequences.

[Neo Rasa]

Subtext?

So what will they call this? Indiana Jones and the Wheelchair of Doom?

Anyone who had the misfortune to see Hollywood Homocide knows what I mean. Anytime it wasn't a stuntman being shot from behind it was pretty awful.

I can almost agree with Carlson2005 about Last Crusade. It has a very poorly paced middle third and hasn't aged nearly as well as Raiders of the Lost Ark. Special effects-wise as well, Raiders kept everything simple enough that it would have been acceptable today (I remember myself and others laughing at the colonel dummy falling out of the tank even when we were catching Last Crusade in theaters). I could watch Raiders any time and not get bored.

I think I almost do like Last Crusade's soundtrack the most though.

[mkaroly]

Subtext?

So what will they call this? Indiana Jones and the Wheelchair of Doom?

LOL- Indiana Jones and the Last Film Should Have Been the LAST Film. I love your title!

[mkaroly]

According to an interview Ford gave in a German magazine (according to the G-Block on the Fox channel), they are getting ready to start filming INDY 4 soon- he said he is brushing up on his whip stuff. I guess it's happening- he and Spielberg both approved of the script (no mention of Lucas in the brief blurb on the news).

AND....Prince will officially NOT sing 50 certain tunes from his catalogue because they are too dirt. Just threw that in there for good measure.

[Bill Williams]

I can't imagine what territory they'd cover in a fourth Indiana Jones movie. What's going to happen - we'll get to finally see how Indy loses an eye, explaining how old Indy in the "Young Indy" bookend segments wore an eyepatch?

Seriously, they should have ended it with the third one and left it at that. When I saw "The Mummy" in 1999, I couldn't help but draw all of the Indy comparisons. If Harrison Ford had been in that movie, it probably would have grossed another $100 million at the box office. He might as well pass the torch to Brendan Fraser, for all I care.

[Monterey Jack]

Not really Indy related, but these made me laugh my ass off: