Yes, Harrison Ford is tired of hearing the term “after all these years …”
“I am,” the 65-year-old superstar said recently. “It’s as good a way to start as any, though.”
We’re talking, of course, about “Indiana Jones and the Kingdom of the Crystal Skull.” The long-awaited fourth entry in the blockbuster action-adventure series opens Thursday, 19 years after the third installment, “Indiana Jones and the Last Crusade.”
While the other films came in an eight-year span, “Crystal Skull” acknowledges that nearly two decades have passed since Indy’s prewar, Nazi-fighting days. This meant making his main antagonist a ruthless Soviet operative, Irina Spalko, played by Cate Blanchett.
Then there’s also the subject of Indy’s — and Ford’s — age. As the years passed, the prospect of the sexagenarian actor running through jungles cracking a whip grew increasingly absurd. But the Chicago native, who looks incredibly trim and muscular months after the shoot ended, says getting in shape for the role was no problem.
“I believe in training for injury prevention more than anything else,” he said. “I’m an old fart and I need to protect myself, so I trained quite a bit. I had an exercise trailer rigged for me, and I worked out every single day before going to work. And I was lucky enough not to become injured at all.
“I think I’m probably in as good shape now as I was for the last one — but don’t forget, I was old then!”
The reason for the gap between films was that the franchise’s three principal talents — Ford, creator-producer George Lucas and director Steven Spielberg — refused to take up the fedora and bullwhip again until they all agreed they had the right script. After many drafts from a slew of writers, a screenplay by David Koepp “got close enough for everybody to get really enthusiastic about it,” Ford said.
Set in the 1950s, “Crystal Skull” brings back Marion Ravenwood (Karen Allen), Indy’s love interest from the first film, and introduces a new character, Shia LaBeouf’s Mutt Williams, who may or may not be more than just the grizzled archaeologist’s young sidekick.
Ford already had earned a good degree of notoriety as Han Solo in Lucas’ “Star Wars” before Indy shot his career into the stratosphere.
“They’ve been enormously important for the longevity of my career,” Ford said of the “Indy” movies. “I’ve been living off them ever since.”
FAST-PAISED
Kingdom of the Crystal Skull
RATING: 3 EXCLAMATION POINTS
“Thank goodness, Ford’s still got it.”
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BONUS QUESTION
Which actor co-starred in three “Lord of the Rings” and two Indy movies? Text “indy” and the number of your response to 47383. You’ll get a message in return telling you if you got the answer right or wrong.
1) John Rhys-Davies
2) Ian McKellen
3) Viggo Mortenssen
4) Hugo Weaving
Could he fill Ford’s fedora?
Is Shia LaBeouf the new Harrison Ford?
“Indiana Jones and the Kingdom of the Crystal Skull” brings back Ford as everyone’s favorite archaeologist. He’s sharing the screen with a young co-star in LaBeouf (above), who, in his leather jacket, cuffed jeans and scowl, looks clearly modeled on Marlon Brando from “The Wild One.”
LaBeouf’s character has switchblade swagger and wounded eyes and the intriguing name of Mutt Williams — Mutt sure makes it sound as if he’s looking for his lineage, doesn’t it? Harrison Ford wouldn’t touch that question, but he did praise LaBeouf.
“He’s young, but he’s an old soul, and he’s been an actor most of his life,” Ford said. “He knows what he’s doing.”
LaBeouf’s career trajectory is going strong, and maybe “Indy” director Steven Spielberg (who was also a producer of the LaBeouf-starring “Transformers”) has found his screen hero for the next two decades. [L.A. TIMES]
