--- title: "Indiana Jones and the Kingdom of the Crystal Skull" year: 2008 kind: "film" canonical: "https://film.one/film/indiana-jones-and-the-kingdom-of-the-crystal-skull" fi1m_score: 55 critics_score: 60 critics_reviews: 16 published: "2026-09-19T12:52:01.908973+00:00" updated: "2026-09-19T12:52:03.650266+00:00" region: "US" licence: "© Fi1m Ltd. Written by AI under a human editor; checked against sources before publication. Quote with attribution and a link to the canonical URL." --- # Indiana Jones and the Kingdom of the Crystal Skull (2008) Directed by Steven Spielberg · 2h 02m · MPA PG-13 · Adventure, Action **Fi1m score: 55** · Critics 60 from 16 reviews *In a sentence:* Harrison Ford survives an atomic bomb in a fridge, then spends ninety minutes wishing he had stayed in it > Spielberg’s fourth Indiana Jones film opens with forty minutes near the old standard, then loses its way in the jungle, handing the stunts to a computer and the plot to a man who talks in riddles. Ford is worth it; the rest is not. ## Synopsis Nevada, 1957. A convoy of Soviet soldiers drives into a government warehouse with two prisoners: Indiana Jones (Harrison Ford) and his old comrade George ‘Mac’ McHale (Ray Winstone). Their commander, Irina Spalko (Cate Blanchett), a Soviet scientist with a rapier and a black bob, wants a crate Jones was once made to examine, and she wants him to find it. He does, escapes, and walks straight into an atomic test. At Marshall College, Dean Charles Stanforth (Jim Broadbent) tells him the FBI has questions and the college wants him gone. Then a young man with a motorbike and a quiff, Mutt Williams (Shia LaBeouf), turns up with a letter from Professor Harold Oxley (John Hurt), who has vanished in Peru looking for a crystal skull. Jones and Mutt go after him. ## Review Nineteen years after [*Indiana Jones and the Last Crusade*](https://film.one/film/indiana-jones-and-the-last-crusade) (1989), Steven Spielberg has brought the archaeologist back, older, greyer and still wearing the hat. The idea, from a story by George Lucas and Jeff Nathanson and a screenplay by David Koepp, is a good one: move the series out of the 1930s serials it was built on and into the 1950s B-picture, with atom bombs, flying saucers, Soviets and boys on motorbikes. For its first forty minutes the film does exactly that. Then it goes to the jungle, the computer takes over, and 122 minutes later we came out fond of it and not much more. The opening is the good part. Guy Hendrix Dyas builds a government warehouse of crates stacked to the roof, and Janusz Kamiński lights it with hard shafts of light through dust, so that it looks like the last shot of [*Raiders of the Lost Ark*](https://film.one/film/raiders-of-the-lost-ark) (1981) seen from the other side. Then Jones runs into a town built for an atomic test, with mannequins at the dinner tables and a television on, and hides in a lead-lined fridge. We sat up. Ford standing on a ridge against the mushroom cloud, hat in hand, is the one image in the film we would keep, and when John Williams brought the march in over it we forgave a good deal in advance. Ford plays the age rather than hiding it. Koepp’s script keeps mentioning that Jones is not the man he was, and Ford agrees with it, moving stiffly, grumbling, and then doing the whip business with the old timing when it counts. Cate Blanchett’s Irina Spalko, a Soviet scientist who claims to read minds, arrives with a rapier, a black bob, a fitted grey uniform from Mary Zophres and an accent from a sillier film, and she is the best of the supporting cast because she alone seems to know exactly what kind of film this is. Shia LaBeouf’s Mutt Williams, all comb and black leather, is better than his reputation; what he is asked to do with vines and monkeys is not his fault. Karen Allen comes back as Marion Ravenwood, and her rowing with Ford across the front seat of a moving vehicle is the warmest thing in the film after the fridge. The rest of the cast is doing the plot’s job for it. John Hurt’s Professor Oxley spends an hour talking in riddles, and the riddles are what the film has instead of a story; whenever someone needs to know where to go next, Oxley says something about a skull and off they drive. Ray Winstone’s Mac changes sides so often we stopped keeping score. Jim Broadbent has one good scene as the dean who breaks the bad news and is then gone. The jungle is where the film loses its nerve. The long truck chase through the trees, with Blanchett and LaBeouf fencing across two vehicles, is cut cleanly by Michael Kahn and would be a proper set piece if the frame were not filling up with things that were never there: ants the size of terriers, three waterfalls in a row, a troop of monkeys who swing alongside Mutt as if he were one of them. The monkeys made us groan out loud. By the ants we were no longer worried for anyone, and worry is the whole trade of this series. Kamiński’s hazy, diffused light, so handsome in the warehouse, flattens the jungle into a painted backdrop, and the practical falls and crashes the earlier films were built on are mostly absent. The second half turns towards the skull and a temple, and we will not describe where it ends up, except to say that Lucas’s story credit shows and that the last ten minutes are softer than the series has ever allowed itself. Most critics have been a little kinder than we are, and we understand why: the film is hard to dislike, the cast is enjoying itself, and the first act is close to the real thing. But *Raiders of the Lost Ark* frightened us and [*Indiana Jones and the Temple of Doom*](https://film.one/film/indiana-jones-and-the-temple-of-doom) (1984) frightened children, and this frightened nobody, which is a strange thing for an adventure film to have settled for. See it for the warehouse, the fridge and Blanchett, and see it with someone under twelve, who will not mind the monkeys. It runs 122 minutes and carries a 12A, and the certificate is about right: nothing in it will keep anyone up. *Fi1m score 55, published 19 September 2026.* ## What the critics say Most critics find it an acceptable return rather than a great one: eight of sixteen come down positive, and the praise clusters in the same places. Ford’s weary charm carries it, LaBeouf is a welcome sidekick, and Cate Blanchett’s villain is singled out more often than any set piece. Several reviews admire the opening stretch, with the early chase and the fridge scene mentioned as Spielberg at his most confident, and the practical stunt work is generally preferred to what follows. The reservations gather in the second half. Once the story reaches the jungle, critics complain of convoluted plotting, heavier computer effects and a supernatural finale that even friendly reviews call hokum. The spread is wide: Den of Geek calls it a triumph, while The Guardian finds the revival pointless and The Hollywood Reporter a wearying onslaught that swamps story and character. A few also note the Russian villains never frighten the way the Nazis did. ### Reviews we read (16) - **Radio Times**, Andrew Collins (4/5): The film delivers exhausting but enjoyable Saturday matinée thrills with chases, giant ants, secret passageways and aliens. It is hard to dislike thanks to Ford's weary charm, LaBeouf as the new sidekick and an emphasis on old-school stuntwork. [Read](https://www.radiotimes.com/movie-guide/b-5kaz85/indiana-jones-and-the-kingdom-of-the-crystal-skull/) - **Screen Daily** (75/100, inferred): The old magic still works in this fond reunion with an old friend that will not disappoint fans or new audiences as a summer blockbuster. It improves greatly once the treasure hunt and action sequences begin, with strong performances from Ford, LaBeouf and Allen balancing the spectacle. [Read](https://www.screendaily.com/indiana-jones-and-the-kingdom-of-the-crystal-skull/4038995.article) - **Empire**, Damon Wise (70/100, inferred): The critic calls it a minor triumph plucked from the jaws of disappointment, a real Indy movie that preserves the character's intelligence, urbanity and kick-arse cool while delivering slick fun action beats. [Read](https://www.empireonline.com/movies/reviews/indiana-jones-kingdom-crystal-skull-review/) - **Los Angeles Times**, Kenneth Turan (70/100, inferred): The film avoids anticlimax and is entertaining in its own right thanks to Spielberg's skilled handling of stunts and effects, making it one of the better entries in the series even if not as iconic as Raiders. Supporting players like Blanchett shine amid solid action set pieces. [Read](https://www.latimes.com/entertainment/la-et-jones19-2008may19-story.html) - **The AV Club**, Scott Tobias (B-): The review notes that while Spielberg orchestrates robust silliness with visual panache, the film fails to stick the landing after a strong start. The fun dissipates into noisy supernatural hokum as the story becomes overstuffed and labored. [Read](https://www.avclub.com/indiana-jones-and-the-kingdom-of-the-crystal-skull-1798204334) - **The New York Times**, Manohla Dargis (70/100, inferred): The film is a boomer-friendly reunion adventure that keeps the mood light and PG-13 friendly while delivering familiar thrills with Harrison Ford returning as Indy. It serves up reunion energy but notes some softening in the series' edge compared to earlier entries. [Read](https://www.nytimes.com/2008/05/22/movies/22indy.html) - **The Telegraph**, Sukhdev Sandhu (60/100, inferred): The first 40 minutes are lean, delightful and terrifically handled with a brilliant fridge scene and exciting chase, but the film veers off course in the jungle with overly complicated plotting. Harrison Ford is fine, if a little stiff, and the script acknowledges his age while positioning a potential successor. [Read](https://www.telegraph.co.uk/culture/film/filmreviews/10526537/Indiana-Jones-and-the-Kingdom-of-the-Crystal-Skull-review.html) - **Time Out**, Dave Calhoun (3/5): The film is an acceptable but minor thrill ride that lacks the punch and pace of the earlier entries, relying too much on spectacle and CGI rather than human stunts. It works as passable nostalgia and old-fashioned action-adventure but the sentimental ending feels excessive. [Read](https://www.timeout.com/movies/indiana-jones-and-the-kingdom-of-the-crystal-skull) - **Total Film** (60/100, inferred): It is neither the disaster some predicted nor the triumph others may claim; the new Russian villains do not convey the universal fear of the Nazis and the plotting is so-so, but Shia LaBeouf sails through the thrills and Ford can still crack the whip. [Read](https://www.gamesradar.com/indiana-jones-and-the-kingdom-of-the-crystal-skull-review/) - **The Times** (55/100, inferred): It is an entertaining if uninspired film that delivers what fans expect from the familiar formula of exposition and action, though it lacks a heroic moment that brings everything together perfectly. The cold war premise is treated as absurd as the film itself, but the execution feels formulaic. [Read](https://www.thetimes.com/culture/tv-radio/article/indiana-jones-and-the-kingdom-of-the-crystal-skull-the-sunday-times-review-527d8k37rtb) - **The New Yorker**, David Denby (40/100, inferred): Reviving the series after 19 years was a mistake, as the blend of comedy and action is mostly gone, leaving stretches flat and dull despite a few dazzling sequences and strong turns like Cate Blanchett. Reckless daring feels missing, giving the film a faint aura of depression. [Read](https://www.newyorker.com/magazine/2008/06/02/indy-charts) - **The Guardian**, Peter Bradshaw (35/100, inferred): The film feels like forcing an elderly elephant out of retirement to perform tricks, rendering it somewhat pointless despite some strong stunts and one flash of Spielberg brilliance. The familiar serial-adventure formula has lost its thrill amid overfamiliar tropes and underwhelming effects. [Read](https://www.theguardian.com/culture/2008/may/23/actionandadventure.thriller) - **Slant Magazine**, Nick Schager (30/100, inferred): The critic calls the film bloated and disappointingly diminutive in imagination, with Ford's Indy reduced to a sourpuss crank. It relies on nostalgia and derivative set pieces rather than invention or genuine tension. [Read](https://www.slantmagazine.com/film/indiana-jones-and-the-kingdom-of-the-crystal-skull/) - **The Hollywood Reporter**, Kirk Honeycutt (30/100, inferred): The critic finds the film a wearying onslaught of action and effects that swamps any story or character relationships. It loses the wit and romance of earlier entries and feels like work for the cast and filmmakers. [Read](https://www.hollywoodreporter.com/movies/movie-reviews/indiana-jones-kingdom-crystal-skull-2-125021/) - **Den of Geek**, Mike Jennings (4 out of 5): The critic calls it an absolute triumph and a perfect tribute to the franchise, praising the action sequences performed practically and the nostalgic elements. Minor complaints include a rushed ending and one weak performance. [Read](https://www.denofgeek.com/movies/indiana-jones-and-the-kingdom-of-the-crystal-skull-review/) - **Paste**, Robert Davis (70/100, inferred): The critic finds the film fun but not as good as the original, praising the action sequences' clarity and realness, Cate Blanchett's villain, and the visual style, while complaining about the convoluted plot, flat jokes, and a finale that risks cheapening the myth. [Read](https://www.pastemagazine.com/movies/indiana-jones/indiana-jones-and-the-kingdom-of-the-crystal-skull) ## Details - **Director:** Steven Spielberg - **Director:** Steven Spielberg - **Screenplay:** David Koepp - **Story:** George Lucas, Jeff Nathanson - **Cinematography:** Janusz Kamiński - **Editor:** Michael Kahn - **Music:** John Williams - **Production design:** Guy Hendrix Dyas - **Costume design:** Mary Zophres - **Producer:** Frank Marshall - **Cast:** Harrison Ford as Indiana Jones; Cate Blanchett as Irina Spalko; Karen Allen as Marion Ravenwood; Shia LaBeouf as Mutt Williams; Ray Winstone as George 'Mac' McHale; John Hurt as Professor Harold Oxley; Jim Broadbent as Dean Charles Stanforth; Igor Jijikine as Antonin Dovchenko - **Runtime:** 2h 02m - **Certificate (MPA):** PG-13 - **Release (the US):** 22 May 2008 - **Genres:** Adventure, Action - **Budget:** $185 million - **Box office:** $787 million - **Trailer:** https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=kTJy1rFBtVw ## Where to watch in the US - Disney+: streaming, uhd - Paramount+: streaming, hd - Hulu: add-on, hd - Apple TV: add-on, uhd - The Roku Channel: add-on, hd - Amazon Prime Video: add-on, uhd - Amazon Prime Video: rent $3.99, uhd - Apple TV: rent $3.99, hd - Apple TV: buy $6.99, hd - Amazon Prime Video: buy $16.99, uhd *Checked 2026-09-19.* Also available in: AE, AR, AT, AU, BE, BG, BR, CA, CH, CL, CO, CZ, DE, DK, EC, EE, ES, FI, FR, GB, GR, HK, HR, HU, ID, IE, IL, IN, IS, IT, JP, KR, LT, MX, MY, NL, NO, NZ, PA, PE, PH, PL, PT, RO, RS, SE, SG, SI, SK, TH, TR, UA, US, VN, ZA. Add `?region=XX` to this URL for another country. ## If you liked this - *Raiders of the Lost Ark* (1981), Fi1m 93: The original: one boulder, one truck, one man, and every stunt done for real. — [Fi1m page](https://film.one/film/raiders-of-the-lost-ark.md) - *Kiss Me Deadly* (1955), Fi1m 87: The 1950s paranoia this film is imitating, with a glowing box and no monkeys. — [Fi1m page](https://film.one/film/kiss-me-deadly.md) - *Romancing the Stone* (1984): Jungle, treasure and a bickering couple, played for laughs and better at them. - *Aguirre, the Wrath of God* (1972), Fi1m 91: A hunt for a lost city where the river and the madness are entirely real. — [Fi1m page](https://film.one/film/aguirre-the-wrath-of-god.md) - *The Adventures of Tintin* (2011): Spielberg doing the chase-and-treasure film in animation, where the computer belongs. --- © Fi1m Ltd. Written by AI under a human editor; checked against sources before publication. Quote with attribution and a link to the canonical URL. Canonical: https://film.one/film/indiana-jones-and-the-kingdom-of-the-crystal-skull