Apologies to everyone as an Arcade Fire thread is briefly about to turn into a *checks notes* Indiana Jones thread!

I agree Temple of Doom is flawed mainly for the reasons you suggest - Marion is a strong independent woman who could probably go on an adventure by herself and not need Indy which is one of the appeals of Raiders, while Willie Scott is just a 2D damsel in distress who does nothing but scream and act the diva. Really poor characterisation which should be the real regret of Spielberg and Lucas rather than the dark tone they wish they didn’t go for. But I generally like the straightforward story and the set pieces are memorable, while the darker tone isn’t a problem for me at all. It’s got no depth to it, but it’s simplicity and straightforward manner is a rollercoaster ride and isn’t tied up in pointless knots like Crystal Skull.

Crystal Skull - I thought the cast was great but I can’t remember anything of the characters. I even forget that Jim Broadbent was in it as the character to replace Marcus Brody. Shia La Bouef was just awful and incredibly annoying. I feel the film overreaches itself and I dislike the set pieces because the CGI ruins it and I can’t remember any of the script. I don’t get any sense of emotion from it either. There’s no heart or great sense of meaning from it like Last Crusade gave, it’s completely meaningless. I agreed with Mark Kermode when he said this film didn’t need to be made.

If I never saw a film with CGI in it again I’d be happy because we are so overexposed to it now, and it’s over used by every blockbuster director. Spielberg can’t do blockbusters anymore, he’s now just like every other half arsed director in the business I feel (I still like his more serious stuff though).

If it has to happens, Indy 5 (a film I doubt will be made) has to have an emotional heart to it, a sense of solemnity and meaning with its ageing character, in a way that the Holy Grail quest in Last Crusade was a figurative backdrop to the resolution of the distant and antagonistic relationship between father/son. Likewise, age should underpin Indy 5 and should include an archeological quest that acts as a figurative backdrop to the passing of time with a foreboding sense of mortality. Sounds morbid I know but it can be done gracefully and tastefully with the heart that you get from Raiders and Last Crusade. His age shouldn’t just be a smart one line gimmick or running joke, it should underpin the entire serious premise of the film. Only then can it be successful. Wondering what your thoughts on the next one should be?

Festivals next year with an album that summer?

I hope these Nigel Godrich producing rumors are true.

It definitely wasn’t shit. Far from it but it was the first real ding in their almost indestructible armor. I think the way they promoted it with all the fake news, fake bots, fake social media accounts and continuing to lean into all that stuff heavily did them great harm with the press and fans. Didn’t love a few production choices like trying to “loop” the album but whatever. Some of the songs were just ok but others shine very brightly (Everything Now, Creature Comfort, Put Your Money On Me, We Don’t Deserve Love).

They also over shot their coverage for their US tour. Doing coast to coast arenas wasn’t smart. They didn’t really sell any out, even when I saw them at MSG the energy was low and I think they blocked out the upper deck to get it to a sell out. Kinda reminded me of when Oasis did a USA arena tour in 1998. They could fill half the arenas and it felt more empty than packed. Strange vibe.

Win knows he has to be better. He knows the band has got to be better. He’s made several statements last year about it. I’m expecting an awesome “comeback” album from the group. Let the music do the talking and stop with the nonsense of fake news and being all meta all the time. The snippets he posted on social media were very very strong.