George Lucas Talks Indy 4: Promises It Will Be As Good As Lost Ark

October 8, 2007
Source: VH1
by Alex Billington

With the release of Indiana Jones and the Kingdom of the Crystal Skull getting closer every day (only 227 more days left until May 22nd), more and more discussion is occurring, from filmmakers and fans alike. George Lucas made an appearance last week in Los Angeles for AFI's 40th Anniversary at the Arclight and spoke with VH1 about Indy 4, saying it would be "the best Indy flick since the first one" and calling it "tonally most like Raiders of the Lost Ark." What else can we expect? Lucas goes on to speak much more about what exactly the crystal skulls are and what we will find within the upcoming Indiana Jones adventure starring Shia LaBeouf and Harrison Ford.

Lucas seems to be most excited about the crystal skulls. They've been working on this sequel for nearly 14 years but haven't settled on a good script worth making until now. "We've been through lots of different versions [of Indy 4] the last 14 years, with five different writers. [But with crystal skulls] there's just a lot of aspects that seem to fit into our kind of a movie." Lucas goes on to talk about the skulls further.

"I think this is actually better, it's up there with the Ark of the Covenant," he declared of the fourth film's "McGuffin" (a term coined by Alfred Hitchcock to describe an object which drives a film's plot). "Sankara Stones and the Holy Grail were a little tough, but I think this time we've really got a great one."

"The skulls themselves are real and a lot of the stuff in the movie is real, just like in the other movies," Lucas continued. "We don't base it on a lot of phony-baloney stuff. It's all based on at least true mythology that exists today that … a certain amount of the population actually believes in.

Curious to know more about the skulls and their mythological history? VH1 has a bit more with Lucas about the skulls and the film, but nothing that revealing. Really want to know more or hear some spoilers? Too bad, as Lucas says best, "just wait until the movie comes out, which is so much easier."

Despite being a huge Indiana Jones fan, my opinion is like almost everyone else's at the moment: I'm worried there will be too many aliens and unrealistic plot twists. The reason why Raiders of the Lost Ark and The Last Crusade were so good is because they were almost completely real, as if Indiana was doing all of that himself in some far off land but in the same universe we live in. If aliens get involved it is no longer the same universe and it risks being too campy. I can only hope for the best and continue to have faith in Steven Spielberg and George Lucas.

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