Indiana Jones and the Kingdom of the Crystal SkullMovie Reviews

Poster art for "Indiana Jones and the Kingdom of the Crystal Skull."

Gifts + Promos

Want a free ticket?

Buy tickets & receive a FREE 3-Month Love Forecast from Astrology.com!

Send your sweetheart the gift of movies this Valentine’s Day!

Enter for a chance to win a trip for 2 to Nicaragua!

Who's taking home the Oscar? Cast your vote & challenge your friends on Facebook!

Need Help?

Avg. Critic Score: 65 out of 100 Generally favorable reviews Metascore^® based on all critic reviews

Information for Parents:

OK for kids 11+

Read Common Sense Media review

Critic scores range from 0 to 100, with higher scores indicating more favorable reviews.

88

Chicago Sun-Times | Roger Ebert
I can say that if you liked the other Indiana Jones movies, you will like this one, and that if you did not, there is no talking to you. Read full review
80

Variety | Todd McCarthy
Nineteen years after their last adventure, director Steven Spielberg and star Harrison Ford have no trouble getting back in the groove with a story and style very much in keeping with what has made the series so perennially popular. Read full review
80

Los Angeles Times | Kenneth Turan
Though the film stars a relaxed and capable Harrison Ford as everyone's favorite intrepid archaeologist and boasts supporting players ranging from Cate Blanchett as a superb villainess to Shia LaBeouf as the inevitable youngster, the real heroes of this film are director Steven Spielberg and the veritable army of superb technicians who turn the film's numerous stunts and special effects into trains that insist on running on time. Read full review
75

San Francisco Chronicle | Mick LaSalle
The movie moves. It has action sequences that are so enormous that they won't just wow audiences, but rock them back in their seats and make them laugh at the audacity of it all. Read full review
70

Washington Post | Stephen Hunter
It's romantic manliness at its purest, almost but not quite schmaltz, ideally calculated to please true believers and ironic snorters at once. Read full review
67

Entertainment Weekly | Lisa Schwarzbaum
Harrison Ford? Terrific -- and re-energized. Read full review
63

Rolling Stone | Peter Travers
Audiences looking for emotional resonance in Indy 4 are doomed to the temple of disappointment. Spielberg and Lucas aren't upping their creative game -- they're taking care of business. Read full review
63

USA Today | Claudia Puig
Even with the ponderous dialogue, it's hard not to have fun on this adventure, and it's good to see that Indy, though slightly weary, still has the goods. Read full review
60

The Hollywood Reporter | Kirk Honeycutt
Director Steven Spielberg seems intent on celebrating his entire early career here. Whatever the story there is, a vague journey to return a spectacular archeological find to its rightful home -- an unusual goal of the old grave-robber, you must admit -- gets swamped in a sea of stunts and CGI that are relentless as the scenes and character relationships are charmless. Read full review
60

The New York Times | Manohla Dargis
There's plenty of frantic energy here, lots of noise and money too, but what's absent is any sense of rediscovery, the kind that's necessary whenever a filmmaker dusts off an old formula or a genre standard. Read full review

Metacritic link View more reviews for Indiana Jones and the Kingdom of the Crystal Skull on Metacritic

Information for Parents

Common Sense Media says OK for kids 11+ Fourth Indy isn't perfect, but it's fun. OK for older tweens

What Parents Need to Know Parents need to know that Indiana Jones' fourth adventure is one of the most anticipated movies of the past 20 years, and kids will definitely want to see it. It bears the marks of classic Indy fare -- meaning lots of adventures, some of which (like a scene involving killer ants, or another involving an atomic bomb test) might be too spooky for younger kids. There's a supernatural and extra-terrestrial undercurrent and lots of punch-heavy good-guy-versus-bad-guy fights, which do have some blood (as well as plenty of weapons, including swords and guns). There's also a bit of light swearing ("s--t," "son of a bitch," etc.) and innuendo, and enemies routinely hurl unpleasant threats at each other. But it's all handed with roguish, acerbic Indy wit, which makes it -- for the most part -- all in good, popcorn movie fun.

Families can talk about what Indiana Jones stands for. If he's a good guy, why does he break the rules? Is that OK? What separates him from the "bad" guys? Are real-life bad guys as thoroughly evil as the ones in movies? Where does Mutt fit in? What does he have in common with Indy? How are they different? Families can also discuss the ongoing appeal of the Indiana Jones series. Why is Indy so popular? Why is it so hard for other movies to duplicate the Indy formula? Do you think the franchise needed another movie? Why or why not?

The good stuff

Positive messages: Many double-crosses take place; a friend becomes disloyal, which endangers Indy; a long-buried lie is uncovered; enemies are portrayed one-dimensionally as purely evil; lots of bickering between a few of the characters (though there's lots of affection, too). Nevertheless, all of the havoc that takes place appears to be for the greater good.

What to watch for

Violence: Plenty of it, mostly played out in typical adventurous Indy fashion: Characters shoot at each other; there's lots of punching, kicking, and shoving; swords are pointed at enemies' throats; characters attack each other with guns and swords from moving cars in one extended scene. Minor characters are killed in various ways -- gunfire, falls, crashes, etc. One group goes out in flames when a powerful rocket ignites. A few parts may scare young kids -- especially a sequence in which a sea of killer ants engulfs victims, or an early scene in which Indy is nearly the victim of an atomic bomb test (scary images of mushroom clouds and exploding houses/mannequins). Also expect lots of skulls and mummies and other spooky-for-young-children elements.
Sex: Some sexual banter, but nothing lewd.
Language: A few uses of words like "bulls--t," "shut up," "son of a bitch," and "damn." One or two "s--t"s.
Consumerism: Period-accurate signage for buses, the U.S. Army, laundry soap, airlines (Pan Am).
Drinking, drugs and smoking: Very little. One character appears inebriated at one point, but it's just implied.

Common Sense Media An independent nonprofit dedicated to providing families the information they need to help kids thrive in a world of media and technology. © Common Sense Media Inc. 2010. All rights reserved.