Indiana Jones brings fans out for midnight debut at local theater
By Winkie Lee
Published in News on May 22, 2008 2:00 PM
It's about 20 minutes until midnight, and two young men step out of a car and walk toward the door of the Premiere Theatres. As they do, one begins to sing the theme music to the Indiana Jones films.
The midnight show held on Wednesday was an advance screening for those who wanted to be the first to see the show, and there were several who came.
As they filed into the lobby shortly before going into the theater itself, some spoke of how much they loved the past films. Indiana Jones could be counted on to provide action, humor and, of course, Harrison Ford, they said.
These audience members obviously knew Indy and were glad to see him back. Not one of them expressed any lesser expectations from "Indiana Jones and the Kingdom of the Crystal Skull" just because the character is now in his 60s.
But ... wait a minute.
It didn't take a close look to realize that most of these people were born about the time the last film was released.
What is it that draws them to Indiana Jones?
"I watched the last one ("Indiana Jones and the Last Crusade," 1989) a lot," said Patrick Griffith, 19, of Golds-boro. "When I was growing up, it was always on. Harri-son Ford and Sean Connery -- they were a good team."
Ethan Cooper, 18, of Goldsboro has seen "The Last Crusade" and "Raiders of the Lost Ark," and said the humor in the films appealed to him. He expected the exchanges between actors Harrison Ford and Shia LaBeouf to be as entertaining as those between Ford and Connery had been.
Patrick said the casting of LaBeouf was a good choice. Just as Harrison Ford with his "Indiana Jones" and "Star Wars" films has become a part of the younger generation's lives, so has LaBeouf, who is much younger.
"Back in the day, he was on the Disney channel," Patrick said. "A lot of us grew up with him."
A big appeal of the Indiana Jones films is the action.
"All guys like action movies," Patrick said.
The gals must like them too, because there were several women at the theater.
Aimie Lisa Hook, 18, of Goldsboro said that she was introduced to Indiana Jones through her two older brothers and television. Jones' crazy adventures mixed with "his ability to use anything to solve problems" appealed to her.
Dana Hill, 23, of Goldsboro came to see "The Kingdom of the Crystal Skull" because "Indiana Jones is just like a classic. With them bringing it back after all these years," it just seemed right to go.
Afterward, reactions to the film were mixed.
Christopher Bean, 22, of Goldsboro said it lived up to his expectations.
"They did such a great job sticking with the traditional Indiana Jones," he said.
Among his favorite scenes was one involving a refrigerator and a nuclear blast. "It just jumped out as a classic Indiana Jones moment," he said.
Ashley Smith, 18, of Goldsboro had not seen any of the older Indy films, but said she would like to now. "The Kingdom of the Crystal Skull" "was kind of weird, but hilarious," she said.