The Definitive Ranking of Indiana Jones Movies, According to Tarantino
With the upcoming next installment in the Indiana Jones series due for release later this year, the renowned film director Quentin Tarantino found himself discussing the action-adventure franchise on the ReelBlend podcast.
While giving much of his own opinions on the works of other notable directors, not only did he express his admiration for the Indy flicks, but also explained exactly which of them he considers to be the best to the worst. And you would not believe the order he put them in.
The conversation emerged during the episode's topic on Spielberg and his movies.
Tarantino also admitted he regards Jaws as the best movie ever made. However, excluding the shark thriller, he thinks Indiana Jones and the Temple of Doom is Spielberg's definitive directed film.
Although many fans consider the sequel to be an inferior movie of the original Indy trilogy, Tarantino reasoned it is one of the few films demonstrating Spielberg's complete freedom as a director.
The film also is much darker in tone than the other movies of the franchise; famously leading to the creation of the PG-13 film certificate. However, he justifies its gruesome sequences as Spielberg "pushing the envelope" of his craft.
Another reason it rises to the top of Tarantino's list is because of its superb opening sequence. Quoted as being Spielberg's attempt at making his own James Bond character after his pitch was rejected, the opening scene makes a nod to the fictional spy in a thrilling action sequence at the very start of the movie. Yet fundamentally, the film also includes much of a comedy aspect. Something Tarantino feels is done not as well in the first film of the franchise Raiders of the Lost Ark; which is why Raiders isn't his favorite of the series.
Although he appreciates the combination of comedy and gore of the second film, it seems the comical feel of the third film in the franchise The Last Crusade appears at the bottom of Tarantino's Indy list.
Sarcastically he compares it to Stop! Or My Mom Will Shoot, a 1992 comedy where Sylvester Stallone plays a cop who teams up with his mom Estelle Getty. To Tarantino, it's a one-tone movie in which its only gag is Indy's broken relationship with his father, ironically played by Sean Connery. Apparently, the father-son dynamic doesn't cut it for the film expert.
"I like Crystal Skull more than the Sean Connery one," Tarantino said. "I don't like the Sean Connery one. I don't like [that] one at all. … That's such a boring one. It's boring! And he's not an interesting character. The joke is made immediately. It's like Stop! Or My Mom Will Shoot."
Almost unbelievably, the later addition to the franchise, and considered by many to be the worst of the films, Tarantino prefers Kingdom of the Crystal Skull over The Last Crusade, making it his third favorite of all four (so far) on his Indy rankings list. The 2008 film generally has the lowest score from audiences of the other films in the franchise with 6.2/10 of IMDB and only 78% on Rotten Tomatoes. However, considering his previous comments on appreciating Spielberg pushing boundaries, it seems practical to put the chaotic plot of The Crystal Skull in third place.