I just walked out of the completely packed press screening of Indiana Jones and the Kingdom of the Crystal Skull. James will have his review up shortly, but before the press conference begins, I wanted to give you my quick initial impression of the film, which is: Indy 4 is a nicely satisfying continuation of the franchise, and will please most Indy fans.

Though the first act drags a bit, the latter two-thirds of the film pick up the pace, and the film is packed with all the familiar elements fans have come to expect from Indiana Jones. John Williams's classic score still thrills, and the film, for the most part, meets the expectations set when you hear those familiar first bars of the theme song. Harrison Ford is older, of course (aren't we all), but still brings the role all the charm, daring and humor Indy should have. Shia LaBeouf holds his own alongside Ford, bringing to his role a combination of swaggering bravado and hidden vulnerability that mirrors the younger Ford in the earlier films. And it's great to see Karen Allen back on the screen for the sequel, still full of sass; although she is saddled with a couple of lines of fairly cringe-worthy dialog, you just can't help but like Marion.

Gallery: Indiana Jones and the Kingdom of the Crystal Skull

As for the storyline, I'm not going to give it away here, other than to say yes, it's fantastical, yes, some of the action sequences are unrealistic, but then, wasn't that true for the first three films as well? The closing sequence is mostly satisfying, with a final moment that hints at the possibility of a sequel (perhaps more than one?) with LaBeouf stepping into the forefront. I'll leave it to James to tell you the rest.

As for the screening, I got in line way early to ensure I got in. One lucky guy near me, wearing his "Indy" hat, was hanging out with a sign begging for a ticket, and, miraculously, someone actually gave him one; he couldn't quite seem to get over his good fortune. When the line started moving, folks started singing the Indy theme song; the enthusiasm was contagious, and carried over into the Lumiere, where the Indy song could be heard again as the lights went down. This was one crowd that was all fired up to enjoy this film, and it's a good thing they did, because I'd imagine that if the film had ended up being bad, there might have been an ugly scene. So many of us grew up on Indy, and nothing today would have been worse than having those childhood memories sullied with a lousy sequel.

One thing I'll add here -- I counted about 20 walkouts on the balcony level during the screening, including a couple who grabbed choice aisle seats only to leave, literally, 10 minutes in. Not that I've never walked out on a film -- James and I did so last night, in fact, at Serbis, but this was Indy, for Pete's sake, one of the hottest tickets at the fest, and countless people waited in line only to not get in. If you're going to take a seat at a film that so many folks are dying to get into, for pity's sake, have the manners to stay for the duration. I'm just saying.

Press conference is about to start, I'll be back with more later.