Remember serials? I don't, because I'm too young, and by the time I began going to the movies, it was already the practice for cinemas to stick to single, self-contained, feature-length fare. With the way screenings are arranged today, scheduled so that both theater owners and studios can get as much money from as many showings as possible, there's just no room for any accompanying shorts, especially the kind that don't end in a conclusive manner.

I'd probably be okay with being left out of that experience from the moviegoing past, but each time another Indiana Jones movie is released, I can't help but think I'm at least a little less appreciative of George Lucas' intent than some of the older folk in the audience. When Lucas thought up the original Raiders of the Lost Ark, he partly meant the film as homage to the serials he remembered from his childhood.

Yet Raiders didn't end with a cliffhanger, as most serials had on a weekly basis. And with the third sequel to that film, Indiana Jones and the Kingdom of the Crystal Skull, arriving in theaters this week, I still wonder why at least two installments couldn't have been connected with the serializing device. Lucas had already somewhat shown us, through the uncertain ending of The Empire Stikes Back and continuation/resolution beginning of Return of the Jedi, that it could be done.

I guess I'll be better equipped to comment on this after I watch Indiana Jones and the Kingdom of the Crystal Skull on Sunday, but George Lucas has told Roger Friedman that he envisions Shia LaBeouf, playing Indy's maybe-son Mutt, taking over the Indiana Jones franchise from Harrison Ford. Speaking about the "more than a strong possibility" (Friedman's words, not Lucas's) of a fifth film, Lucas says: "I have an idea to make Shia [LeBeouf] the lead character next time and have Harrison [Ford] come back like Sean Connery did in [Last Crusade]. I can see it working out." I note this without comment for now. Next week, once a bunch of us have seen Mutt's debut, we'll go nuts.

Lucas did say something else to Friedman that I found a bit offputting. In an attempt to brush off the mixed buzz on Crystal Skull, he said: "This movie is the exact same experience as the other three were. The difference is, the novelty of discovery is gone." The "exact same experience"? Why, it's almost as if the movie were a Kraft cheese stick rather than a piece of pop art! Dammit, George. We may all know it already, but some of us like to pretend otherwise. Why don't you let Spielberg do the press rounds from now on, whaddya say?



[hat tip: CinemaBlend]

Now that George Lucas and his crew are preparing to launch the first big-screen Star Wars flick in all CGI, some folks are wondering whether that means he'd be down to eventually continue the saga where Return of the Jedi left off -- especially since it wouldn't be hard to bring back original actors like Harrison Ford, Mark Hamill and Carrie Fisher to do the voice work. Fans, of course, would publicly bash such a move ... even if they'd secretly been wishing for the return of Luke, Leia and Han for years. So, would Lucas do it? Is he considering it?

In a new interview with the Los Angeles Times, the Sith King himself claims there will be no such film from him. Lucas says, "There really isn't any story to tell there. It's been covered in the books and video games and comic books, which are things I think are incredibly creative but that I don't really have anything to do with other than being the person who built the sandbox they're playing in." He continues, "I get asked all the time, 'What happens after "Return of the Jedi"?,' and there really is no answer for that. The movies were the story of Anakin Skywalker and Luke Skywalker, and when Luke saves the galaxy and redeems his father, that's where that story ends." Star Wars: The Clone Wars arrives in theaters on August 15, then heads to Cartoon Network and TNT for a weekly series.

Would you rather see a CGI Star Wars flick that takes place during The Clone Wars or after Return of the Jedi?

Why We Can't Wait to See It: Well, it's Indy. That alone is pretty much all you have to say, isn't it? Harrison Ford is back as Dr. Jones, and while some of the folks around for the ride are new (Cate Blanchett, Shia LeBouf and others), the return of Karen Allen as Marion Ravenwood is reason enough for old-school fans to be excited.

Why It Might Do Well: Again, it's Indy -- and a long-anticipated return to the big screen for one of the most beloved movie franchises of modern times. Plus, the only big opener the week before is Prince Caspian -- which, while anticipated, probably won't pull people from the ticket lines opening week.

Why It Might Not Do Well: The question's less if it will do well than if it will be good; interviews have suggested that George Lucas has taken a heavy hand in the writing this time around -- which, frankly, hasn't been a good sign in recent years. Plus there's that disturbing gimmick in the trailer with Indy saying "I thought that was closer ..."; back in the day, Spielberg, Lucas and Ford would have let that go unsaid. ...

Fun Fact: Crystal Skull takes place 19 years after the events of Indiana Jones and the Last Crusade -- the same amount of time it's been since we've seen Indy on-screen.

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With a little over a month left before Indiana Jones hits theaters for a fourth time, it's time to hear from its creators. First up, USA Today revealed a new Indiana Jones and the Kingdom of the Crystal Skull photo (see above) along with their interview with Harrison Ford. An interesting note from that interview is Ford does not rule out an Indiana Jones 5, except he'd prefer that it not take another 20 years to come together. On the character, Ford says, "He's a guy who is pretty clear from the beginning. He has not changed so much between films. But we've learned more about him, through various plot devices, such as the introduction of his father. And we'll learn something more about him in this film. I think it's required. If you're going to bring back a character, you'll have to supply the audience with something more and different. The adventure is very, very important. But it's interesting to discover a facet of the character that perhaps you hadn't explored before."

Additionally, Entertainment Weekly sat down for a very informative interview with both Steven Spielberg and George Lucas. Their talk is extensive and very fun to read (if you're a fan of either man or both); topics covered include, of course, the entire Indiana Jones series. On the Russian villainess Irina Spalko (as played by Cate Blanchett), Lucas calls her an "uber-villain," while Spielberg says, "Of all the villains I've been able to work with in the Indiana Jones movies, I can say she's my favorite. And I think Cate made her that way."

Imagine if The Dark Knight or Indiana Jones and the Kingdom of the Crystal Skull initially opened in limited release, and then took a month or so to reach you in "flyover country." But on the same day that they hit those first theaters in New York and L.A., they were also available on your television, via Video on Demand. Would you wait a few weeks to see the blockbusters on the big screen or would you lack the patience and go ahead and download the movies to your cable box? Of course you would choose the VOD route. I probably would, as well.

Despite this column, I cannot claim to be a purist when it comes to theatrical film exhibition. I subscribe to Netflix and even sometimes watch old movies on the Watch Now streaming player. I now own a video iPod, and while I haven't yet tried watching a feature, I have had no problem watching shorts and television episodes on its small screen and am not totally against eventually downloading a whole movie from iTunes. And although New York's Film Forum is currently showing a ton of United Artists classics, many of which I've never seen at all and a number of which I've never seen on the big screen, I haven't been able to make my way to Manhattan to appreciate the retrospective.

With Indiana Jones and the Kingdom of the Crystal Skull due out on May 22, George Lucas wants everyone to know that it's "just a movie." I did think the unused tagline "This will be the greatest piece of visual material your eyes will ever witness" was just a tad too much. Instead, I like "George Lucas says 'it's just a movie'" a whole lot better. USA Today sat down with The Lucas to talk about the hype surrounding this fourth installment, and how similar hype (with regards to those newer Star Wars flicks) has hurt the way fans have viewed the films in the past.

He says, "When you do a movie like this, a sequel that's very, very anticipated, people anticipate ultimately that it's going to be the Second Coming. And it's not. It's just a movie. Just like the other movies. You probably have fond memories of the other movies. But if you went back and looked at them, they might not hold up the same way your memory holds up." Really? Sure, I'll give you Speed 2: Cruise Control, but Raiders of the Lost Ark holds up quite well, IMO. He continues, "We came back to do (Indy) because we wanted to have fun. It's not going to make much money for us in the end. We all have some money. ... It would make a lot of money if you weren't rich. But we're not doing it for the money."

I absolutely love the line ... "it would make a lot of money if you weren't rich." Yeah, thanks George for reminding us that half a billion dollars (or more, probably) is, like, the equivalent of a couple nickels and dimes for you. Indiana Jones and the Quest for More Money No One Needs arrives in theaters on May 22.

p.s. Is it just me, or is anyone else dying to spot Lucas wearing a "Don't Believe the Hype" t-shirt?

I find it kind of interesting -- no, funny, actually -- that while tons of movie fans were down in Austin for SXSW, enjoying the greatest cinema experience available, at the Alamo Drafthouse (Ritz and South Lamar), exhibitors from all over the country were piling into Las Vegas for ShoWest, the annual convention and trade show, where discussion and conversation often turns to the question, "how can we make moviegoing a better experience and, more importantly, a more lucrative business?"

Maybe some of the suits should have made the trip to SXSW instead, had a beer and a burger (ahem, a Royale with Cheese), and started lobbying their districts, if need be, to begin following the business model of the Alamo. I know that in my state of New York, it's not technically legal to serve alcohol in a cinema, but surely it is part of some antiquated law that needs to be adjusted (like how technically you're not allowed to dance at many bars in NYC).

George Lucas showed up in Vegas to promote Star Wars: The Clone Wars, and managed to be fairly cagey when it came to revealing anything to Empire. He showed a five minute clip (share, share!) and described the retro futuristic look as "a stylised cartoon, it's not photo real ... it's in a Gerry Anderson style, Thunderbirds. The characters have painted surfaces - they look like they've been painted."

He also assured fans that it will feature all the major characters, as it takes place between Episodes II and III of the Star Wars saga. "It's got everyone. Yoda, The Emperor ... everybody that's in the features is in the animated series. It's just as if we took the feature and just continued it in an animation style." Alas, but not unexpected, none of the original cast members will be voicing their characters.

A new trend seems to find these big summer blockbusters premiering at the early summer film festivals. Last year, Spider-Man 3 took over Tribeca (and I'd expect the Tribeca folks to try to woo Iron Man to premiere this year), and films like Ocean's 13 premiered at the Cannes Film Festival a couple weeks later. Now, Fox News says folks from the Cannes festival are in talks with Steven Spielberg's reps in an attempt to premiere Indiana Jones and the Kingdom of the Crystal Skull at the festival this May. While it will debut only a week or so prior to the official release here in the states, it will give those attending Cannes the jump on getting the first reviews out there.

Cinematical will hopefully be at Cannes again this year, though accreditation is always tight and always up in the air. If Indy does premiere at Cannes, it will likely be the talk of the festival and we assume folks like Spielberg, George Lucas, Harrison Ford, Cate Blanchett, Shia LaBeouf and Karen Allen will be on hand to walk the red carpet. I imagine those peeps heading to Cannes in May just found a new reason to get excited. Indiana Jones and the Kingdom of the Crystal Skull officially arrives in theaters on May 22.