It's been 19 years since we last thrilled to the adventures of Indiana Jones, the globe-trotting, fedora-wearing, whip-wielding archaeologist who loves to solve mysteries about ancient cultures and track down faraway treasures. In this rousing drama directed by Steven Spielberg, the inimitable and cantankerous hero finds himself right in the middle of an attempted Soviet takeover of a Nevada nuclear testing base in 1957. Irina Spalko (Cate Blanchett) is searching for an object which she believes will give the Russians the power to read the minds of their enemies and control them completely. Indiana Jones (Harrison Ford) escapes her clutches and survives a nuclear blast as well. Not bad for a senior citizen whose ferocious energy disputes most signs of aging.

Back at the university, Professor Jones is bothered and bewildered by FBI harassment, and he is forced to take a leave of absence. On his way out of town, he is stopped by Mutt (Shia LaBeouf), a cocky young kid in a leather jacket on a motorcycle who has news that Professor Oxley (John Hurt), Indy's old colleague, has been kidnapped in Peru while searching for a legendary city of gold once sought by a Spanish conquistador. We soon get the point of all these Da Vinci Code-like mysteries: to bring Indiana Jones and this feisty kid together on a quest to Peru where multiple surprises await them both.

Spielberg keeps the action at a fast pace but the real delight here is the lively and entertaining performances by Ford as the old man whose investigative and survival skills are still in top form, Shia LeBeouf as the high school dropout who learns a few tricks from his traveling companion (watch out for the sting of small scorpions), Cate Blanchett as a villain who gets high on parapychological possibilities, Ray Winstone as Indy's sidekick who has a bad case of greed, and Karen Allen as our hero's old romantic interest who has news that will rock his life. It is not the thrills or the chills of Indiana Jones and the Kingdom of the Crystal Skull that impresses but its ability to revive our fondness for this hero and his improvised way of handling all the dangers, challenges, and surprises that come his way.


Special DVD features include "The Return of a Legend"; a tribute to Indy, his-creators and the evolution of The Kingdom of the Crystal Skull; Pre-Production - from animatic sequences to sword fight lessons to reuniting the cast and crew; a production diary: the making of Kingdom Of The Crystal Skull; a go behind the scenes for a 12-part in-depth look at the creation of The Kingdom Of The Crystal Skull; Pre-Visualization Sequences - see the work that goes into preparing three pivotal action-packed sequences; and galleries - from the jungle to mummies to crystal skulls and more, take a look at incredible behind-the-scenes photos.