I saw the new Indiana Jones last night with a few friends and I was relieved to find that it wasn’t Phantom Menace bad. In fact it was the kind of action packed pulp romp that makes mainstream blockbuster cinema so enjoyable.

The trouble is that it didn’t really need to be an Indiana Jones movie. Set after the war it felt like a different era, it also falls firmly on the side of the supernatural, lacking the ambiguity of Temple of Doom. Harrison Ford puts a lot of heart into it but he isn’t a convincing action hero any more. While not trying to be prejudiced he really is too old for this.

The Mummy actually felt more like an Indiana Jones movie than the Crystal Skulls. Shia LeBeouf is no Brendon Fraser and the former’s Marlon Brando riff really doesn’t work.

I’m hoping for more Indiana Jones films but less Indiana Jones.