What's the best Indiana Jones movie for you?
Ohhhhh Amalthia you've opened up a whole new can of worms 😂😂😂
I'll come clean and say I've seen all of them except for Temple of Doom, because it has too many horror vibes™, but I read the chapter book adaptation instead and Short Round is such a cutie. I first became familiar with the Indiana Jones adventures by playing the LEGO video games with my dad, so I have a fond attachment to the first four movies because of such, but not so much for Dial of Destiny. Here's my personal ranking of them:
Raiders of the Lost Ark: Best Cold Open, Best love interest (MARION MOTHER FRIGGING RAVENWOOD-WILLIAMS), Best Villain (Rene Belloq), Best comeuppance for the Nazis, Best Artifact (Ark of the Covenant).
Temple of Doom: Best Sidekick (Short Round), Best setting (India (which is almost never seen in American media, so I love the allusions to Indian history and Hindu lore) especially the elaborate mine system).
The Last Crusade: Best soundtrack, Best emotional journey, Best Sallah moments.
Kingdom of the Crystal Skull: Comfort film, it's not really the "best" at anything, but I have a nostalgic attachment to it due to the LEGO games and sets. The first time I watched it, I just put it on late one evening to watch with my sister, and our parents both wandered in and sat down to watch it with us, and that memory always makes me feel warm and fuzzy.
I'm gonna circle back to Raiders for a second because people will point out that Indiana's involvement in it was a moot point bc the Nazis would have all been wiped out by opening it anyway, but THAT'S NOT THE POINT!!! It would be a good story, plenty of people would like to just watch a movie about Nazis melting alive, but that's nowhere near as compelling as the emotional attachment we get to Indy and Marion and their relationship, and their story.
Plus, if the story wasn't about Indy, we wouldn't have gotten Last Crusade.
Tldr; The Best Indiana Jones Movie is Raiders of the Lost Ark, with Crystal Skull and Crusade coming in close behind.
