Just got back from Indiana Jones and the Kingdom of the Crystal Skull (imdb | rotten tomatoes), following brunch with CBGB at Eggstasy. I felt pretty much the same about brunch as I did about the movie: it was what I expected, just like every time before, except for one little wrinkle.

When we arrived for brunch we were seated near the door. The crowds on weekends at Eggstasy are such that you don’t argue about where you sit, you just sit. So sit we did, and eat, and everything was fine. Good food, everyone’s order showed up as planned, quick turnaround and off to the movie. But it was cold when we ate, being so close to the open door & windows; not cold enough to put me off the meal, just enough to make me notice.

It didn’t stop there: when we got to the theatre it was freezing. Cold enough that the girls kept their jackets on and my nose felt frosty for the first half of the film. Somebody got a little anxious with the a/c, methinks. Anyway, the film: it was a good old-fashioned Indy movie, no doubt about it. It started fast & never really slowed down, it was exciting and funny, it gave the whip and the hat starring roles…everything I’d expect. It definitely got a little weird toward the end, but I can live with that. There was just one little thing that bugged me: this unfortunate tendency to use CGI even when the story doesn’t really need it. Indy’s Indy because he bashes things and jumps off of stuff and makes with the smart-ass, not because he gets help from CGI ewoks monkeys. That sequence added absolutely nothing to the story, and it looked ridiculous.

All in all the brunch and the movie were good…the cold air, the a/c and the CGI just left me feeling a little cold.

[tags]indiana jones, kingdom of the crystal skull, eggstasy[/tags]