FanUnity B(uzz)log

While its a sure bet that if George Lucas and Steven Spielberg ever make "Indiana Jones 4", I'll be at the theater to see it opening night, I still harbor some serious reservations about the concept. Foremost among the problems is that Harrison Ford is old. He doesn't look like a man capable of full-out Indiana Jones action. Maybe this is something a few nips and tucks and a few months with a personal trainer could take care of. Maybe this sense I have is based on the fact that Ford's "recent" roles have conveyed the idea that he is a geezer to me.

Maybe Lucas, Ford and Speilberg are better off leaving the Indiana Jones antics to a new generation. "The Mummy" series is the most successful example of recent adventure films that owe their existance to "Raiders Of The Lost Ark" and its sequels. "Sahara" is another such movie. In the case of "Sahara", there are so many similarities between it and "Raiders"/"Indiana Jones And The Last Crusade" that it almost leaves the arena of homage and enters the area of rip-off. It barely stays on the right side of that line.

Consider the similiaries: You have your dashing hero (Indy / Dirk Pitt), your goofy but knowledgeable sidekick (Henry Jones Sr / Steve Zahn character), your suave French advisery/traitor (Belloq / Lambert Wilson character) who spares the One Girl In The Middle Of This Mess (Marion / Penelope Cruz character). You have your desert setting, your fight with Arab thug near the blades of the airplane/helicopter, your incomptent American government officials, your race against time to stop an evil meglomanic from deploying a power that will devastate the world (Hitler / Mali warlord). I'm sure there are more, those are the ones that come to mind.

All of those similiarities aren't a bad thing, and "Sahara" isn't a bad movie. Its actors are charismatic, its direction is fast-paced, its story is watchable. The similarities with "Raiders" made me mindful while watching that it's not half the film that "Raiders" was, sort of like how Dale Berra wasn't half the baseball player that his dad Yogi was. But Dale was still a legit major leaguer, and "Sahara" is a legit entry into the summer popcorn movie annals. It's a pretty fun ride, though not worthy of a sequel or franchise treament. "Sahara" isn't one for the Hall Of Fame, but still an enjoyable enough way to pass the time.

3/5 Stars.