Dear Mr. Harrison Ford,
I am writing you on behalf of the millions of viewers who have attended your various Indiana Jones movies. I urge you to discontinue making more movies for the franchise. The creation of a fifth, or even sixth, movie would be detrimental to the integrity of the Indiana Jones franchise.
Back in 1981, you starred in what would quickly become a lucrative franchise, eventually grossing over $939 million in the United States alone (the-numbers.com). However, the numbers do not lie, and while your latest film, Indiana Jones and the Kingdom of the Crystal Skull, brought in $317 mil, it made only $132 mil in profit, or 1.7 times the budget for the film.
Financially speaking, your other movies were far greater success. Raiders of the Lost Ark made 12.25 times the budget spent, for a gross of $245 million, and at a time when movie tickets were cheaper. Temple of Doom, bringing in $179 million in gross, made 6.42 times the budget. Last Crusade made $197 million, only 4.1 times the budget, but still significantly more successful than Kingdom of the Crystal Skull. In short, each installment made less profit than the first.
This decrease in revenue is common with sequels, but with the fourth movie costing $185 million, it needs to earn a fair amount of cash to justify the spending. The $132 million that Kingdom of the Crystal Skull made in profit is less than any of the other three movies in the franchise, and not even close to the profit percentage of the others.
Even though Last Crusade left with a great resolution to a strong trilogy, it seems that neither Mr. Spielberg, Mr. Lucas, nor yourself could leave well enough alone.
Where Kingdom of the Crystal Skull picks up the story from the previous film feels contrived; the plot is uncharacteristic of an “Indy movie,” with aliens, monkey armies, and cardboard cutout-quality villains. Fans were disappointed and continue to bemoan the “death” of Indiana Jones. Many are in denial that a fourth movie was even made.
The most recent film departed so far from the previous installments that it feels like a whole new series, and not in a positive way. What was originally designed to be, according to Mr. Spielberg and Mr. Lucas in an interview, a Nazi-fighting hero series became a bizarre compilation of action and sci-fi genres. History has never treated sequels well; just ask Littlefoot, Rocky, and Freddy Krueger. This latest film is no different.
For the sake of the series, please refrain from collaborating on any future Indiana Jones films, and encourage Mr. Spielberg and Mr. Lucas to do likewise. It does not make sense creatively or financially. We, the fans, beseech you!
Sincerely,
Mont Toronto
Note: Box office figures were obtained from www.the-numbers.com (www.the-numbers.com/movies/series/IndianaJones.php)
Funny! I liked it, and it's so true! You presented some interesting facts, too. You really did your research for this paper.
ReplyDeleteThe facts definitely make this more than an emotional rant. I agree completely. Most movies released in the past couple years, I would dare to say, have been highly disappointing. Especially remakes.
ReplyDeleteYou're facts and and incredible argument make this fun to read and also very convincing! I hope Mr. Ford hears this and responds. It would be great to hear what he says. I had a very large grin on my face when I finished reading this piece :)I totally agree with your point; remakes are terrible. Look at Spider man 3...ugh
ReplyDeleteHA! Quite lovely, and I completely agree. Very well researched, but I feel like you might have used too many numbers in one paragraph. It was also really good that you were able to tell Harrison Ford that his movies stunk, without completely insulting him in the process. Bravo.
ReplyDeleteGreat job, nice commentary on a series that could use the help being stopped.
ReplyDeleteYou sound very professional and convincing, the use of numbers sure is intimidating and proves your point very well.
ReplyDelete