We could do without the introduction with clips from the past three films. Just as Spielberg has pointed out in a recent promotional video, all we need is that first shadow on the jeep. Because few characters in cinema are able to be recognized on silhouette alone, and Indy is one of those few. But why should I complain about anything having to do with this long-awaited trailer for one of the most highly anticipated films of all time (Indiana Jones and the Kingdom of the Crystal Skull!)? Could it be that we’re all a bit cynical and are just waiting for it to be a Star Wars-prequels-size disappointment? Yeah, it could be that. However, there’s no denying that, aside from a few quips (obviously we knew there’d be jokes about Indy’s age — hence the “Damn, I thought that was closer” gag), it looks really friggin awesome.

Perhaps I’m just giddy over the shot of something with “Roswell, New Mexico” written on it (Raiders meets Close Encounters!). And the definite (but by now not at all surprising) callback to the warehouse where the Ark of the Covenant was hidden away. Or maybe I’m just drawn in by Cate Blanchett and her bad-ass Commie bob. Or is it the score, the whip, the Marion!? Am I too excited? Of course. But so is everyone else. I had planned to link to a number of reactions this afternoon, but unfortunately there are few bloggers or commenters with more to say than “YES! AWESOME!”

The only really interesting review of the trailer I can find comes from Jeffrey Wells:

“Then comes the heavy artillery: a series of Harold Lloyd-like CG action sequences that show the past-retirement-age Ford doing stunts that are much wilder and more acrobatic than anything he’s ever done before in these films. Got it.”

This I find quite interesting, because the trailer makes us recall the previous three films, is chock full of references to the past, whether it be the “not like it used to be,” line or the aforementioned eyesight sight gag, and yet the movie is attempting to make us believe that Indy is more fit and more an action star than ever he was. Wells also points out the CGI that looks like CGI (though others on the web defend this with bad matte-line problems from the original films) and the action looking more “lavish” and “show-offy” than in the past. Certainly Wells is correct; the Indiana Jones films were about spectacle, but they weren’t exactly sold on their visual effects, which primarily supported the story rather than the other way around.

Still, Wells admits that it looks like fun and that he’ll be there when it comes out (May 22)