Review: Shifting Plots and a Tonal Shift Land ‘Temple of Doom’ Lower than its Predecessor

I know I saw these films as a kid but I can’t remember them at all, so I thought reviewing the “Indiana Jones” series for Man Movie May would be a perfect excuse to watch these films—because if you think of the manliest explorer around, that is Harrison Ford’s Indiana Jones. 

I am glad to have seen one of the greatest adventure/action films of all-time, “Raiders of the Lost Ark,” and then there’s “Indiana Jones and the Temple of Doom.” “Raiders” made it a tough act to follow and “Temple of Doom,” while it’s pretty good, struggles as it tries to follow that act. It seems like it’s the black sheep of the original trilogy in terms of quality, as it’s been criticized for being “too dark” in tone, especially as it had a PG rating upon release. 

Before I get to that, I’ll quickly say the plot since everyone is likely familiar with it: Indiana Jones and company are asked by a local Indian village to retrieve a mystical stone that was taken from them.

As a first-time viewer, my main problem wasn’t the dark tone. My main problem wasn’t even main sidekick Short Round (Ke Huy Quan). I like Huy Quan’s performance as Data in “The Goonies” and I thought he got some cool moments in this film, kicking some ass that most kids in film wouldn’t kick. They used him well even though it didn’t make much sense why he was using a 11-year-old Chinese boy as his getaway driver, where Indiana Jones later explains that he took on Short Round as his assistant because he found him living on the streets of Shanghai, orphaned because of the Japanese bombing in 1932, when Short Round tried to pickpocket Dr. Jones. 

I thought he was kind-of funny at times and I didn’t find him that annoying; and I thought his relationship with Indiana to be fine. It adds a sort-of nice layer to Dr. Jones, and, for all the complaints in this review, Harrison Ford is again fantastic. 

My main problem with this film was the main love interest, Willie Scott (Kate Capshaw). The only time I liked her was during her rendition of “Anything Goes” to open the film, because I didn’t know her as a character yet. This action-packed opening is fun—though it can’t compare to “Raiders”—but I felt dread when I realized Willie would be there the entire film and Marion Ravenwood wouldn’t be back for this ride. 

I loved Marion as a character because she had so much to do and I think it’s baffling how they went from her to Willie, an actress and a one-dimensional love interest, a damsel in distress that got on my last nerve. I don’t have problems with damsels in distress so long as they feel like a real character, but she’s only here to complain and yell “Indyyyyy!” and occasionally play tonsil hockey with the swashbuckling Indiana Jones. Her main trait seemed to be “gold digger,” as she consistently shies away from danger but perks up at any mention of diamonds or valuables.

This is nothing against the actress herself, this character is just so bad. I’m convinced one’s enjoyment of this film relies on your tolerance of Willie as a character. She feels so out-of-place in an Indiana Jones film, often hanging out in the background as Indiana Jones is getting pummeled by a hulking cult member as she lets Short Round try to get Indy out of the situation. Shorty at least gets things to do; and the one time she has a big task to do, she ruins the tension in the scene. 

This is when Indiana finds a secret passage in her room—as she annoyingly begs to be ravaged by his big, Man Movie May hands—and Indiana and Short Round go into the passage and find themselves trapped in an Impending Room of Death. They ask Willie to help who slowly makes her way over, complaining the whole time, and she is just so annoying that it totally ruined the tension of a scene that would be so decent without her. Really, the whole film would be better without this poorly written character.    

The finale also feels like an hour-long as they stumble upon this cult who worship big stones and practice child slavery. It’s very nefarious and a strange tonal shift after a goofy first hour as it turns into something likely more suited for a horror film, but still intriguing all the same. We’re introduced to the primary villain, Mola Ram (Amrish Puri), as he rips a man’s heart out of his chest and then lowers him into a fire pit. This scene is amazing and one of the first moments of this film I loved, but the tonal shift felt so bizarre. 

Otherwise, the pacing is strong and when they actually get to the action, it’s still brilliant, especially the cable car chase and the final bridge scene. It’s exciting enough to feel like an “Indiana Jones” film, as the last 30 minutes are genuinely enjoyable for their thrills. Every time John Williams’ iconic score sounds, that still got my foot tapping. The visuals are also pretty good even if the green screen looks legitimately weak at times. This film was made in 1984 and considering it won the Oscar for ‘Best Visual Effects’ in that year, I’m chalking this up to the visuals of the time, because watching this for (what’s basically) the first time in 2020, some scenes haven’t aged well visually. 

I don’t mean to make it sound like I hated “Indiana Jones and the Temple of Doom.” Watching all of these films at once, I was more-so disappointed because of how great “Raiders of the Lost Ark” is, and just how “meh” this feels. I genuinely enjoyed some parts of it, but I just feel like I could re-visit “Raiders of the Lost Ark” or “Indiana Jones and the Last Crusade” at any point and still have fun, and I just don’t have as much as an itch to revisit this one any time soon.