Remember last year when Shia spoke out of school at the Cannes Film Festival about Indiana Jones and the Kingdom of the Crystal Skull, telling the Los Angeles Times, “I feel like I dropped the ball on the legacy that people loved and cherished.” ? Well, Harrison Ford didn’t forget. He never forgets. Or at least that’s what I’d like to imagine. He has finally responded to that little nugget, speaking with Details Magazine about it. Here’s what Indy himself said:
“I think I told him he was a f***ing idiot. … As an actor, I think it’s my obligation to support the film without making a complete ass of myself. Shia is ambitious, attentive, and talented — and he’s learning how to deal with a situation which is very unique and difficult.”
I liked Indy 4, and even though it left me feeling cold and doesn’t hold up well at all to repeat viewings, I can be very forgiving with it. Except the whole fridge bit. I’ve hated that since the moment I saw it. As for the criticism, it’s my personal opinion that the old guard in which everyone keeps their mouth shut and doesn’t shit where they eat is something that should be respected and upheld, and in this case Harrison Ford is right. And in many ways it speaks about just how little respect some actors have for productions they’re in. It gives even more credence to the fact that a lot of actors just take jobs for the money or become obsessed with their own fame.
That being said, it’s not like what LaBeouf said wasn’t what tons of people were thinking. He just had the balls to come out and say it. But really, does anyone feel like this kid has the kind of clout that gives you the balls to say that? If Ford was the one who said it, no one would say a thing to him.
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Personally, in an environment full of a lot of put-ons, I find Shia’s honesty to be refreshing. Not to say that Ford still doesn’t have a point.
What is wrong with you people? That fridge moment and Indy tumbling out and looking up at a mushroom cloud is the best goddamn thing in that whole movie.
I’d love to tell Shia he’s a f***ing idiot.
Didn’t Harrison bitch and moan in interviews about Blade Runner? Didn’t he say things like “I was there just to add focus to the sets” and “The audience needed someone to cheer for (and my character was not it)”? And he was a grand old 40 and Shia is still a kid. So looks like Harrison is being a tad hypocitical here.
THANK YOU!!! Dude, it’s the ONLY moment in that film that I feel matches the inventiveness and gonzo spirit of the original trilogy… CG groundhogs can stay in their holes, though.
Ugh.
No. Just no.
Ford doesn’t have a point here because there is no way to defend this film “without making a complete ass of yourself”. I’m sorry, I love the Indiana Jones franchise more than I can express, but Crystal Skull was just plain terrible. I can make no excuses for it and I will not give it a pass. Bad is bad.
I think it’s just because Ford is tired. He has, after all been working around the clock.
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=UYBx7yxEME4
Ford was Solo and Indy, so I’ll pretty much just have to support him blindly.
You’re reporting this a little out of context Michael, aren’t you? The whole article you’re linking to is an lengthy interview with laboof, and the Ford thing is a tiny aside. Instead of trying to stir up shit, why not report that whole article and how laboof makes himself look like a coked out charlie sheen.
Harrison has always felt strongly about actors trashing their own movies. He knows he’s been in some duds but will not trash the movie due to the fact that a lot of people worked on that film. From his viewpoint trashing a movie you’ve worked on is equivalent to putting the entire cast/crew down.
I’m glad to see Harrison slap that young whipper snapper around.
The fridge was my favorite bit as well.
LOL. And there’s a video on youtube pretty much throwing Ford under the bus as the primary motivating force for the damn movie anyway.
Whoops, that should have read:
“…video on youtube of Spielberg throwing Ford under the bus…”
These movies are shit. If they want him to keep his trap shut I guess they can change his contract and pay for the privilege of his extended silence. Hollywood isn’t a classy place. There may be classy individuals, but they’d be the exception.
The context is LaBeouf’s dissing of Indy 4 last year. And Ford fired back about said dissing, even though it is buried in a less-newsworthy article. Not sure what is out of context.
Yep, money. Hell… the entire movie gets more flak than it deserves.
I don’t know, for me, the fridge bit just seemed so out there. I understand the whole “it’s lead-lined, you’d survive a nuclear blast!” argument, but how does the impact not at least break a bone or something? I don’t think he had a scratch on him.
“coked out Charlie sheen” is redundant.
And I’d say anyone lying through their teeth about how great they think their last movie was is more in it for the fame and money. They’re concentrating on the business side of things. They don’t want to piss anyone off. Whereas, someone who actually wants to make a good film and cares about the art will be honest, hopefully with some tact and class because you still should be professional. There’s far too much bullshit and lying and kissing ass in Hollywood, I say it’s refreshing to see honesty. Also, didn’t this same site report Mickey Rourke’s negative comments about Passion Play and think it was good to see someone so honest about their work? The only difference there is Rourke’s not in any danger of pissing off a huge studio, Spielberg, Lucas and Ford. Just Megan Fox and Bill Murray, but they’d probably only agree with him.
I don’t think saying Indy 4 turned out poorly is putting down everyone who worked on it. These things happen. I doubt any member of the cast or crew is under any delusions that they all haven’t at some time or another worked on a crap film or several. And I bet they don’t feel personally responsible for the way it turned out. Sidney Lumet liked to say the best sign during production was when you could look around at all the departments and think, “yes, we are all making the same movie”. And that’s the trick, the reason so many potentially good films full of talented folks end up being bad. It’s not easy to do and you can’t always tell that everyone is not making the same movie.
In terms of his career, this kind of talk might get Shia in real trouble one day, but since when does a guy have to have clout to voice an honest opinion?
Pretty much. You ever see an interview with Ford, dude is just a bitter old asshole. Maybe he realized that he pretty much peaked with Empire Strikes Back, and has been a shit actor ever since.
“Hey Kid, now I owe you one”
CRINGE
Yup. If Indy and his elderly father can survive a full-on biplane crash, then I’d say he can survive a fridge crash, too.
He jumped out of a plane in a life raft in the second one. With a woman and a little boy. No one was injured. The fridge bit was great.
<cough>Witness</cough>
You need the clout to keep getting work after voicing the opinion.
Thing is, the whole fake-town-set-up-to-see-what-happens-to-shit-when-you-set-off-a-nuke bit is ENTIRELY recycled from an early draft of Back To The Future. It was excised for budgetary considerations, but obviously Spielberg filed it all away. Watch Indy as he picks his way through the houses, then imagine Marty McFly doing the same. It’s not that great a stretch.
The writer gives Shia credit for “balls” for stating his opinion, but he was past the expiration date on those balls. There was already a Razzie and lots of geeks whining about the film and the “nuke the fridge” campaign. He was clearly distancing himself and sugar coating it by pretending to take blame (and share it with Spielberg). It is not the actor’s job to do make swinging with monkies “work” when it just has too much screen time, or to shorten the chase through the jungle or to omit UFOs which some viewers say they didn’t like. I had NO problem with the fridge versus mushroom cloud – I’ve wanted to see it since the idea was dropped from Back to the Future. And it is well in keeping with riding a parascope (on a DIVING sub) and jumping from a plane in a life raft – not to mention the Further Adventures of I.J. Marvel comics. Ford is right. And Shia isn’t about honesty; he betrayed the confidence of Ford and Steven by saying they didn’t like the film. Which is ultimately not entirely true. The REAL problem people had was that Mutt was played by ANYONE. I was happy to see Marion back, could have used Sallah instead of Mac, and really couldn’t care less about attracting the youth market with a son of Indy character. It wasn’t so much Shia’s work as his existence that bothered people most.
The writer gives Shia credit for “balls” for stating his opinion, but he was past the expiration date on those balls. There was already a Razzie and lots of geeks whining about the film and the “nuke the fridge” campaign. He was clearly distancing himself and sugar coating it by pretending to take blame (and share it with Spielberg). It is not the actor’s job to make swinging with monkies “work” when it just has too much screen time, or to shorten the chase through the jungle or to omit UFOs which some viewers say they didn’t like. I had NO problem with the fridge versus mushroom cloud – I’ve wanted to see it since the idea was dropped from Back to the Future. And it is well in keeping with riding a parascope (on a DIVING sub) and jumping from a plane in a life raft – not to mention the Further Adventures of I.J. Marvel comics. Ford is right. And Shia isn’t about honesty; he betrayed the confidence of Ford and Steven by saying they didn’t like the film. Which is ultimately not entirely true. The REAL problem people had was that Mutt was played by ANYONE. I was happy to see Marion back, could have used Sallah instead of Mac, and really couldn’t care less about attracting the youth market with a son of Indy character. It wasn’t so much Shia’s work as his existence that bothered people most.
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