Indiana Jones: The Complete Adventures

The original Indiana Jones trilogy has been one of the most highly anticipated Blu-ray releases since the debut of the format (the fourth film, Indiana Jones and the Kingdom of the Crystal Skull, bowed on Blu-ray back in 2008). Happily, Paramount has done it right: this five-disc set is the definitive home-video incarnation of filmmaker Steven Spielberg's long-running series starring Harrison Ford as globetrotting, whip-cracking archeologist-turned-adventurer Indiana Jones. Set in 1936, the original Raiders of the Lost Ark (1981) established the tone of the series with a nostalgic nod to yesteryear thrills, serving up nonstop action and skin-of-the-teeth escapes, presented with a contemporary sense of humor. In Raiders, Indy hooks up with Marion Ravenwood (Karen Allen), daughter of his old mentor, as well as Egyptian friend Sallah (John Rhys-Davies), to find the lost Ark of the Covenant—with the Nazis hot on their trail as they travel from San Francisco to Nepal to Cairo. The more screwball Indiana Jones and the Temple of Doom (1984) finds Indy paired with nightclub singer Willie Scott (Kate Capshaw) and pint-sized assistant Shorty (Ke Huy Quan) on a romp through China and India involving fabled diamonds, religious cults, and missing children. The epic Indiana Jones and the Last Crusade (1989) introduces Sean Connery as Indy's dad, Henry, whose disappearance while in pursuit of the Holy Grail ensnares the younger Jones in a desperate search that leads to the catacombs beneath Venice, among other locales. The one misfire is Indiana Jones and the Kingdom of the Crystal Skull, made when Ford was close to 70 and co-starring Ray Winstone as Indy's friend—and betrayer—Mac, with Cate Blanchett as KGB commander Irina Spalko. Set in 1957, it's a U.S.-versus-Russia tale that starts out in Nevada's secret Area 51 before linking Indy with a kid named Mutt (Shia LaBeouf) in an adventure that leads to a legendary city in Peru. Paramount made fresh 4K digital scans of each film, with superb results: the color pops, while the sound is punchy and full. Not all of the previous DVD supplements have been carried over, but what's left out is negligible, and added to the numerous behind-the-scenes featurettes are two Blu-ray exclusives: a new “making-of” featurette for Raiders and a previously unreleased 1981 made-for-TV special. Highly recommended. (S. Axmaker)