Release Year: 1984

Genre: Action, Adventure

Director: Steven Spielberg

Writer: Willard Huyck, Gloria Katz, George Lucas (story)

Stars: Harrison Ford, Kate Capshaw

You've seen all the movies. You've played all the video games. You've even assembled all the LEGO sets. No, we're not talking about Saving Private Ryan… although we can see how that film might come to mind. It also has Spielberg in the director's chair, Nazis, and internal organs shockingly made external.

But today we're talking about a franchise with a little more merchandising power: the one starring Indiana Jones, butt-kicking archeologist extraordinaire.

When we last saw Indiana Jones in Raiders of the Lost Ark (1981), he'd come face-to-melted-off-face with a gaggle of Nazis during a struggle for a mystical artifact. It was almost as violent and thrilling as the last Black Friday sale we went to.

But for Indy's second adventure, Indiana Jones and the Temple of Doom, we're sent a year into Indy's past. No, Dr. Jones hasn't found a time machine. (Shh, don't give George Lucas any ideas.) Even though it was made after Raiders in 1984, Temple of Doom is a prequel, set a year before Indy hunts down the Ark of the Covenant.

In 1935 Indiana Jones finds himself in India (no relation) looking for the sacred Sankara stones. Along the way, he'll encounter a secret cult, an out of control mine cart, and a heart-stopping human sacrifice ritual.

Because this is a prequel, not everyone from the first film is back. Our creator and director, George Lucas and Steven Spielberg, resume their seats behind the camera. (This was actually Spielberg's first ever time directing a sequel) And Harrison Ford, who we didn't think could get any studlier, decided to develop a Body by Jake before picking up Indy's whip for yet another adventure.

This one has about 25% more shirtlessness. You're welcome.

But writer Lawrence Kasdan has been replaced by husband/wife duo Willard Huyck and Gloria Katz. Love interest Marion Ravenwood (Karen Allen) is nowhere to be seen. Instead, Indy trades romantic banter with blonde bombshell Willie Scott, played by Kate Capshaw. He also has a young Chinese sidekick named Short Round (Jonathan Ke Quan) who can drive a car and toss off one-liners with the best of them.

It sounds fun on paper, but Temple of Doom wasn't quite the sequel people had been wishing for. Plot confused incoherent the critics. Oops: we mean, the incoherent plot confused critics. The country India thought the film was so racist, they refused to let Spielberg film within their borders. And some scenes are graphically violent for a PG-rated picture, prompting outrage from parents who believed it should have been rated R for really-really-gross.

In fact, Indy's biggest accomplishment turned out not to be the recovery of the Sankara stones, but the formation of the PG-13 rating. Spielberg agreed that his film was too dark for a PG rating, but not risqué enough for an R, so the middle-ground of the PG-13 was invented later that year. (Source)

However, the film was a commercial success, spawning another sequel in 1989 (yay!) and yet another installment in 2008 (boo!). And despite all the controversy, the film has had a lasting effect on not just adventure cinema, but video games as well. Every game you've ever played a mine cart level was pretty much inspired by Temple of Doom. (Source)

Despite the mixed opinion about this movie, one thing is unanimous: Indiana Jones is an action hero for the ages. No matter how you feel about Temple of Doom as a whole, at some point during this thrill ride, you'll have a whip-cracking good time.

The first and third installments of Indiana Jones receive near-unanimous love. The fourth one…well everyone wishes it would be blown up in a nuclear explosion without an invincible refrigerator protecting it. (Source)

But Temple of Doom— the most divisive Indiana Jones film—gets Indy fans talking. Some think Temple of Doom is the best Indy film. Others think that anyone who likes it must be under the black spell of the Kali Ma.

It's not like the film has one or two scenes that cause a schism amongst fans too wide for even Indy to swing across on his whip. The whole dang movie inspires debate. It begins with a musical sequence. It has a crazy amount of violence and gore. It's darker than the circles around Mola Ram's eyes.

And it has certain scenes that are either culturally insensitive, or downright racist, depending on where you stand. Like an Indian Maharaja using a (Afro-Caribbean) Voodoo doll. Or the bad guys being Indians who oppose British Colonial rule, and the good guys…being white Americans. Or the "traditional Indian feast" consisting, not of delicious curries and chutneys, but Snake Surprise and chilled monkey's brains.

But face it: no matter how you feel about the plot and characters, the movie has some of the most iconic action sequences on film, like the mine cart chase and the climatic bridge battle. The suspense is pulse-quickening, and the action is breath-taking.

So once you catch your breath, you need to decide which side of the chasm you're on. Is this Temple worth worshipping as a classic, or should it be tossed into a lava pit never to be seen again? Watch it again and choose a side.