Casey Phillips: Warning: If this review seems cryptic, it’s not because we’re emulating the film, the latest in a series that thrives on mysteries. No, we just decided that, with a movie as anticipated as the first Indiana Jones flick in almost 20 years, it wouldn’t be fair to spoil too much of the fun. Don’t mistake that to mean “Crystal Skull’s” plot is so deep, however, that you won’t quickly unravel its secrets — there’s almost no effort made to hide them. Still, anyone Jonesing (no pun intended) for another romp with Indy across the globe won’t be disappointed by this fourth installment, even if the story is a little obvious and ... out there (“Signs” and “Sixth Sense” creator M. Night Shyamalan was approached to write the script at one point, if that’s any hint).

Holly Leber: Yeah, I think “out there” is definitely an accurate way to describe the plot. There’s so much thrown into the movie, including a lot of winks and nudges to fans of the earlier films, that I eventually threw up my hands and said “I give up (on trying to make sense of it).” After that, it was a lot of fun to watch. I had my doubts, but Ford still seems to have it. The hair has thinned out (just in case we weren’t sure, the first shot of him is from above), but the fedora still fits and Indy can still crack the whip.

Casey: Yeah, I’ve had doubts about whether Ford could still be a convincing Indy since his plodding performance in “Firewall” in 2006, but he — or maybe his stunt double — still has a bit of whippersnapper left in him (I’ll seriously stop now). I was also pleasantly surprised by Cate Blanchett as Irina Spalko, a Soviet agent out to get the titular skull before Indy. In one of the film’s best action sequences, Spalko engages in a daring fencing match between moving vehicles with Mutt Williams (Shia LaBeouf), the greaser son of returning “Raiders of the Lost Ark” love interest Marion Ravenwood (Karen Allen). I definitely didn’t buy Blanchett’s accent though. She should stick to playing British monarchs.

Holly: Or American folk music legends. Or Katharine Hepburn. Someone not Ukrainian. She should also stick to being blond. What’s with the Louise Brooks bobs in the movies now? Christina Ricci, Cate Blanchett ... I don’t get it. Oh, well. I’d originally wished they’d brought back Short Round to fill the “kid” hole, but “Indy” newcomer LaBeouf, who carried a comb and a switchblade in true rebel without a clue fashion, actually pulled off his cocky protege role quite well. During the aforementioned vehicle scene, he had to take a few uncomfortable-looking hits from jungle plants, as well as from Blanchett, but really, how many 21-year-old guys would object to being beaten up by Cate Blanchett?

Casey: At one point, Short Round was supposed to return, and I almost boycotted the film when I heard he was cut. Some fans may also be disappointed by the absence of Henry Jones Sr. cameos (George Lucas planned one but couldn’t get Sean Connery to come out of retirement and play ball). Even without these, the classic Indy moments — puzzle solving, tomb raiding and fistfighting in perilous locations (predominantly between vehicles) — make watching “Crystal Skull” a thrill, but the zaniness of the plot was a little too much for me. It’s no spoiler to say the film opens in Area 51, and it just gets weirder from there. “Crystal Skull” hits all the right notes, but it’s a long way from being the next “Raiders.”

Holly: I’m no Indy devotee, but I’ve enjoyed the series. At times I’ve felt like I was trying to keep up with a freshman survey course with a professor on amphetamines; but with a little imagination, the original trio felt at least quasi-plausible. This one just threw out too much of the paranormal for my taste, along with the lightninground storytelling. Once I threw in the towel on any effort to find logic in “Crystal Skull” and just paid attention to the fast action and the fairly spectacular sets, it was a fun, high-energy ride.

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