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The search for ancient artifacts and forgotten legends often calls for heroic action, but Indiana Jones’ fedora and whip may have found their last adventure, the question now being: where do we all, fans or new interested parties find that similar adventurous thrill that mixes history with heart stopping chase scenes that Indy perfected over several movie timelines. As a great answer to that void left, many might be eager to start discussing what Guy Ritchie is attempting with ‘Fountain of Youth’ but for that particular concept to be properly introduced and assessed one needs to understand why other similar formats might also share many traits, like some ongoing popular TV production series, so before focusing all our attention on 'Fountain of Youth,' and its proposed qualities we also plan on showing how it contrasts some themes presented in 'Yellowstone’ especially those tied into main characters in the fifth and last series ( as of present time of this writing) because a new franchise has high responsibility to maintain good and solid foundations while having fresh, if very relatable elements too.
While there has never really been a true singular series to take up the mantle of Indiana Jones style approach other than 'Uncharted' (and its quite flawed production style) which shares very close concepts (a clear, if sometimes failed at delivering , effort to deliver a strong sense of adventure ) as most series have either been on sci fi elements, space adventures and various fantasy concepts it is through 'Fountain of Youth’ that the concept seems to come closest. But when dealing with Indiana Jones it would always be a hard mountain to move due to Harrison Ford’s portrayal being so strongly connected to that character that it makes a true succession, as a brand replacement nearly impossible especially considering the failure surrounding “Dial Of Destiny’ in a box office perspective despite also having a lot of talent backing up a big movie budget.
That leads to our present main question : can “Fountain of Youth” take some specific lessons to avoid such traps while building its own very unique long-term narrative with an unique identity. Because it’s important to note here that while many do want “more Indy adventures' in its truest sense most want a thrilling experience without relying too heavily upon tired well-worn or often stale concepts that can be harmful to what was once an iconic pop culture event. That desire over originality and an acceptance of moving into future iterations is something it must aim as its foundation.
When we carefully analyse the announced plot line structure, many concepts can very quickly connect and form some clear connections with all previous popular productions under similar lines like “National Treasure” or “The Mummy' but while those do create a framework to appeal the same type of fan the producers in 'Fountain of Youth’ have clearly stated they aim to avoid over-reliance on existing well known concepts instead by providing a completely unique premise regarding two siblings journeying to seek the mythical object. While this clearly borrows that sense of history as motivation it moves beyond that through unique, mostly unexplored territories by the film industry and putting a specific family dynamic is now in center stage.
Also there's value added through a modern take as actors like Natalie Portman or John Krasinski can help to add both a familiar value but also a sense of quality which was greatly lacked by some other similar high budget approaches that ended up collapsing by poor actor and plot structures so there’s an expectation that their portrayals can give what the core franchise often failed to. “Fountain of Youth" does try very clearly to distance itself away from 'simple' nostalgia plays to seek out newer concepts, more dynamic settings and complex family narratives where family, not legacy is now main focus.
The importance that “Fountain of Youth” place on family as foundation cannot be stressed enough and when taking that concept into account a strong contrasting element now makes itself visible when looking at "Yellowstone”. Its last series made a critical and bold choice, instead of focusing only on expanding narrative as every prior cycle they choose instead to slowly ‘close’ that circle by addressing what it really means for such families and that is where the connection can be made: "Yellowstone," places its importance mostly around tradition and 'family legacy’ while those core values become the central reason for the characters ultimate self destruction and their own internal limitations and that core concept tends to completely miss opportunities to grow when family takes precedence over any outside interaction. So now we have here one show putting a message on ‘self destructive heritage’ as something detrimental while on the other side “Fountain of Youth” attempts to showcase a ‘positive message’ for those similar values. Both sides now present an ideal opportunity to see a much greater contrasting argument over very common and deeply held values of family and that's a great lesson to observe.
Unlike the new film ( with actors that have more potential to explore a more hopeful path) 'Yellowstone’s cast often feels stuck within their prior self imposed traumas that greatly define their approach over anything else; and while there’s always been external conflicts as main challenges ( often from government bodies or rival competitors ) many series fans recognize that every problem ( big or small) is mostly rooted to character flaws which come, also as result of that core devotion towards preserving a past and often forgetting about long term consequences by not accepting outside influence, which will only worsen those very issues even more rather than help resolve them in the long run; Yellowstone ends with great tragedy as characters tend to destroy themselves due to those values while the newer ‘Fountain of Youth’ shows what could potentially be ‘the other positive end' for when these ties are put to the better possible usage.
While comparisons with Indiana Jones will always come as that concept is so well ingrained within the culture at large; It’s “Fountain of Youth’s focus to place family at front and center stage combined with fresh and new explorations that shows just how valuable this series could potentially become for future media expansions if done well as it explores a newer perspective rather than simply recycling the ‘old formats’. There is room in the world for new franchises that move past a reliance in simply old worn concepts with no added depth which has been what other past big budget movies tended to offer so the choice to focus in a newer format allows the product to breathe much easier and perhaps build up a core audience that does understand what its trying to achieve ( for instance by using recognizable and already respected names with a very proven track record), which Indiana Jones has been often missing from some of its later attempts which made them more a source of critical review due to its inherent limitations which no amount of digital editing could resolve ( like a need to make up some specific continuity problems rather than telling a coherent overall storyline by also taking new talent under an older brand, instead the 'Youth' franchise uses both new story as well as newer talent without such need).
It’s with that added focus over more creative methods that the next ‘big family adventure film’ may create more space within the hearts of both new watchers and old movie-goer that yearn for such productions which Indiana Jones helped establish as long ago as most do not fully remember it and through this exploration over both what was as well as what we may soon witness; it shows that any franchise needs to build new connections with the core viewers while keeping their attention, not simply just playing old songs, which “Fountain of Youth” is thankfully attempting, and from a more critical viewing scope: its more than just a simple alternative. Its something entirely unique in that perspective and we all shall see as the final production has the potential to surpass many of its competitors for greater rewards.