Indiana Jones IV has Cannes premiere

By Andy Brownstone
Newsbeat reporter in Cannes

The last Indiana Jones film, The Last Crusade, came out in 1989

The cast of Indiana Jones and the Kingdom of the Crystal Skull were out in force for the film's premiere in Cannes yesterday.

Harrison Ford, now officially old enough to get a free bus pass, walked up the red carpet with director Steven Spielberg and Kate Blanchett, Ray Winstone and Shia LeBoeuf.

Thousands of film fans packed the streets to try to catch a glimpse of the stars.

We'll have our ear to the ground to hear what happens and will decide where we go from here Steven Spielberg on the possibility of another Indiana Jones film

Initial reviews for the film have not been as bad as feared, but critics have not exactly heaped praise on it either.

Some have asked whether Harrison should still be playing an action hero when he could be claiming his pension.

He said: "I had no expectation that we would write another. None of us did until somebody got the germ of an idea and began to pursue it."

See pictures from the premiere

Great stunts

The plot takes place 19 years after the Last Crusade to allow for the main star's age.

This time round, the Nazis are replaced by Russians and the bad guy is bad girl Cate Blanchett.

Indiana Jones and the Kingdom of the Crystal Skull is set in 1957

Jones' dad has passed on, but there are some family reunions and Ray Winstone fits in well as the double crossing assistant.

The stunts and action scenes are typical Indy, along with the far-fetched plot.

The sexy, sword-wielding communist Cate admits she's always wanted to work with director Steven Spielberg, and enjoyed every minute of it.

She said: "He was saying 'I want you to jump off trucks'... and he wanted to 'butch me up' was the term he kept using.

"So the stunts were really foreign to me but that's what I loved about it.

"I knew the franchise was popular, but I've been astonished at the range of people who said 'I can't wait to see it.'"

One more film?

And that's why Spielberg says he decided to bring Dr Jones back to life.

He said: "This was something that the public really asked me and Harrison and George (Lucas), 'When's Indiana Jones coming back?'

Star Wars actress Natalie Portman is one of this year's judges in Cannes

"And this was really finally what we needed to do to satisfy a need to bring the character back."

With the last film coming out almost two decades ago, Spielberg says he wants a new generation of Indy fans to have the chance to see it on the big screen.

And he's hinted there could be more.

He added: "If you want more of them... We'll have our ear to the ground to hear what happens and will decide where we go from here."