Indiana Jones and the Temple of Doom

Variety

Just as "Return of the Jedi" seemed disappointing after the first two "Star Wars" entries, so does "Indiana Jones and the Temple of Doom" come as a letdown after "Raiders of the Lost Ark." This is ironic, because director Steven Spielberg has packed even more thrills and chills into this followup than he did into the earlier pic, but to exhausting and numbing effect.

End result is like the proverbial Chinese meal, where heaps of food can still leave one hungry shortly thereafter.

Roger Ebert

Steven Spielberg's INDIANA JONES AND THE TEMPLE OF DOOM is one of the greatest Bruised Forearm Movies ever made. You know what a Bruised Forearm Movie is. That's the kind of movie where your date is always grabbing your forearm in a viselike grip, as unbearable excitement unfolds on the screen. After the movie is over, you've had a great time but your arm is black-and-blue for a week.

BBC

Something strange happened to Steven Spielberg between "Raiders of the Lost Ark" and its first sequel, three years later. Having captivated the world with feelgood fable "E.T. - the Extra-Terrestrial", he decided to test the loyalty of his adoring public with this dark, nightmarish follow-up to his 1981 smash. Indeed, so gruesome was one scene of ritual sacrifice that it necessitated the creation of a new rating - PG-13 - in the United States.