Shia LaBeouf is like a cinematic pinata – everybody takes a whack at him.

He’s too young, too rich, too famous and too lucky with his film choices.

Who wouldn’t want a retirement fund called the “Transformers” franchise?

But the actor’s recent comments concerning “Indiana Jones and the Kingdom of the Crystal Skull” are so honest it’s a wonder they came out of his mouth.

Or any actor’s mouth, for that matter.

Here’s LaBeouf talking about the “Indiana Jones” sequel during a press chat at Cannes (hat tip: SlashFilm:

“I think the audience is pretty intelligent. I think they know when you’ve made … . And I think if you don’t acknowledge it, then why do they trust you the next time you’re promoting a movie.” LaBeouf went on to say he wasn’t the only star on the film who felt that way. “We [Harrison Ford and LaBeouf] had major discussions. He wasn’t happy with it either. Look, the movie could have been updated. There was a reason it wasn’t universally accepted.”

LaBeouf even called out “Indy” director Steven Spielberg for blame, acknowledging his comments could have repercussions:

“I’ll probably get a call. But he needs to hear this. I love him. I love Steven. I have a relationship with Steven that supersedes our business work. And believe me, I talk to him often enough to know that I’m not out of line. And I would never disrespect the man. I think he’s a genius, and he’s given me my whole life. He’s done so much great work that there’s no need for him to feel vulnerable about one film. But when you drop the ball you drop the ball.”

So … a 20-something actor has the cojones to call “Indy” out, and legends like Spielberg and Ford can’t be bothered to do the same?

Frankly, I’m suddenly worried about LaBeouf. He’s come off like a loose cannon before in interviews, and even the hottest actors have to be very careful about the words they say in Hollywood.

If his next few films fail, studios might not be so eager to hire him given his propensity for honest chatter.

It’s still heartening to here the people behind the lethargic “Indy” sequel knew what audiences knew – we’d been had. And they knew it.

(Photo: Shia LaBeouf and Harrison Ford teamed up for the tepid “Indiana Jones and the Kingdom of the Crystal Skull” sequel. Paramount Pictures)

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The Summer ‘08 movie season did more than rake in buckets of cash. Every summer slate does that, give or take a few million.

It restored this movie fan’s faith in the film blockbuster, and I bet I’m not alone. It was touch and go for a while, though.

“Indiana Jones and the Kingdom of the Crystal Skull” did its best to squash my inner child, the same child who first fell in love with movies. “Indy” represented the most cynical part of the season – the can’t miss sequel that leaves audiences wishing they stuck to the originals.

Good thing “Iron Man” beat “Indy” out of the gate. The Marvel Comics hero proved to be smarter, funnier and more explosive than any silly superhero movie had a right to be. It also re-established star Robert Downey, Jr. as an A-lister – he’d cement that status with a brilliant turn in “Tropic Thunder” later.

“Speed Racer” crashed after the second lap, and “Sex and the City” scored big despite being a two-plus hours pander-fest – look, they’re doing a dressing room montage! Ooh, Mr. Big is writing Carrie a blank check for their new home!

June offered the good, the bad and “The Happening,” proof that M. Night Shyamalan isn’t the next Steven Spielberg. He’s the next Uwe Boll.

“The Incredible Hulk” proved an upgrade over Ang Lee’s soporific version, but it wasn’t good enough for audiences to demand a sequel. “You Don’t Mess with the Zohan” allowed Adam Sandler to dabble in geopolitical humor before reverting to lazy form.

And “Wall*E” proved Pixar’s many talents include hypnotizing the masses into thinking its inferior product is worthy of Oscar buzz.

But then big, beautiful July arrived, and with it the summer’s true salvation. “Step Brothers” showed Will Ferrell and John C. Reilly should synch their schedules more often. And even the misfire that was “Hancock” couldn’t detract from the cultural event that lived up to all the press and posthumous accolades.

“The Dark Knight” left me breathless. A smart, sophisticated thriller that just so happened to be based on a comic book. Arguably the best movie of the year.

And “Tropic Thunder,” and its deliriously anti-PC humor, took the sting out of “Pineapple Express,” the stoner comedy that proved a great red-band trailer does not a classic comedy make.

No summer season offers a consistently solid lineup of all-stars. The seasons must be measured by the quality, and quantity of highs. And by that scale, Summer ‘08 deserves a standing ovation.

(Photo: “Iron Man,” Summer ’08’s first blockbuster, set the gold standard for the season)

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Indy fans don’t mind the fact that their hero is in his 60s, or that the last time he rode into the cinematic sunset cell phones were as large as our heads.

We just want our whip-crackin‘, fedora wearin’ hero back, and Steven Spielberg and George Lucas oblige us with “Indiana Jones and the Kingdom of the Crystal Skull.” It’s the summer’s biggest hit so far, if you’re looking at the cold, hard numbers.

The newest “Jones” has cracked the $300 million mark at the box office, but I’ve yet to meet a soul who came away with anything but dashed expectations.

“Kingdom” finds Indy (Harrison Ford) racing the Russians to find a crystal skull which could give great power to its holder. Or something like that. It’s hardly crystal clear. En route, Indy teams up with young Mutt (Shia LaBeouf) who says his mother and an old mentor of Indy’s (John Hurt) have been captured by the same Russians gunning for the skull.

That squad is led by Cate Blanchett’s Irina Spalko, who speaks in a cheesy Russian dialect but fights with the ferocity of a small army. No matter, since she’s still about as frightening as a pimply-faced movie usher.

Along the way, Indy gets fired from his university for associating with a double agent, survives a nuclear blast and gets reunited with an old flame.

It’s a by-the-numbers adventure painted by a master working without his muse. Either there’s precious little magic left in the Indy formula, or Spielberg and crew knew they didn‘t have to extend themselves to rake in a fortune. There’s nothing here as beguiling as a weary Indy shooting the swordsman during “Raiders of the Lost Ark”

That’s movie magic, and it’s what’s glaringly missing here.

Blame an anemic script which relies so heavily on our pent-up nostalgia that it can’t be bothered with moving these characters forward so much as an inch. And what a shame, since a better screenplay would have run wild with the Indy/Marion reunion. But all Karen Allen gets to do as Marion is look content to be back in the franchise’s good graces.

LaBeouf who showed star potential in “Transformers,” is adequate here, a slick-haired poseur who can take a better punch that expected. There’s little connection between him and Indy, and their bickering stands as one of many weak elements that should have been addressed in early script rewrites.

And if you moaned when Indy, Short Round and Willie used a yellow raft to survive jumping out of a plane in “Temple of Doom,” just you wait. There’s one sequence here that makes that far-fetched scenario seem like it was ripped from a documentary.

“Indiana Jones and the Kingdom of the Crystal Skull” might be seen as a solid, if unspectacular adventure had the three Indy films not preceded it.

(Photo: The previous “Indiana Jones” films cast a large shadow over “Indiana Jones and the Kingdom of the Crystal Skull.”)

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