Sometimes, I love being wrong. As in, after she croaked through her last few episodes of American Idol, I was convinced Carrie Underwood was never going to make a good album. How could she, right? She had no stage presence, and by the sound of it, her vocal cords were about to fly out of her mouth. (Remember this? My girl sounds tore up.)

But, um… whoops. Carrie Underwood rules. I loved “Before He Cheats” the first time I heard it, and I’ve got to say, I liked it even more because I was expecting so little. When you’re not looking for enjoyment, an entertaining piece of pop culture gives you the added joy of surprise.

And that’s exactly what Indiana Jones and the Kingdom of the Crystal Skull gave me.

(more after the jump)

My friend Maggie and I went to see it in DC on Sunday, mostly because we wanted to go to a movie but were not interested in the exploits of the Kung Fu Panda. When we sat down, we seriously looked at each other and said, “Well, here goes nothing.” I mean, several friends told me the movie blew, and I hated the new Star Wars movies so much that I assumed George Lucas had lost his mind. What could I possibly have hoped for from Indy IV: Still Whipping?

However, about five minutes into the movie, I said, “Wow. This is good!” (But not too loud. I’m not a movie talker, people.)

In her review at Salon.com, Stephanie Zacharek touches on a lot of things I enjoyed: The fact that the action is in real-time and hardly based on special effects; the fact that the older actors actually look old; the fact that the story moves at such a fun, breathless pace.

Which is to say… The movie feels human. When you can actually see the effort on Harrison Ford’s face as he fights, you can get invested in the battle. When awesome Karen Allen actually has wrinkles, it’s easier to be amazed by her jungle derring-do with that truck. These characters seem like actual people who are actually risking something, you know?

Plus, in a blockbuster culture so dominated by superheroes and Transformers and wizards, it’s nice to pretend, just for a minute, that I could be up there on screen. More than once in this movie, I pictured myself fencing with Cate Blanchett on the side of a moving truck or hopping over a hill of giant ants. Even though the plot has supernatural elements, it thrives on that kind of empathy (just like the Bourne movies.) The adventure is more thrilling because it’s always grounded in the possible.

As a counterpoint, think about how inhumanly powerful John McClane was in last year’s Die Hard With a Vengeance. In the first Die Hard, he’s such an average Joe that he has to fight terrorists without his shoes on. You can actually be worried for the guy, which makes his cocky victory that much better. By Vengeance, however, McClane is unstoppable. He’s driving tanker trucks into helicopters and, like, ripping the arms off marble statues. Where he used to be a person, now he’s a superhero in a Bruce Willis costume.

But Indiana? He’s old and crotchety, and while his stunts are amazing, they’re not unbelievable. (After all, Harrison Ford did many of them himself.)

So thanks for the unexpected joy, Crystal Skull. If there’s an Indy V, I won’t be dubious about seeing it.