NEW INDIANA JONES MOVIE CLOSES THE DOOR FOR FORD AND THE FANS

There are few movie characters that are as iconic as the actor that plays them. Few where if you changed the actor that the character would become almost unrecognizable. Harrison Ford has the distinction of playing two characters that are as inseparable from him as they are from the franchises they belong to. The first is Han Solo from Star Wars that Ford made famous back in in 1977 and later spanned the decades reprising the role four more times. The other is the intrepid archaeologist Indiana Jones who has chased after ancient relics that have, at times bordered on the mystical in nature. To see anyone other than Ford playing Indy as an adult is unheard of and impossible to picture. Raiders of the Lost Ark, Temple of Doom, and The Last Crusade were all excellent movies in their own right and made the character and Ford icons that will live forever in Hollywood lore. Yes, even Valley of the Crystal Skull made Indy an even deeper character that can’t simply be wiped away even with its poor premise and lackluster moments. Crusade seemed to be the perfect send off when it came out in 1989. Crystal Skull, at most seemed to give fans what felt like Ford’s last ride as the character and an unwise choice of Shia LeBeouf as his possible successor playing his son. With the less than warm reception that movie got it made fans feel like they really didn’t get the finality they were craving. So, once again Hollywood tried to right the wrong by giving one final installment to REALLY put an end to Ford’s run. The latest entry you can see in theaters is Indiana Jones and the Dial of Destiny.

The story finds Indy, as most the movies do starting out on an adventure that has nothing to do with the movie’s overall arc. He is going up against his most dominant foe once again, the Nazis of Germany. He finds himself trying to recover an artifact only to stumble upon another that he did not intend to find. The Dial of Destiny is an ancient artifact that many believe is a time machine of sorts. While the movie starts out with Indy much younger it quickly jumps to its present time and much older Doctor Jones than we have come to see. It is now the 1960s and many things from the last movie have been slightly undone or changed, but not ignored. Indy has an old friend’s daughter, Helena Shaw played by Phoebe Waller-Bridge come seek his help in finding the Dial after it has been lost. Indy gets dragged into this adventure most reluctantly and for good reason. He’s an old man that can barely get around in an adventurous fashion like he used to. Mads Mikkelson plays Jurgen Voller the German still seeking the dial as well to fix what went wrong with the World War 2 and maybe change history for the worst. The movie’s premise is still pretty simple: it’s a race to see who can get to the dial first and destroy it or use it.

Dial of Destiny crosses a few things off the fans’ lists of where our hero meets his destiny. We get answers to a few unanswered questions from over the years and a few things people didn’t like get rectified even if it may mean the end of the character and the franchise. The story line is very good and gets back to the mystical side of Dr. Jones’ adventure and stays away from another bout with aliens. We get to see familiar characters and a few nods to the previous movies that will have fans smiling as they reminisce over one of their favorite characters. Mikkelson is great at playing the ever creepy bad guy in the movies. His singular look and presence will give you chills as stares blankly at other people in the film whether he is insulting them or praising them. One scene is uncomfortable in the way you want and expect it to be as he interacts with a room service attendant. You can almost feel a chill come off the screen. Waller-Bridge plays Helena well as a slimy black market dealer of antiquities that isn’t the usual female foil for Indy. In fact, she seems to see most of the action in the movie with Ford chasing after her and trying to keep her out of trouble. At his age you can’t expect him to jump pits, swing from his whip, or have elongated fist fights with the common thugs. It’s truly refreshing that they didn’t try to make an older gentleman have some ability to fight the passage of time on his body as a character. The viewer knows they’re both old and there is a level of implausibility that you can’t look past. The filmmakers embrace it actually which is nice. There are still moments of action that Jones is involved in and plenty of it, but it is toned down. The film has a good pace to it that was missing from the last chapter that seemed to be going headlong into the next scene. Steven Spielberg’s direction on Crystal Skull didn’t have his patience as the previous films did and it took away from the drama. Destiny has a bit of that back with James Mangold at the helm and Disney holding the checkbook. Indiana Jones is a character that is bigger than the silver screen he is shown on, and it would feel like a disservice to not see it in the theater. I’ve seen every one of them in order on the big screen and in that capacity, they do not disappoint, and Dial of Destiny is no different. There is enough big time action for this film to be fun, but there is still the heart and charm that Indiana Jones has and that Ford brings to life in a way no other actor could or will be able to. While the film isn’t a love letter to the fans it does touch on moments and makes you feel for the character as you say your goodbyes. Ford says this is his last time as Indiana Jones and this seemed to be a great way to go out with a less sour taste in their mouths than Crystal Skull left us all with.