On paper, there’s a lot to like about “Indiana Jones and the Dial of Destiny.” Everyone’s favorite adventurer-archaeologist was inviting quips about belonging in a museum himself when “Indiana Jones and the Kingdom of the Crystal Skull” dropped in 2008, so bringing him back in 2023 is bold. So is the choice to coolly replace Shia LaBeouf’s ill-received Mutt Williams with Indy’s goddaughter Helena (Phoebe Waller-Bridge). Clearly, this is a movie that revels in audacity.
A new Indy film might work well if the character takes a senior expert role, Henry Jones Sr.-style. Letting younger characters do the jumping and fighting would make sense, and close the circle for Indiana as he mentors the next generation. But this won’t go like that, will it? This will clearly be a last hurrah type of deal, where an 80-year-old Harrison Ford still fights Nazis like it’s nothing.
Sure, the trailer teases that Indy feels too old for adventuring, but don’t be fooled. Moments later, he’s riding horses, running on top of trains, and jumping from moving tuk-tuks in feats of athleticism that would have been impressive in the “Raiders of the Lost Ark” era, let alone in his twilight years. We see a variation of the classic “shoot the swordsman” moment from “Raiders,” and a tease of yet another giant henchman fight. Don’t be surprised if Indy has to solve an icky environmental puzzle during his hunt for the MacGuffin, and maybe even run from a giant boulder. The movie’s apparent antagonist, Mads Mikkelsen’s Voller, even looks like “Raiders of the Lost Ark” villain Toht (Ronald Lacey).
I’d enjoy a good final Indiana Jones movie, and I’d love it if the trailer turns out to be a huge misdirect that hides a much more imaginative and inventive movie than the one it teases. It’s just that right now, “The Dial of Destiny” seems like a microwaved plate of lukewarm leftovers that’s content to ride the coattails of past glories. This seems like a recipe for disaster, regardless of how much they de-age Ford for the wildest action scenes. Hopefully, history will prove me wrong.
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