Film Review: Indiana Jones and the Dial of Destiny

 

Sexuality/Nudity Acceptable

Violence Acceptable
Vulgarity Acceptable

Anti-Catholic Philosophy Acceptable

Indiana Jones has been a part of my cinematic life for as long as I can remember.  To this day, Last Crusade is the greatest adventure movie ever made.  Even though Temple of Doom has some issues, the movie is so iconic that it overcomes those flaws.  Kingdom of the Crystal Skull actually did incredible damage to the brand.  And seeing how Disney has abused all of the Lucasfilm properties, I went into this final movie expecting the worst.

But Indiana Jones and the Dial of Destiny is a movie that feels like it could have been great with just a few adjustments.

The movie begins with an extended flashback to the end of World War II as a de-aged Harrison Ford plays Indiana Jones as he and his partner Basil Shaw (Tobe Jones) are trying to stop the Nazis from carrying away historical treasures.  One of these Nazis is Dr. Voller (Mads Mikkelson) who has found half of Archimedes' Dial.  Through the adventure Voller loses the Dial.  Years later in 1969, an aging, grumpy, and retiring Dr. Jones encounters Basil's daughter Helena (Phoebe Waller-Bridge), who is looking for the half of the dial.  However, Voller's henchmen begin to close in, which sets off a race to find the rest of the dial and save the world.

I will give director James Mangold a lot of credit for the look of the movie.  Whenever I think of Kingdom of the Crystal Skull, I always go back to the artificiality of the digital jungle scenes.  Sometime about those sequences feels so cartoonish and fake.  Mangold seems to use real locations when possible.  This especially makes the danger feel more tangible and real.

And to Mangold's credit, the first 15 minutes feel like something out of any classic Indy adventure.  This opening is filled with the excitment and absurdity that you would expect to find in anything directed by Steven Spielberg.  

The movie has two major issues.

The first is that Lucasfilm once again takes a classic hero and makes him a sad, broken, lonley man.  Luke Skywalker, Han Solo, and Willow have all gotten the exact same treatment.  This robs a good deal of the usual joy of an Indy adventure.  SPOILER FOR THE REST OF THE PARAGRAPH, SKIP AHEAD IF YOU DO NOT WANT SPOILERS.  This would be fine if the story was about Indy returning to a life of adventure.  But his character arc is flat.  He is so passive in the end that I can understand by those who hated Indy's actions.

END SPOILERS

The second problem is Waller-Bridge.  Throughout most of the movie, I wanted to wipe her smug smirk off her face.  She constantly mugs with a grin of unearned superiority.  When she tries to play charming, she comes off as insufferable.  It is only in the last act when she begins the play the part with sincerity that she is likeable.  I can think of several other actresses who would have been a better fit.  If Waller-Bridge is unpallatable to you, then you will find the movie a bear to watch.

Much of the two problems could have been ameliorated by some writing adjustments.  All indications are that this script was re-written several times, so it lacks a strong cohesion.  But Helena's part could have been toned down and Indy's agency could have been toned up.  It isn't a complete inversion (there are several times when Indy gets the better of her), but it feels like this story needed a stronger hand.

For example, Antonio Banderas plays an old friend of Indy named Renaldo.  Perhaps I am wrong, but it feels like his part was much bigger originally, but his story was eventually cut.  But even if I am wrong, it feels like such a waste of a talent like Banderas to reduce him to a glorified cameo.

Ford plays Indy well in terms of the script he is given.  But Old Indy lacks that devilish twinkle.  It is a credit to Ford that even at his age, his charisma carries much of the screen action.  Mikkelsen plays his part with good intelligent menace.  I like how they set him up in the beginning like an antithesis to Indy both in look and smarts.  Boyd Holbrook plays Mikkelsen's main enforcer.  He does his job well, but the script doesn't give him much to do but be hate-able.  Helena has a sidekick named Teddy played by Ethann Isidore, who is essentially a retread of Short Round.  But Isidore lacks the range and charisma necessary for the part and so suffers by comparison.

I will give the story credit for taking the subject of death seriously.  Indy seems truly horrified by the innocents that are killed around him.  In one of the most wonderfully jarring scenes, Helena revels in a daring escape, but Indy has to remind her about the murdered people left behind.  I've noticed lately that a lot of action movies are blasé about the collateral damage around them.  It was actually strangely touching to see the deaths of side characters treated with sensitivity.  

As I said, the first act is excellent.  The final act is also very good.  It is the middle part where Helena is most prominent that the story drags.  Like a lot of recent movies, the action sequences go on just a little bit too long.  Having said that, the staging of these scenes is generally good.  The scene where Indy is riding a horse through the subway is actually incredibly fun.  The rise of the classic John Williams score helps elevate a number of scenes as well.  But it is clear that a half-an-hour could have been removed from this movie easily. 

By comparison, Dial of Destiny is better than Kingdom of the Crystal Skull and it ends the series on a slightly sweet note.  

But if you cannot stand Waller-Bridge or Indy's choices, then you will find the experience to be sour.