Destiny Awaits

It's one last ride for everybody's favorite action-archaeologist hero (sorry, Brendan Fraser) in Indiana Jones and the Dial of Destiny. And it's a pretty good finale at that: not as great as the best films of the Indy saga, but about as good as you could reasonably expect.

I went in most interested to see how much this movie would really look and feel like Indy, given that neither Steven Spielberg nor George Lucas were involved with making it. I'm sure at this point that most of the fandom would say "good riddance" to George Lucas' involvement with the story (I'll come back to Kingdom of the Crystal Skull in a bit)... but an Indiana Jones movie without Steven Spielberg in the director's chair? Sounds like cause for some nervousness. And yet, it's probably no surprise that director James Mangold (like so many directors) has carefully studied everything about Spielberg, and has effectively mimicked the style without getting lost slapdash homage.

And despite there being four names credited on the script (usually a sign of extensive re-writing; not usually a sign of coherence or quality), Dial of Destiny has a pretty solid story. It effectively explores the question, "if this is the last Indiana Jones adventure, what are the themes that need to be covered?" It honors the fact that the star has aged, without beating you over the head with the idea that he's too far past his prime for one more adventure. It has a good final villain for a final Indy movie, and a gimmick quest object that's even better. Moreover, the script does a good job of weaving in almost every moment you'd want to see in "one last Indiana Jones movie" without it feeling as obligatory as it actually is. Above all, it's a fun movie (despite having some very serious moments).

The elephant in the room here, of course, is Indiana Jones and the Kingdom of the Crystal Skull. I haven't actually watched that fourth Indy movie since it was new, but when I look at my thoughts at the time, I seem to have enjoyed it a great deal more than the conventional wisdom now agrees. I noted that the ending wasn't great. (Today, I think we've all collectively decided it was actually terrible.) In any case, that was the worst aspect of the movie... and a reason to be glad that it's no longer "the last word" on Indiana Jones. Crystal Skull took a big swing in its final act, and struck out. Dial of Destiny takes just as big a swing, but manages to make it work.

No, it's not as close to the perfect movie as most people agree Raiders of the Lost Ark and Indiana Jones and the Last Crusade were. It's a little too reliant on long sequences using "de-aging" CG that still isn't quite perfect (no matter how hard movie studios keep pushing it). There's a loose end or two that aren't effectively tied up, and one or two items on the "last adventure checklist" that don't get checked off.

At the same time, Harrison Ford is as entertaining as ever. Phoebe Waller-Bridge is a great foil, and a surprisingly effective action star (jumping in for a number of sequences where you could never include a star of Ford's age). Mads Mikkelsen gives great villain (as he always does), and Ethann Isidore is fun as a new sidekick character.

All rolled up, I'd give Indiana Jones and the Dial of Destiny a B+. I'm glad this is now the final Indy adventure, and I'd encourage any fans to catch it soon in theaters before any of it is spoiled for you.