🍿70: Indiana Jones and the Dial of Destiny
It's an Indy-packed SP this week to celebrate Harrison Ford's 81st birthday! 🎂
“It’s not the years honey. It’s the mileage.”
~ Indiana Jones and the Raiders of the Lost Ark, 1981
Kill Bill(ing)…
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Now for the headlines:
Early audiences call Oppenheimer ‘a spectacular achievement’. Read more.
Meanwhile, some critics are saying Ryan Gosling deserves an Oscar nomination for his portrayal of Ken in Barbie. Read more.
After narrowly avoiding a permanent shutdown, the Edinburgh Film Festival has announced its lineup. Read more.
And finally, as Indiana Jones and the Dial of Destiny slips to second place in the box office charts, Rotten Tomatoes thinks Indy will fail to turn a profit. Read more.
Upcoming Releases
Napoleon
UK: 24 November // USA: 22 November
Joaquin Phoenix stars in Ridley Scott’s latest historical epic looking at the origins of Napoleon, his ruthless climb to power and his volatile relationship with his wife Josephine (Vanessa Kirby).
Bob Marley: One Love
UK: 12 January // USA: 12 January
Kingsley Ben-Adir stars as the iconic reggae artist Bob Marley in the latest music biopic to hit the silver screen.
Wonka
UK: 15 December // USA: 15 December
The long-awaited origin story of Willy Wonka, starring Timothée Chalamet, is finally here. You’ll never guess who plays the oompa loompa…
Fact of the week
During the filming of Indiana Jones and the Raiders of the Lost Ark, almost the entire production crew and cast got sick (except Steven Spielberg), which inadvertently led to one of the film’s most iconic shots.
Fans might remember the scene when Indy is confronted by a master swordsman in Cairo. Originally, Indy was meant to use his whip to take the sword out of the swordsman’s hands, but Harrison Ford couldn’t manage it. After several failed takes, he said to Spielberg: “Why don’t we just shoot this son of a bitch?” And that’s what happened.
Review: Indiana Jones and the Dial of Destiny
Star rating:
3.5 (out of 5)
Where to watch:
USA: Only in Cinemas
UK: Only in Cinemas
Runtime:
2hr 22m
Director:
James Mangold
Blurb:
Indiana Jones (Harrison Ford) and his god-daughter Helena (Phoebe Waller-Bridge) race against time to retrieve a legendary artefact that can change the course of history.
The review (NO spoilers):
Harrison Ford turned 81 today (yes, today!) and while he might be more prone than ever to end up with a broken hip, he can still crack a whip.
The Dial of Destiny marks the first film in the franchise not directed by Steven Spielberg, with James Mangold (Girl, Interrupted) stepping in to direct Indy’s last adventure. Now it’s not as good as the original trilogy (and it was never going to be) but it offers a much better ending than The Kingdom of the Crystal Skull.
It’s a lot of fun, with the usual wise-cracking quips in between action scenes and car chases — of which there are a lot. In fact, on reflection, the whole film is essentially one very long car chase. As fun as this is to watch, the stakes have never felt lower.
Without wanting to give too much away, we are, in true Indiana fashion, treated to an opening scene that lies a little separate from the main plot. In it, a much younger Harrison Ford (thanks to CGI anti-ageing) takes on half the German army during the fall of the Third Reich.
It’s a great scene, and it feels like this part of the film is the most true to the franchise. Of course, if it were filmed in the 80’s we’d have a lot less CGI and a lot more real-life stunts — which is why, in my opinion, older action films continue to be better than most modern ones.
Now we can’t expect an octogenarian to outrun a boulder (one key reason why Indy should’ve retired 30 years ago) but that was part of the magic of the original trilogy. And this thought was in the back of my mind throughout every action scene.
As Mark Kermode wrote for The Guardian, it’s “fun but formulaic,” which sums it up. It’s silly, there are few holes in the plot and inconsequential characters were given too much screen time. But somehow, and maybe it’s a result of my low expectations, I enjoyed it. I was grinning when the credits rolled.
Should Indiana have hung up his hat for the last time following The Last Crusade? Absolutely, but at least there weren’t any aliens in this one.
Scroll down for The Critic’s Cut and to see what’s in the next issue.
If you liked Indiana Jones and the Dial of Destiny…
The Lost City of Z
2016 | UK: Amazon Prime (£3.49) // USA: Amazon Prime (Free for premium subs)
No other adventure film or franchise can light a candle to Indiana Jones. So rather than recommend the likes of National Treasure or The Mummy, I thought I’d look at a more serious adventure film.
Based on a true story, The Lost City of Z follows British explorer Percival Fawcett (Charlie Hunnam) on a daring journey to the heart of the Amazon rainforest in search of a mysterious city. I’ve not seen this one, but it’s got a high critic score on Rotten Tomatoes.
In the next issue:
Oppenheimer
UK: 21 July // USA: 21 July | Watch the Trailer
