In 1969, Indiana Jones (played by Harrison Ford) is retiring, but he's dragged into artifact hunting one last time by his goddaughter Helena (Fleabag's Phoebe Waller-Bridge). What ensues is an Indy-style chase for part of a compass created by Archimedes.
Dial definitely feels more like classic Indy than Kingdom of the Crystal Skull. (And I'm not trying to knock KotCS. Had a decent time. Don't understand the hardcore hate for it. Yeah, yeah, there was the refrigerator scene. Temple of Doom had Indy rafting down a mountain slope from a plane and a minecart track built over lava without melting. Suspension of disbelief, people.) Spielberg had gotten a bit tamer by the time of KotCS and this movie brings back the harder action edge found in the original trilogy. The opening fight scene in particular is just peak Indy and so enjoyable. (Admittedly, some chase scenes could've been shorter.) The final act is also definitely something and different.
This is also one of the darkest Indy films. This goes harder with civilian casualties than usual and this might not be ideal for you if you prefer more lighthearted action fare. This movie also carries on this nasty recent trend of having the protagonist or protagonists of a film series that has had long gaps between entries wind up in a worse place in life than where we last saw them. It's nihilistic, and I'm getting tired of it. In fairness, this plot point does have its reasons and does emotionally resonate more than with other films of this type.
There is one unresolved plothole that's impossible to ignore. I don't know what they were thinking with letting that string hang.
Harrison Ford is 81 years old, and he still KILLS it as Indy. Yeah, he isn't able to get into physical fights with people now (I congratulate the film on being completely realistic that Indy's gotten old), but he still has that energy and sheer passion he holds for archaeology. This movie does something that no other film really does: it shows Indy being truly emotional and honest and again Ford KILLS the performance here. You may argue that the IJ saga should've stayed a trilogy, but I thinks it's Indy's dramatic scenes here that justify the film.
Phoebe-Waller works well as a sharp-tongued comedic foil/sidekick for Indy. She's merely interested in profit which easily conflicts with the more noble Indy. (Yes, yes, Indiana should probably return artifacts to their countries of origin. Let's not get into that.)
Antagonists are also stronger than in KotCS. Mads Mikllelson is the villain, former Nazi scientist Dr. Voller. Yeah, American films tend to typecast Mikkelson as the baddie, and he's got greater range than that, but he does do it well. Here he manages to make Voller different than some of his previous roles by adding a little dimension to the character than just being calmly evil. (Admittedly I haven't seen his Gindewald, so I can't comment on that.) Voller is clearly fueled by a desperate urgency in his search for the compass. He's also got a couple henchmen, the typical one who's HUGE and the typical one who's got a mouth on him, and they work pretty well.
Movie looks pretty nice. Yeah, I miss the more practical effects and natural lighting of the original trilogy, but the computer animation and artificial look isn't as in your face as KotCS. There are a lot of exotic locales here (perhaps too much) and director James Mangold (Girl Interrupted, Logan, Ford vs. Ferrari) puts a lot of detail into the crowds and historic setting. The digital face for younger Indy for the flashback at the beginning is quite realistic and you have to focus on it for a sec before you realize it's fake.
Recommended. Again, latter Indy isn't as good as the original trilogy, but this is still an entertaining film and is definitely the most moving of all of them. If anything, watch it for Ford's performance.
