Indiana Jones 5: A Love Letter to the Original Trilogy (and Blockbusters in General)
One of the highlights of being a kid in the ’80s, at least for me, was the movies. Basically the first ten years of my life coincided with Back to the Future, The Goonies, Gremlins, Big, Supergirl (hey, to a five-year-old, Supergirl was awesome), Ghostbusters, Who Framed Roger Rabbit, and all manner of other creative cinematic offerings. A lot of the films became iconic (E.T.), a lot became lost to all but a handful of diehard fans (if you’ve never seen The Dog Who Stopped the War, a quiet gem from Quebec, it’s well worth grabbing the newly released Blu-ray), and some live on only because TV stations need to fill the 2–4 p.m. block on Saturday afternoons (hi, Revenge of the Nerds II: Nerds in Paradise). But it was a fun era for movies, no matter how you slice it.
Part of what made it all so special was the excitement around theatrical releases. Now, I didn’t sit in a blocks-long line at midnight for a movie’s first-day showing until I was twenty, in 1999, when The Phantom Menace came out. (Stop laughing. You know you were looking forward to it too until you actually saw it.) So, I was never in one of those famous 1980s blocks-long lines. But my young friends and I watched TV, we saw trailers and ads in the newspaper, we knew what was playing, and when you finally got to see that exciting movie, whether it was on opening weekend or a rainy summer afternoon, going to the theatre and settling in with your popcorn and candy and watching that blockbuster was still an event.
I haven’t felt that movie event excitement in a long time . . .
Until I saw Indiana Jones and the Dial of Destiny.
From the opening seconds of 2023’s installment of the franchise until the last shot of Indy’s famous fedora, Dial of Destiny delivers on every single front a fan of the original trilogy, or any 1980s-style blockbuster, would crave.
It’s designed to be the final film of Indy’s escapades, and I don’t think anyone could ask for a better ending. It’s a roller coaster of adventure, with chase scenes and action sequences that are heart-pounding, humor and dialogue and motifs that are witty, and family-friendly storytelling that perfectly balances nostalgia of the best Indiana Jones moments with sharp, fresh twists.
The filmmakers manage to up the stakes without making you feel like, “Oh, they’re just doing this to up the stakes.” Different time periods are hit on, thoroughly making use of Harrison Ford’s actual age and the tech to convincingly de-age him as needed. And speaking of Ford, the man is in fantastic shape. He’s as agile and strong as he was doing this stuff forty years ago, and he’s probably the only octogenarian I think I’ve ever referred to as “hot.” I get it, of course he had stuntmen or digital effects doing the real death-defying moments like hanging out of cars during a race through Tangiers or riding a horse in the most unexpected of places, jumping from train car to train car or fighting his way out of a noose, but hell, think of staying on set all those hours, for all those days, playing against a blue screen with tiny computer nodes all over you. That takes some energy, folks. I want a nap just thinking about it.
Dial of Destiny clocks in at just over two and a half hours, but the story warrants it, not one second is wasted or draggy, and the time flies. Written by Jez Butterworth, John-Henry Butterworth, David Koepp, and James Mangold, the film feels like a love letter to the original trilogy. Other than what’s on Wikipedia, I have no idea what happened in writers’ rooms or behind closed doors when it came to who had a hand in the film’s story and production. But considering all the hype of the franchise’s fourth installment, Indiana Jones and the Colossal Disappointment*, it almost seems like Ford, Lucas, and Spielberg stepped aside to let fans helm this one. I mean, the Dial of Destiny writers are seasoned screenwriters, sure, but I’m willing to bet dollars to doughnuts these guys grew up loving the coolest archeology professor ever.
*Not its real name. But close.
To be fair, Indiana Jones 4**, released in 2008, had to have been one pressure cooker of a task for the Ford/Lucas/Spielberg team. Nearly twenty years had passed since the last franchise installment in 1989, Indiana Jones and the Last Crusade; they were trying to live up to films and a character who had become part of Americana; and three different people, each successful in his own right, had different visions and styles for a series in which all three seemed so emotionally invested, understandably so.
**Seriously, it’s not worth the effort writing out the full name.
I’m just so happy that, this time, all the filmmakers, from the original team to the newbies, got it right.
As far as I’m concerned, Indiana Jones 4 never happened. It really never has to, if you’re looking for a great way to tie up Indy’s adventures with one final rip-roaring blockbuster. Dial of Destiny does build on some of the personal aspects of Indy’s character introduced in 4, but you get the depth of these travails with or without having seen 4. What’s more important is that you’ve seen movies 1 through 3: Raiders of the Lost Ark, Temple of Doom, and Last Crusade. Then, when you see Dial of Destiny, you’ll appreciate the homage it pays them.
It’s in the action scenes. It’s in the character development. It’s in the nods to Last Crusade’s Holy Grail clues and Temple of Doom’s “Indy — female companion — fun but blissfully non-annoying kid tag-along” dynamic. And it all comes full circle with Raiders of the Lost Ark, not just in Indy’s character, but in how this whole forty-year archaeological romp began. No, I don’t just mean with Nazis (though, yep, they’re here too); I’m talking about the magic that’s key to the Indiana Jones universe: The combination of history, science, math, myth, and the inexplicable. That idea that wonders never cease, so long as we never lose sight of a basis in reason, the rational, knowledge over ignorance, and the common good over a thirst for power.
These are big ideas, and yet Dial of Destiny makes them fun and just part of a darn good story.
That’s one of the things I miss about the 1980s blockbuster. Those filmmakers knew how to create a picture that, yes, made its points, but that was, first and foremost, fun. Dial of Destiny came out in 2023, and it’s currently considered a commercial flop. But I’m positive that’s not a reflection on the amazing story the filmmakers put together. It’s because it received no publicity, it came in the wake of Indiana Jones 4’s mess, and yes, it was too fun. Had it come out in the ’80s or even the ’90s, it would have opened to huge ticket sales. It would have been an actual “block buster,” in movie terms, because it totally would have had that line around the block, repeat audiences, and a life of months on the theatre marquee (Raiders stayed in theatres from June, 1981 until March, 1982).
In part, Dial would have enjoyed those things because that era leant itself to those things. But it would also be because people used to go to the movies to have fun. Boppenheimer or Oarbie — or whatever the appropriate portmanteau is for the movies I had to hear about ad nauseum in 2023 — were not fun! At least, they weren’t for me. In my opinion, way too many opportunities were missed in Barbie (I say as a kid who loved Barbie). And I admit I didn’t see Oppenheimer, because it didn’t look fun and my quota of big-budget history lessons had already been filled for the year with viewings of Darkest Hour and Tesla. There’s absolutely nothing wrong with “message” media as long as it actually tries to shed new light on a subject and doesn’t merely spit out simplistic clichés. I’m just saying, what’s wrong with a little fun for fun’s sake, too?
But . . .
Not all hope is lost for Dial of Destiny.
Because along with its nods to 1980s blockbusters and the original trilogy, maybe it will, in a very meta way, enjoy a nod to one other ’80s phenomenon:
The comeback success story.
Lots of media in the 1980s were flops right out of the gate, until they had a chance to linger awhile in the public’s awareness. For movies, A Christmas Story is a pretty big example that comes to mind. It was DOA until networks began airing it as inexpensive filler during the holiday season. Now, of course, it’s Hollywood gold.
Maybe the same can happen with Dial of Destiny. Summer’s just starting. There will be rainy days and holidays, family movie nights and weekends. Give Dial of Destiny a try. It’s certainly worth the $3.99 rental on Amazon Prime (back in the day, that’s what you’d have paid at Blockbuster, right?). Put Indy back on the globe-trotting map for one more exciting movie event. Pop some popcorn, open the Junior Mints and Reese’s Pieces, buckle your seat belts and hang on to your fedora.
It’s gonna be a fun ride.
Clarissa J. Markiewicz is also the author of Christmas In Whimsy — a heartwarming, fun novel readers compare to Hallmark Christmas movies, and recipient of Readers’ Favorite 5-star Seal—the genre-bending new-age mystery The Paramour Pawn, and the blog series Sketches from the Café Confictura.
©2024 Clarissa J. Markiewicz. No portion of this or any related blog post may be used to train any AI application without explicit consent from the author.
