Indiana Jones And The Dial Of Destiny (2023) [Spoiler-Free] – Long Review

What can be said about Indiana Jones that hasn’t already been said countless times? The character is an icon, the actor is an icon, the hat is an icon. So, I won’t bore you with a long-winded essay on what Indiana Jones means to me or what I assume it means to the world. If you’re reading this, you likely already know these things. But if you don’t, let me know because we have SO MUCH to discuss! 

As far as Dial Of Destiny goes, it’s not a perfect film by any stretch of the imagination. It drags on at parts in the middle. And with a runtime of over two and a half hours, I wasn’t a fan of feeling as though some scenes were lingering in places too long without moving the story or excitement along. I felt there could have been some smarter editing choices made. Also, there were some minor disagreements I have with a few character-development aspects. As much as I want to, I can’t really get into them in this spoiler-free review, but I may choose to in a future discussion.

There are some de-aging scenes in the movie, and that’s always dicey territory. These effects, while still impressive, aren’t quite at 100% yet. Uncanny Valley still persists, my friends. What I will say, though, is that this is the most realistic de-aging attempt I have ever seen in a movie to-date. At moments, it was as though we were watching Harrison Ford in his 40s. And then there are parts when Indy speaks and his mouth sort of seems not-quite-right. This technology is still in its infancy, and it’s still a tad bit jarring to watch in this film. But it’s getting there. It really is. This is the closest I’ve seen it get to looking fully realistic so far. 

Those issues aside, Dial Of Destiny serves as a worthy capstone to such a storied franchise. Many missteps occurred during The Kingdom Of The Crystal Skull, and everyone has a right to be skeptical about this movie given what we went through last time. I didn’t want to leave the theater this time with the same empty feeling I felt in 2008. If you are feeling the same concerns, I bring good news: this is a thrilling movie that is not overly-laden with confusing nonsense, and has real emotional weight to it. Dare I say it, this film accomplishes something no other Indy move has done – I got misty-eyed more than one time during the film. Not because of nostalgia or anything like that, but because this script brought out new emotions I never expected to feel in an Indy movie. If a four-decade story is coming to its conclusion, I want to cry, damn it! And I am happy to say it made me cry a lot. As Nicole Kidman accurately said: “Somehow, heartbreak feels good in a place like this.”

Harrison Ford continues to shine as as bright as ever. His charisma, his sense of adventure, and his famous grumpiness – nobody can match it. There’s a lot to admire about a guy who can still give us a physical performance of this caliber at his age. Phoebe Waller-Bridge, to me, stands out as one of the top three supporting characters in all of Indiana Jones behind Sean Connery and Karen Allen, respectively. That’s not bad company for her to be in. Her performance here was exceptionally fun and I am looking forward to seeing her taking on more prominent leading roles after the success this movie. Mads Mikkelsen continues to give amazing villainous performances. He’s one of the best at what he does. He commands every scene he’s in and he earned his place as one of the best bad guys in Hollywood. I like to believe that he’s probably a great guy to hang out with in real-life though, despite being a formidable creepy presence in every movie he’s in, including this one. This movie was packed with some serious star power – so much, in fact, that there just wasn’t enough script to go around. Antonio Banderas was, in my opinion, given a part too small for someone like him. He did great, and I enjoyed every second he was on-screen. Just, he was gone as soon as he arrived! 

Composer John Williams is over 90 years old, and we need to admire the fact that he is still scoring movies. The most impressive thing, though, is the fact that he has not lost a step. His music in this movie is some of the finest he has ever done. He gave us The Raiders March over 40 years ago, and it remains one of his best film scores of all time – One of THE best film scores of all time. He crafted variations of it over five films, and I truly think what he brought to Dial is the best I have heard since Raiders. Earlier this year, Williams stated that he plans to continue scoring movies for years to come. If this movie is any indication, we shouldn’t assume his best work is behind him. He clearly has more tricks up his sleeve, and he plans to use them. 

Overall, you should check your expectations at the door: this movie is not Raiders nor is it Last Crusade. If you go in with those expectations, you’re not going to be satisfied. Those two are movies which stand amongst the best of that entire decade. They can still make a damn good Indy flick without reaching those heights, and that is exactly what Dial Of Destiny is.