Harrison Ford’s final outing as the rapscallion archaeologist Indiana Jones is a greatest hits compilation – with a new element thrown in. Indiana Jones and the Dial of Destiny is, fittingly, about the passage of time and its manipulation.
De-aging technology is used in scenes to remind us of how Ford looked in 1981, when he first set out on hair-raising adventure in Raiders of the Last Ark. Visual effects are deployed to the hilt as Ford – who is now 80 – embarks on yet another perilous quest to find a mythical object. Fleabag creator Phoebe Waller-Bridge turns up to reel in the younger crowd.
At the end of World War II, Indiana gets his hands on one-third of a time-bending gadget invented by Archimedes. One half is with the Nazi doctor Jurgen Voller (Mads Mikkelsen).
In 1969, as America celebrates its first moon landing, Indiana is forced out of retirement by the arrival of his god-daughter Helena (Waller-Bridge). Helena’s less-than-honourable plans set into motion a continent-hopping trip that sees new allies as well as the return of old friends.
The tone is more sombre, despite no shortage of action sequences from director James Mangold (taking over from franchise regular Steven Spielberg). Beginning on a hectic note, the movie rolls…
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