LOS ANGELES, CALIFORNIA: Harrison Ford’s last hurrah in the titular role of ‘Indiana Jones and the Dial of Destiny’ seems to have fallen apart if the ardent fans of the franchise are to believe. Released 15 years after its predecessor, ‘Kingdom of the Crystal Skrull’, the much-awaited fifth installment in the franchise raises the bar with action sequences and a touch of nostalgia but fails to secure a home run. The departure of Steven Spielberg from the Director’s chair is believed by many fans to have spoiled their favorite adventurer.
‘Dial of Destiny’ takes place in 1969 when Indian "Indy" Jones is on the verge of retirement but is thrown into the world of adventure when his goddaughter, Helena Shaw (Phoebe Waller-Bridge) forces him to look for a dial that could alter the course of history if it falls in the hands of an ex-Nazi scientist, Jurgen Voller, played by Mads Mikkelsen. Indy is reluctant but gives into the demands of Helena and once again, the intrepid archaeologist sets on an adventure only he can take. Indy travels to Tangier, Greece, and Sicily, chasing Voller who has stolen a piece of the dial from Indy and Helena. Voller assembles the piece hoping to travel back in time to kill Adolf Hitler but is later killed when he lands in 212 BC Syracuse. Indy is injured but Helena uses the dial to transport them back to 1969. For the fans, it was this story that didn't work. It felt like the action sequences and nostalgic callbacks were filled in to make up for poor writing.
'This was nostalgia done wrong’
The fans who had eagerly waited and bought the tickets for the first day to witness Harrison Ford pick up that iconic whip for one last time were truly devastated. They felt cheated as one fan brought out the biggest problem with the film. One said, “Dial of Destiny is what people fear when they say nostalgia bait. This was nostalgia done wrong. The film tries to be an Indy film instead of being one. Not Crystal Skull is bad but it’s not great either. Indy rode off into the sunset for me with Last Crusade.” Another questioned the studio’s decision and stated a technical problem with the film. "Dial of Destiny is as ugly as it is boring, what a piece of dogs**t. How are you gonna make a $300 million movie and not have the sky be colored in any daytime scenes? Big oof.” A third threw light on the banality of the story and described in brief how the movie flows. He said, “Indiana Jones and the Dial of Destiny is a movie. A long movie. Indiana Jones is in it. It's long. The action scenes aren't good. It's also long. Indy is not particularly fun in this one. It's really quite long. Also boring. And it's very long. Then it ends.”
'The magic was long gone'
A fan who had already lowered his expectations with the franchise said, "Sad to say that even with low expectations INDIANA JONES & THE DIAL OF DESTINY still disappointed me. Overlong, repetitively paced, full of lifeless CGI set pieces, AND barely a laugh throughout. Not even a new John Williams score could stop me from feeling the magic was long gone.” A fan was missing Steven Spielberg’s magic in the franchise and slammed director James Mangold for his mild interpretation of the character. "Dial of Destiny is the least creative in the series by a mile. Not even the slightest glimmer of the goofy, kinetic fun we used to have with Indy. James Mangold doesn't have the juice.” However, despite the average response from movie-going audiences, ‘Dial of Destiny’ is not a movie that many fans are proud of. One fan said, “Was Dial of Destiny as good as the original Indiana Jones trilogy? No. Was it as bad as Kingdom of the Crystal Skull? No. Was it borderline Crystal Skull level at points? Yes. Did Harrison Ford actually try this time? Yes. Overall, I'd say it was OK, but a bit disappointing.”
