Ah, Dr. Jones. So good to finally have you back. You were looking positively dreadful when we saw you last. It’s nice to see you’ve improved greatly since then.
The rip-roaring opening of your latest film, The Dial of Destiny, took you back to the roots of what made your old adventures so special. It’s fun, full of action, and sprinkled with some amusing humorous bits. That’s not to say that there weren’t a couple of wonky CGI de-aging shots, but aside from that, the digital facelift you received was just good enough not to be irksome. It works, provided the audience, as you did in The Last Crusade, takes a leap of faith, and just goes with it. I have to say that the ending will likewise probably take a leap of faith as well. I guess that might depend on whether or not some moviegoers can swallow the premise or not. (It’s almost, if not, as goofy, as the aliens in the last one.) In fact, their entire enjoyment of the picture might hinge upon it. However, I must say that for this particular moviegoer, your performance was more than enough to sell it.
I very much enjoyed the late ‘60s setting. Placing the action against the moon landing was a nice touch. I loved how you were just about the only person in the cast that didn’t give a shit about it. It’s as if you, the archaeologist that you are, were still stuck in the past while everyone around you was looking to the future. Even though you were retiring from your position as professor, that didn’t stop you from having one final adventure to track down the Archimedes Dial with your goddaughter. Naturally, those pesky Nazis wanted it too, and you had to give them a little of that old Jones asskicking.
Yes, that opening sequence was a blast, but after we flash-forwarded a few decades, the action on display was a nice match for your age. All things considered, the action set pieces were believable (well… maybe not “believable”, let’s just say, “not outlandish”). Let’s face it, at your age, you’re not gonna be outrunning any boulders any time soon. But things like jumping from sidecar to sidecar, trekking through harsh landscape, and of course, punching lots of Nazis, you did quite well.
I was glad that your new director, James Mangold studied the Spielberg playbook well. It certainly felt a lot more Spielbergian than that Crystal Skull shit, that’s for sure. (Especially the first act.) It did feel kinda watered down in spots though. Aside from the eel attack and the obligatory run-in with creepy crawly insects, it lacked a big gory villain demise we’ve come to expect from the franchise. I mean, nothing will ever top the Toht death from Raiders, but you’ve got to at least try.
Whatever quibbles I had with your latest adventure are minor. More importantly, it effectively washed the bad memory of the last one away. The bottom line is that it was extremely good to see you back in the fedora again. Sure, I would’ve liked to see you use your trademark whip a little more, but you were still in fine form. If this, in fact, is your last adventure, I’m happy you’re exiting on a high note.
Yours truly,
Mitch Lovell
The Video Vacuum
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