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indiana jones and the dial of destiny

★★★★

starring: harrison ford, phoebe waller-bridge, mads mikklesen, and toby jones

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REVIEWER: lyall carter

Archaeologist Indiana Jones races against time to retrieve a legendary artifact that can change the course of history.

Arguably the most iconic cinematic hero to ever grace the silver screen, the Indiana Jones franchise means the world to a lot of fans out there for who Indy holds a special place in their cinematic memories and heart. 

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Which makes creating a tale outside of the original trilogy a tough ask (even for maestro Spielberg who's 2008 Crystal Skull was harshly critiqued, unfairly in my opinion). But director James Mangold pretty much nails it here. A cracking adventure yarn with thrilling action set pieces, Indiana Jones and the Dial of Destiny is the perfect final ride for Harrison Ford.

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Daredevil archaeologist Indiana Jones races against time to retrieve a legendary dial that can change the course of history. Accompanied by his goddaughter, he soon finds himself squaring off against Jürgen Voller, a former Nazi who works for NASA.

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Right from the opening frame you know you're in an Indy movie. The opening sequence is one if not the best of the whole franchise as Indy and his intrepid companion Basil Shaw (played by the wonderful Toby Jones to perfection and deserving of his own spin off Disney Plus show) attempt to escape the Nazi's in a breathless, action packed sequence. 

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Director Mangold and his writing team not only develop the known characters and answer lingering questions but make some really bold narrative choices which I'm not about to spoil. Some are a bit of a leap, but if you look at the series as a whole, the story arcs of several main characters not only make sense but are bold in their execution. 

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As you'd expect from an Indy film the action is top notch and never really loses momentum as the film progresses, with many different characters and storylines criss crossing throughout. You can see that Disney have packed a lot of money into the production budget of Dial of Destiny because its a beautiful looking film from the streets of New York to the shores of the Aegean Sea.

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But this film belongs to Harrison Ford. He just thoroughly infuses the character of Indiana Jones with so much heart and humanity. If this really is to be his last ride its a hell of a way to go out. 

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A cracking adventure yarn with thrilling action set pieces, Indiana Jones and the Dial of Destiny is the perfect final ride for Harrison Ford.

★★★★

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