Episode 31 - The final Indiana Jones adventure, 2023's INDIANA JONES AND THE DIAL OF DESTINY, with special guest Henry Bernstein.
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You’re SUPOSED TO care more about indy than Han solo. Indy is a hero. The center of his universe, Han solo is the hired gun in a westrem
This was a nice twist on the Fade Out format. Indiana Jones is an incredibly important character for Gen X. Indy was our, Davy Crockett, our Lone Ranger, our Rocky Jones. The iconic adventure hero for us to thrill to, and inspire our own “adventures”. Star Wars, G.I. Joe, A-Team etc were all amazing and popular, but they were ensemble casts. We all had our favorite characters, but Indiana Jones is THE character. While Dial of Destiny is the end of the line for Harrison Ford as Indy, the character will undoubtedly continue in comic books, novels, video games and other media, it won’t be the same. Harrison Ford IS Indiana Jones.
I’ll never forget my dad taking my brother, my sister and myself to the Salem Tri Cinema to see Raiders of the List Ark. I’d seen the trailers, I’d seen the lobby displays, so I knew I was seeing an adventure film, but, I had no idea what I was in for. It was of course, amazing! Never in my young mind did I think anything could ever top Star Wars, but here it was. The next phase in my fascination with cinema and movies.
I forgot to mention, if you want to experience Temple of Doom in a new light, watch it as a sequel to Gunga Din (1939)
Great discussion fellas! Just a few thoughts:
– I always took the Hitler scene in Last Crusade as a nod to media of the time which portrayed Hitler as a dolt. See any comic cover from the 40s, Donald Duck in Der Furher’s Face, Moe Howard lampooning him, etc. I do get that having a real historical monster in the film making things too maudlin, but I think the filmmakers were going for an period-appropriate gag here, showing HItler doing something stupid, signing an autograph for our hero who hates him.
– I really appreciate Henry’s take on the ending of Dial of Destiny, and Indy not getting to make the decision. That bothered me a bit too in the theater, but from this perspective, I think it totally works. Despite my love for Karen Allen and Marion, I still wonder if staying back in the past and becoming living history wouldn’t have been a bit of a better, more poetic ending for the character, especially as his life was framed in this film, with a dissolved marriage, and dead son. But ultimately I think the happy ending is a better way to go.
I need to rewatch Dial as I’ve only seen it once. I really enjoyed it overall and felt it was a great sendoff. I love the idea of the animated adventures, and I’m not sure why Hollywood isn’t jumping on this for these franchises with aging actors they either won’t, or in Ford’s case, cannot replace/recast.
How’s this for a coincidence? I missed the new film at the cinema but having enjoyed previous instalments, decided it would make for a great Boxing Day watch with Steve on the telly. And then this episode shows up in my feed.
I’m sad to report we were hugely disappointed by Dial of Destiny. Some emotional bits with Harrison Ford were great, such as his attachment to his Dad’s watch, but the sudden revelation that Mutt was dead was clunky and felt like cheap drama, kid fridging.
While the action sequences are part of the Indy DNA, here they just went on and on and on. How many back streets of Tangiers do we have to see? How much undersea (presumed) action involving eels can’t we see? The only action sequence I found engaging was the horseback chase because I worried about the poor steed.
I’d had seven hours in bed but actually fell asleep a few times – does that negate my opinion or show that the film wasn’t as much of a grabber as it should be? Maybe if I had the emotional attachment you lads do I’d have managed to stay awake, but to me Indy is an entertainer, a charming pal to go on adventures with – I see the distinction with Bond in terms of single actor vs multiple actors, but I don’t feel it.
So I was really hoping that after the overview of the series I’d hear what you boys, as super fans, thought of the film as a movie, rather than as a final visit to an old friend. I hated Helena, I couldn’t believe Indy would put up with her nonsense. The kid had no charisma and seemed to be there just to give Helena a sidekick in the tradition of Short Round. I loved Toby Jones, I wish we’d seen more of him. Did the overall yellow palette depress you as it did me? Did you laugh when that guy showed up at the end?
The most interesting aspect of the new movie for me was spotting the streets of Glasgow, although that took me out of things a tad – I ‘knew’ Indy and Sallah were living in New York, but I know those streets – it’s a shame I never got to see them in Batgirl!
Oh, and the lack of opening credits was a downer – after that lengthy cold open had we not earned the fanfare and a cool logo spinning onto the screen? Could we not see the iconic logo one more time? It never feels like a film has properly begin until the titles are out of the way.
Maybe the ranking you gave the film as four out of five is enough.
Anyway, thank you Rob and Henry for an engaging listen, and a Happy New Year when it comes.
Oh, hang fire, I thought I’d heard the whole podcast but was looking at the line for volume, which was almost at max, rather than the line that showed where we are in the show. Lots of opinions to come from you both!
Apologies.
And that’s me finished, great discussion! I even watched the bits of the film I slept through.
Aha, Rob also doesn’t like the muted colours, and Henry agrees about the length of set piece! And the film overall.
Regarding Mads Mikkelson not having any scarring in the ‘present day’, I wonder if filmmakers are trying to get away from associating bad guys with visible difference.
I honestly thought the de-ageing of Harrison Ford was great, and I likely don’t watch old Ford films often enough to notice his voice being the wrong pitch.
By the way, when I said the kid had no charisma, I meant the character as presented, not the actor. I do not insult young actors!
Congrats on the Robbie, Henry!
Great episode and I think we can allow the different take on the show’s premise!
I want to co-sign what Henry said about movies being too long these days. I don’t know if Oppenheimer necessarily was, but Killers of the Flower Moon definitely was, with plenty of repetition between the main story, the FBI’s story and the trial. Felt so indulgent. Directors have lost the ability to kill their darlings. So yes, you could cut down Dial of Destiny to at least make it fit two hours. Indeed, Temple of Doom was also too long, with most scenes being just a little too long (like the mining cart race).
Just wanted to add I watched the “Timeless Heroes” documentary Henry gushed about, and I really loved it. Worth it for the clip of Ford talking about the Indy march at AFI’s Salute to John Williams alone!