Everything You Need To Remember To Watch Indiana Jones And The Dial Of Destiny
Harrison Ford has had plenty of experience taking some of the most iconic characters ever portrayed and giving them one last swan song. The legendary actor brought all of his usual gravitas to his final performance(s) as Han Solo, tragically killed off in "The Force Awakens" but brought back for one last poignant moment in "The Rise of Skywalker." Even Rick Deckard was given a fitting sendoff in "Blade Runner 2049," reunited with his long-lost daughter after narrowly surviving yet another confrontation with troublemaking replicants. But after 2008's "Kingdom of the Crystal Skull" left fans with ... let's say mixed feelings and leave it at that, few ever expected to see Indiana Jones ride off into the sunset (again) with the victory lap he truly deserved.
Now, audiences all over the world will have the chance to see just that with "Indiana Jones and the Dial of Destiny." Although Steven Spielberg has left the director's chair for the first time in this franchise, James Mangold has stepped in (himself no stranger to bidding farewell to franchise icons, having guided both Hugh Jackman's Wolverine and Patrick Stewart's Charles Xavier to poignant ends in "Logan" — at the time, at least) for the honor of directing Ford's last portrayal of the famed archaeologist, professor, and Nazi-puncher. After months of anticipation, critics have had their say (you can find /Film's review by Lex Brisucuso here), meaning all that's left is for audiences to experience this for themselves.
But as the grand finale to over 40 years of globetrotting adventures, this sequel comes with outsized expectations of referencing dialogue, characters, and memorable moments from every prior film, too. With that in mind, a refresher course would seem to be in order. Here's everything you need to remember to watch "Indiana Jones and the Dial of Destiny."
Raiders of the Lost Ark
Ah, yes, the original adventure classic that's actually a lot weirder than you might remember. "Raiders of the Lost Ark" promptly established everything we ever needed to know about Indiana Jones in 1981: He's a part-time professor and part-time adventurer, hates snakes, and shares a deeply complicated history with Marion Ravenwood (Karen Allen), the one that got away. Oh, and when he's not making life as difficult as possible for those exploitative, thieving, war-mongering Nazis, he's directly confronting the possibility that the Hebrew God of the Old Testament exists and is looking to smite some meddling interlopers if given half the chance.
The one that started it all did an incredible job of depicting Indy's passion for ancient relics, his deep and enduring bond with Marion, and his penchant for having helpful friends in very helpful places (like John Rhys-Davies' Sallah, the Egyptian excavator who helps locate the object indicating where the Ark of the Covenant is hidden and subsequently pops up again in future movies). It even ends on that imaginative note with the sprawling military warehouse hosting untold amounts of government secrets. But more than anything else, "Raiders" carves out its integral place in the franchise for helping turn the somewhat cynical archaeologist into something of a believer himself, initially interested in this quest for nothing more than academic curiosity until he's confronted by the supernatural nature of the Ark of the Covenant in a gonzo final act that still stands the test of time. It also crystallized this franchise as a cautionary tale about what happens when man greedily interferes with mystical powers far beyond their comprehension.
In ways both obvious and not, these important character details all make their way into "Dial of Destiny."
The Temple of Doom
How much of a game-changer was "Indiana Jones and the Temple of Doom," you ask? Well, consider the fact that the film was at least partially responsible for the creation of PG-13 as a movie rating, for one. For another, the prequel movie further proved that audiences would follow the character of Indiana Jones through even the most violent, shocking, and, yes, downright racist adventures. But even at the commonly-agreed low point of the original trilogy, "Temple of Doom" retains tons of franchise importance worth acknowledging and remembering ahead of the upcoming "Dial of Destiny."
Consider how much "Temple of Doom" forced the franchise to shake things up. There's the fact that, as a prequel story, both Steven Spielberg and collaborator George Lucas had free rein to depict Indy as rough and selfish and unlikable as we've ever seen him before. In it mostly just for the "fortune and glory," his daring feats prior to "Raiders" are re-contextualized as the actions of an extremely vain and immature man — not the staunch appreciator of antiquity that we saw in its predecessor. There's also the addition of young Ke Hey Quan as Short Round, the little ball of energy who provided the perfect juxtaposition to the grizzled and grumpy Dr. Jones. And, of course, there's the sinister Thuggee cult with a propensity for human sacrifice, voodoo magic, and upsetting Hindu gods that gives Indy his first real (canonical) taste of the supernatural ... even if that doesn't fully line up with the Indy from "Raiders," who acts as if he's never encountered the inexplicable before.
Either way, it'd be a shock if such major events passed by completely unacknowledged in the latest sequel, making this an entertaining and crucial stop on the way towards "Dial of Destiny."
The Last Crusade
Hands down the best of the bunch (according to yours truly, at least), "The Last Crusade" certainly has it all: romance, betrayal, the return of some very familiar faces, a perfectly calibrated father/son dynamic, and arguably the greatest archaeological find in all of human history at its center. With Indy in a race against time to find both his lost father Henry Jones (Sean Connery) and the legendary holy grail, yanked straight out of Arthurian myth, Steven Spielberg and George Lucas certainly pulled out all the stops for this trilogy-capper. And lest we forget, this is also the movie that confirms the existence of immortality in Indy's world.
Those looking for the neatest summation of the character of Indiana Jones need look no further than this. Although still a matter of debate in some circles, the opening sequence breezily runs through a checklist of all of the hero's most famous traits: that fedora, his trusty whip, his fear of snakes, a certain scar on his chin, and even his relentless drive to recover lost artifacts simply because, well, they belong in a museum. The rest of the film promptly delves into Jones' profound daddy issues in humorous fashion, arguably nailing the best and most crowd-pleasing tone of the entire series. Aided by the returning Marcus Brody (Denholm Elliott) and Sallah, Indy reunites with his estranged father and teams up to prevent the Nazis from getting their hands on the most powerful of ancient treasures.
As the movie that finally forces Indy to take a genuine leap of faith (and then some), "The Last Crusade" provided the perfect button to a wonderfully entertaining trilogy ... but, as we all know, nobody can ever leave such priceless gems well enough alone.
The Kingdom of the Crystal Skull
Yeah, yeah, roll your eyes if you must, but we're absolutely including "Kingdom of the Crystal Skull" as one of the movies you should revisit before "Dial of Destiny." Sure, that's partially because we know certain plot points will receive a shout-out in the next movie, but it's mostly because it's actually better than you may remember it. There's the Ukrainian Soviet villain Irina Spalko played by a scenery-chewing Cate Blanchett, the dynamic opening sequence taking us back to that famous warehouse and putting this much older Indy through the physical wringer, and a minor antagonist in Ray Winstone's slimy George "Mac" Michale who more than earns his place among the most loathsome (and entertaining) side characters in "Indiana Jones" canon. And that's all in the opening 30 minutes!
Sure, things kind of go off the rails at certain points. The lead-lined fridge surviving the atomic bomb explosion strains credulity (although it directly leads to one of the most evocative visuals in the entire franchise, seen above), the existence of Mutt Williams as Indy's greaser and vine-swinging son met with fierce backlash, and there's that little matter of extraterrestrials that so many audience members simply couldn't get past. But beyond those surface-level concerns, the sequel actually contains a pretty nifty arc about a living relic whom the world has passed by and left to collect dust.
This is the movie that establishes Indy's military service and espionage activities during both World War II and the Cold War respectively (the former of which comes into play in "Dial of Destiny"), allows him to forge his own family with a returning Karen Allen as Marion, and directly confronts the idea of an aging hero.
"Indiana Jones and the Dial of Destiny" hits theaters June 30, 2023.