As long as it's better than Crystal Skull

Low bar

I love Indy and the adventure universe, but Crystal Skull sucked so bad,I'm not sure I want to see the property ruined even more.

The 1st 3 were solid.

4 was exactly what South Park made of it.

Saw trailer.

Seems pretty meh, but we'll see.

Dr. Mephisto said:

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I love Indy and the adventure universe, but Crystal Skull sucked so bad,I'm not sure I want to see the property ruined even more.

The 1st 3 were solid.

4 was exactly what South Park made of it.

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At the time of its release I thought much the same about it. I didn't hate it as much as the South Park people did.

As time has gone on, however, I've come to like it a lot more.

The problem is that there are a couple scenes which really drag the movie down, the main one being the jungle truck chase sequence which culminates in the fire ants. The whole thing is an abomination, with Shia LeBeuf swinging from vines like Tarzan, the aforementioned ants, and comical jumping from truck to truck by the main characters.

Indy escaping from the Atomic bomb was really stupid, but I could put up with it, and it did offer a really cool visual of Indy silhouetted against the atomic blast and mushroom cloud. A metaphor for America of the 1950's and the Atomic Age.

I have a couple other smaller issues with it, but it's definitely grown on me over the years.

Regarding "Crystal Skull"…. I remember being a little underwhelmed, but I also remember thinking "aliens!? Yes, please!" during the movie, and the afternoon I saw the movie was an overall pleasant experience. I can't say that about a lot of movies that I've seen since and that were better reviewed.

I'll see Dial of Destiny at some point. The franchise has built up some credit with me.

I feel like Sesame Street predicted this:

Philo B 93 said:

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Regarding "Crystal Skull"…. I remember being a little underwhelmed, but I also remember thinking "aliens!? Yes, please!" during the movie, and the afternoon I saw the movie was an overall pleasant experience. I can't say that about a lot of movies that I've seen since and that were better reviewed.

I'll see Dial of Destiny at some point. The franchise has built up some credit with me.

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Yeah, where as a lot of people seemed to think that aliens felt out of place in an Indiana Jones movie, I honestly thought that aspect was right at home, especially considering the B-movie alien craze of the 1950s. It was of the era, felt like a totally natural progression for the franchise, and I actually liked a lot of how that aspect was handled. In fact, I really liked the first half or so Crystal Skull, and at this point even the nuked fridge doesn't bother me. As Belton Ag said above, it was the jungle truck chase/Shia-vine-swinging/fire ants sequence that completely ruined the movie for me. That's stuff was soooo incredibly bad, and things basically deflated from there. I might give it all another shot, though, before this one, since I don't think I've seen the second half since the theater (but have watched the first half numerous times).

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Yeah, where as a lot of people seemed to think that aliens felt out of place in an Indiana Jones movie, I honestly thought that aspect was right at home, especially considering the B-movie alien craze of the 1950s. It was of the era, felt like a totally natural progression for the franchise, and I actually liked a lot of how that aspect was handled.

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I think people are spoiled with the absolute greatness of Raiders and The Last Crusade. I rank those 2 in my top 3 favorites. But at their heart, all Indiana Jones movies are essentially modern takes on the old serials where you'd get an episode that typically would end with some cliff-hanger, or a character in peril, something like that.

The Kingdom of the Crystal Skull gets a bad rap. Some of it is deserved, yes, but there is a good adventure film in there with all the normal characteristics of a serial mixed in. The refrigerator scene on its surface is ridiculous, but it works in the context of an Indiana Jones movie. Because for every criticism of the refrigerator scene, I can counter with diving out of a crashing airplane in a life raft, or plunging from a sixth floor window through several canopies right into the back seat of a vehicle, or outrunning a wall of water through a narrow tunnel and not being blown into the river hundreds of feet below. I didn't care for Tarzan Shia, but had no real problem with the truck chase, waterfall plunges, or ants.

I actually rank Crystal Skull above the Temple of Doom largely because I liked just the brief reference to Jones' WWII experience, plus the return of Karen Allen. ToD is good, yes, but that screeching blonde and annoying kid irritate me,.

The aliens thing was weird, but it fits for the reasons you state. More jarring for me was the imagery of a character out of the 30s standing in front of a nuclear explosion. Akin to Captain America, Indiana Jones at that moment was a man out of his time.

Which leads to my only concern regarding The Dial of Destiny - the character out of time. That worked for Captain America because there is plenty of content out there with him in modern times. In my mind, Indiana Jones will always be a pre-WWII character, so being in the 60s will take me a bit to get used to. But I suppose it's only a leap in time of 10 years or so from the previous movie, and Harrison Ford has been an old geezer for a while now.

I've talked to a few people who swear to me INDIANA JONES AND THE DIAL OF DESTINY is fantastic and they think the early negative reviews are insane. So I'm still holding onto hope this ends up being a helluva crowdpleaser.

— ViewerAnon (@ViewerAnon) June 14, 2023

Had the pleasure of seeing Indiana Jones & the Dial of Destiny recently…had a huge smile the whole time. The action, adventure & wit the franchise is known for returns, and Indy’s chemistry w/ newcomers is special. Takes big swings, connects on the most crucial ones, and most

— Mark Ellis (@markellislive) June 14, 2023

Indy’s de-aging isn’t perfect but hey…I can’t de-age myself either. But seeing a new Indiana Jones movie that delivers on the big screen? That gets pretty damn close to the feeling Mark Jr had as a kid seeing Henry Jr for the first time. And we’re both still afraid of snakes.

— Mark Ellis (@markellislive) June 14, 2023

John Williams and a full orchestra play a surprise performance of the famous theme from #IndianaJones at the #DialOfDestiny premiere pic.twitter.com/o80x5Rg6cx

— The Hollywood Reporter (@THR) June 15, 2023

Indiana Jones premiere surprise! Steven Spielberg gives nods to fellow creators of Indy - George Lucas, Harrison Ford, and someone who isn’t on stage, John Williams. Then the curtain rises to reveal Williams and a full-blown orchestra. Crowd goes ape! pic.twitter.com/mUgRh5R3lC

— Borys Kit (@Borys_Kit) June 15, 2023

Absolutely incredible!!

So damn cool! To be there would be amazing.

Had a GREAT time with #IndianaJones and the Dial of Destiny! It delivers what you want from an Indy adventure imo - it’s entertaining, daring & mysterious w/ a fun duo at its heart. Phoebe Waller-Bridge is tremendous btw, & I appreciate the big swings it takes at the end. Indy!! pic.twitter.com/uLlgEEE2Vw

— Erik Davis (@ErikDavis) June 15, 2023

I think next to Connery, Waller-Bridge may be my 2nd favorite Indy sidekick/partner. She is so good. It’s funny, too, because it feels like every movie this summer is either set in NYC or Italy, and then you have #IndianaJones which has sequences in both NY & Italy! It wins!🗽🍝 pic.twitter.com/JAdGLBRpM7

— Erik Davis (@ErikDavis) June 15, 2023

Indiana Jones and the Dial of Destiny gets a lot of things right, the heart, humor and action are certainly better than Crystal Skull, but it goes a bit off the rails in the final act. I liked it, it’s a better conclusion than Kingdom, but didn’t love it. pic.twitter.com/N366x27uDN

— Peter Sciretta (@PeterSciretta) June 15, 2023

Our man Short Round at the premiere.

No time for love, Doctor Jones!

Question….has anyone read if you need to see the 4th film for this one to make sense?

One of the great things about the 3 originals is they all stood on their own and could enjoy each adventure without leaning on prior films….

My dad got diagnosed with stage 4 pancreatic cancer a few months ago and while he's a big Star Wars fan he's also always enjoyed Indiana Jones and I'm pretty sure he hasn't seen the 4th one……so would love to take him to the movies to be able watch this one

I have not seen anything specific, but other than perhaps an explanation of why his son is not in this one, I expect this one to also be a stand-alone story.

Cinco Ranch Aggie said:

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I have not seen anything specific, but other than perhaps an explanation of why his son is not in this one, I expect this one to also be a stand-alone story.

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double aught said:

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Our man Short Round at the premiere.

No time for love, Doctor Jones!

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"He's not nuts...he's crazy!"

This does not inspire confidence.

About on par with other reactions. He says it's "fun" about ten times, wasn't a huge fan of the ending, but overall it's better than Crystal Skull.

I’m not gonna call the Cannes folks wrong. I haven’t seen the movie yet so who knows what I’ll walk away thinking. But when you screen an escapist blockbuster franchise film for an art snob audience, you’re probably not gonna get the reactions you hope for.

— Eric Vespe (@EricVespe) June 15, 2023

jokershady said:

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Question….has anyone read if you need to see the 4th film for this one to make sense?

One of the great things about the 3 originals is they all stood on their own and could enjoy each adventure without leaning on prior films….

My dad got diagnosed with stage 4 pancreatic cancer a few months ago and while he's a big Star Wars fan he's also always enjoyed Indiana Jones and I'm pretty sure he hasn't seen the 4th one……so would love to take him to the movies to be able watch this one

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Man, I'm so sorry to hear about your dad.

From what I understand, there are multiple references to Crystal Skull, but it's not essential viewing. I doubt the action/plot has much relevance, but I am curious to see how they explain away Mutt (seems easy enough), and what happened to Marion, seeing as she and Indy got married at the end of the last one, but now Indy apparently lives alone.

The new INDY movie absolutely rips and then I cried at the end???? Currently processing my de-aging/AI feelings and looking forward to discussing them in full.

(Is it long yes would I cut things yes is it only the fourth best INDY movie yes but that’s elite company.)

— Joanna Robinson (@jowrotethis) June 15, 2023

The distinct feeling I'm getting now, based on all the American reactions, is that the movie is "fun," absolutely worth your time, and even emotional in parts, it's just not quite as as good as three of the best action-adventure movies ever made, each of which happened to be directed by the greatest director of all time. It's also apparently a bit bloated as well, and the third act is pretty gonzo, in both good and bad ways, but that by the time it all wraps up, Indy gets a proper sendoff.

Which all sounds fine to me, seeing as I never thought we'd get a fifth movie to begin with.

#IndianaJones is SUPERB. An introspective sendoff & a spiritual sequel to Temple of Doom. A melancholic meditation on our relationship w/history, confronting Indy w/WHY he escapes into it. History is now. We’re shaping it. Bold, thrilling, WEIRD, subversive. Thank you @mang0ld ❤️ pic.twitter.com/Pwj0DV54di

— Griffin Schiller (@griffschiller) June 15, 2023

I’m fully expecting #IndianaJones to be divisive similar to NTTD. It’s not the Raiders style adventure flick many expect from Indy, but how could it be? Ford is 80 & NOT engaging w/his age in a meaningful way, a regretful, broken man who’s become a museum himself would be silly. pic.twitter.com/ZPT7rPzo0o

— Griffin Schiller (@griffschiller) June 15, 2023

Not sure that I like the buzzwords that are all over that review.


But I plan on keeping an open mind until I see it myself.

Brian Earl Spilner said:

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"Iconic roles" but no Deckard from Blade Runner yet we get K19 Widowmaker and Witness? OK People.

Personally, I'll take Witness over Bladerunner any day.

Witness is a great movie.

Also, most actors are lucky to have ONE iconic role. Some really lucky ones get two. Harrison has what, five? Six?

He's the biggest star in my lifetime for sure. There may be better actors, but not bigger stars.