Movie Reviews: ‘Indiana Jones’, ‘Ruby Gillman’, ‘Nimona’
INDIANA JONES AND THE DIAL OF DESTINY: 4 STARS
The artifact at the heart of the action in “Indiana Jones and the Dial of Destiny” is a time-shifting device called the Antikythera. However, this ancient analog computer with the power to find cracks in time isn’t the only thing in the film that looks back to the past.
Everything old is new again in director James Mangold’s take on the classic action adventure. There’s the much-publicized aging of Harrison Ford, the great old man of action-adventure, effectively bringing back the original film’s classic Indy, and the return of much-loved characters like John Rhys-Davies as Sallah. Even the new characters, like Helena, played by “Fleabag’s” Phoebe Waller-Bridge, feel like a throwback to the characters invented by Steven Spielberg and George Lucas when Ronald Reagan was still in office.
The action begins in 1944. Indy (the aging Ford) risks everything to help his colleague Basil Shaw (Toby Jones) prevent Nazi scientist Jürgen Voller (Mads Mikkelsen) from discovering a mysterious clock face known as the Antikythera. gets hands. Used properly, the dial has the ability to manipulate time and change the outcome of a particular war, for example.
“Hitler made mistakes,” says Voller. “And with this I will correct them all.”
Back to 25 years later. America just landed on the moon and the nation is jubilant, but it’s a jubilation that the weathered Indy doesn’t share. In the wake of his divorce from
Marion Ravenwood (Karen Allen) and his son’s death, he starts each day with a shot of booze and a bad attitude.
On the eve of his retirement from teaching, a face from the past emerges. Helena Shaw (Waller-Bridge) is the daughter of Basil Shaw, Indy’s estranged goddaughter, an archaeologist and a thief. Her interest in the Antikythera lures Indy back to a world of international adventure, former Nazis and the echoes of history come to life.
“You took your chances, made your mistakes,” Helena tells Indy, “and now one last win!”
Nothing will ever live up to the adrenaline rush of seeing “Raiders of the Lost Ark” for the first time. The expert balance of action, comedy, suspense and mystique is unparalleled and nearly impossible to duplicate. The retro novelty of “Indiana Jones and the Dial of Destiny” is an attempt to recapture the magic, and it delivers a good dose of whipping, but like the aging Ford in the film’s first 20 minutes, it doesn’t feel real like the real thing.
However, it is respectful of what came before. Mangold transcends the film’s recycled nature with some thrilling action sequences, and even if the stunts don’t feel as organic as the first time around, they deliver a welcome blast of vintage Indy action. There’s even a callback to Indy’s well-known fear of snakes. A highlight is a wild chase through the streets and alleys of Tangier that mixes humor, action and danger in equal measure.
Cinematographer Phedon Papamichael captures the classic Indy look, an aesthetic and color palette that disappeared somewhere around ‘Crystal Skull’. Visually, it’s like a warm hug going back decades.
The crucial element, of course, is Ford. He may need more CGI these days to hop atop trains and through sunken caverns, but he brings the OG ’70s movie star mojo and travel hat full of charisma that hasn’t waned over the years. Ford’s lion-in-winter portrayal of the character by Ford is touching, and as a result (NO SPOILERS HERE) there’s an emotional component to the movie’s final reel, as Indy faces the fear he feels, he can the most touching moment in the entire series.
He is ably assisted by the wisecracking Waller-Bridge and the stoically evil Mikkelsen.
The story and action in “Indiana Jones and the Dial of Destiny” are slowed down from time to time by too much talk about the Lance of Longinus, Polybius Squares, and the Ear of Dionysius. Mangold makes up for those moments with John Williams’ thrilling signature score and a wild and unexpected payout on the third reel. The film may not turn back the clock to have the cultural impact of the original, but it’s a lot of fun.
RUBY GILLMAN, TEEN CRACK: 3 ½ STARS
“Ruby Gillman, Teenage Kraken,” a new animated coming-of-age story from Dreamworks now in theaters, changes the usual notion of tentacled sea creatures from terrifying to heroic.
The Kraken-out-of-water story isn’t a franchise – although it may be the beginning – but it is thanks to recent Pixar films “Turning Red” and “Luca”, films about the transformation of the mind and body . expectations.
Years after leaving the sea to live on land and raise their families, ocean creatures Agatha (Toni Collette) and Peter Gillman (Colman Domingo) are secretive about their pasts.
“We’re from Canada,” they say to explain away their blue skin, gills, and lack of spines.
Fifteen-year-old daughter Ruby (Lana Condor) agrees to the lie, admitting she can “barely pull out of this human thing”. At school, she feels different and finds it hard to fit outside of her team, a small group of BFFs.
“I just want to be Ruby Gillman, a normal teenager,” she says.
Despite her mother’s strict rule never to go near the water, Ruby dives into the ocean days before prom, when her high school skater boy Connor (Jaboukie Young-White) nearly drowns, to save him. Contact with salt water releases her true self, a giant luminescent Kraken.
“I’m already a little weird,” she says, “but I can’t hide this.”
In a short time, Ruby learns of her origins and that her grandmother, Grandmahmah (Jane Fonda), is a warrior queen, the ultimate lord and ruler of the seven seas, and charged with protecting the undersea world from the main maritime threat. – angry mermaids.
“But people love mermaids,” says Ruby.
“Of course they do,” says Grandmahmah. “People are stupid.”
Grandmahmah wants Ruby to be her successor and possibly settle an age-old score.
Themes of self-acceptance, family love, and overcoming insecurity are common in children’s and young adult films, and “Ruby Gillman, Teenage Kraken” is no different. But what it lacks in originality – “Turning Red” came to the transformation as a metaphor to come out of your shell first – it makes up for in good humour, fun voice work – especially from Fonda and from Annie Murphy, who plays a mermaid – and an engaging main character.
Ruby is a sweet-natured math nerd wrapped in a blanket of uncertainty. As she tries to navigate high school and her new Kraken alter ego, she never loses the teen aura that makes her so relatable. She may turn into a giant, but the most important things in her life are still her family and friends. It’s genuine, and somehow not as juicy as it sounds.
“Ruby Gillman, Teenage Kraken” may not break new ground or part oceans, but it tells its story with panache, finding a way to weave together a kid-friendly story with some decidedly grown-up jokes.
NIMONA: 4 STARS
“Nimona,” a new sci-fi animated action adventure for young adults now streaming on Netflix, tells the story of outsiders, identity and acceptance in a futuristic kingdom where knights, on flying horse-shaped motorcycles, use old-fashioned crossbows and high-tech gear to fight monsters.
Adapted from the webcomic by ND Stevenson, the story takes place in a techo-medieval kingdom where the defenders of the realm, called the Institution, are knights descended from noble backgrounds stretching back 1,000 years.
The one exception is Ballister Boldheart (Riz Ahmed), a man of humble origins who earned his way into the Institute through relentless hard work and training himself in the art of slaying monsters. His inclusion in the group, by Queen Valerin (Lorraine Toussaint), is turned upside down when a terrible event occurs and Boldheart is framed for the Queen’s murder.
In an effort to clear his name, Boldheart is forced to team up with a shape-shifting creature named Nimona (Chloë Grace Moretz), the very troublesome monster he was sworn to hunt and kill. She can transform into almost anything – a rhinoceros, gorilla or whale – but she sees a kindred spirit in Boldheart and insists on being his sidekick.
“Your sidekick has arrived,” she announces. “Every villain needs a sidekick.”
“I’m not a bad guy,” Boldheart insists. “The real villain is still out there and I need help.”
As Boldheart and Nimona create chaos inside and outside the kingdom, Ambrosious Goldenloin (Eugene Lee Yang), the champion knight of the realm and Boldheart’s love interest, also searches for answers that will rid the institution of wrongdoing.
“If anyone can find them,” he says. “It’s me.”
“Nimona” is bursting with fantasy. The nouveau-medieval fairytale world is beautifully depicted, part “Henry V”, part “Bladerunner”.
It’s something original, a mix of old and new, with armored knights wielding swords that shoot lasers and other nifty artifacts with high-tech twists. The world comes to life with visual splendor that sets the tone for the actual story.
Inhabiting this animated fantasy are characters who struggle against very human problems. Nimona is someone who struggles with loneliness and finding a place in the world. She is an agent of chaos, a person with a thirst for destruction, but as the film’s running time increases, so does our understanding of why she behaves the way she behaves. She and Boldheart are allegories of outsiders, characters who, within the context of the story, struggle with their perception of their place in the world.
As an exploration of queerness, the film’s message to be true to yourself emerges organically.
Boldheart asks her, “What would happen if you held it in?”
“I would die,” she replies. It’s a powerful metaphorical message about being yourself and just one of many that emphasize the film’s LGBTQ2S+ themes.
“Nimona” tackles big topics and isn’t afraid to dig deep. Sitting alongside the LGBTQ2S+ topics are themes of standing up to power and being an ally, but the movie never lets the messages catch up with the story. Co-directors Nick Bruno and Troy Quane ensure that between the messages of benevolence and self-acceptance there are plenty of emotional moments and exciting, large-scale action sequences that make your eyes dance.
