Holy Cow, Indiana Jones And The Dial Of Destiny Looks Like A Proper Indiana Jones Movie

The time has finally come. After years of development and a slew of production news and delays, we can finally stop calling it "Indiana Jones 5." After showing footage at this year's D23, the first trailer for the newest Indy adventure has been released online. With this new trailer came something the D23 footage was missing — a full title, which was revealed to be "Indiana Jones and the Dial of Destiny." With any revival of a long-dormant franchise comes rightful worries about the creative integrity of any new installment, and with Steven Spielberg in a producing role and no story credit for George Lucas, this will be the first Indiana Jones adventure without either of the two as major creative forces. Will any other filmmaker be able to capture the same magic as the first film?

If this trailer is anything to go by, the answer to that question is a resounding yes. Director James Mangold and his team seem to have brought the old, adventurous spirit to "Indiana Jones and the Dial of Destiny." Despite the long wait between films, it feels like Indy never left. From the death-defying stunts to the campy punch sound effects and the globe-trotting locales, "Dial of Destiny" looks like a proper Indiana Jones movie.

With the limited time the trailer has, it can highlight everything that has made the previous films so great. One of the first is the return of one of the most fun supporting characters in the franchise, Sallah (played once again by John Rhys-Davies). At this point, the character's appearance is always the mark of a great Indy adventure, having appeared in both "Raiders of the Lost Ark" and "Indiana Jones and the Last Crusade." However, "Dial of Destiny" doesn't look entirely like nostalgia bait. Plenty of new characters seen in the trailer, played by the likes of Boyd Holbrook, Phoebe Waller-Bridge, and Toby Jones, have all the makings of a great "Indiana Jones" ensemble.

Another dynamic harkens back to the third film, only this time, it looks like Indiana is the one in a parental role. While we saw a familial dynamic in "Kingdom of the Crystal Skull," "Dial of Destiny" looks like it's doing a more detached relation that will no doubt play into more comedic moments. 

Yet another mark of a great Indy movie is the chase scenes, and this trailer is chock full of them. From jumping between moving vehicles in an exotic locale to a chase through 1960s New York, the brief teases of Indy's new daring escapes already make them feel like a worthy companion to the desert chase in "Raiders" and the motorcycle chase from "Last Crusade," while also playing into the period that the film takes place in. 

Although Harrison Ford is up there in age, that clearly hasn't stopped the actor from having fun with the role. If Ford's emotional message to fans at D23 is indicative of anything, it's that he genuinely cares about "Indiana Jones." In the brief snippets of Indy action in the trailer, Ford's performance highlights how easily the actor can slip back into the role no matter how long it's been between films. From riding a horse in a subway station to jumping between moving vehicles, the action in the trailer harkens back to the B-movie aspirations Lucas and Spielberg had when originating this franchise. 

The last scene in the trailer speaks volumes to the tone of the original films, with Indiana using his whip on a group of people and his bravado immediately disappearing as they all pull guns on him; seeing Indy duck for cover and seemingly lose control of the situation is a wonderful reversal of one of the best moments in "Raiders of the Lost Ark," when Indy pulls his own gun on the swordsman in the street. Another interesting reversal in the trailer is a quick scene where Phoebe Waller-Bridge's character causes a giant boulder to fall to make way for her and Indy, making it a convenience instead of something Indy has to run from.

The de-aging of Harrison Ford in the trailer also shows that Mangold is more than ready to remind audiences of how Indy was in his prime, with the impressive effects giving more credence to the film as a consummate Indy adventure. The brief shot of the WWII-era Indy harkens back to the character's appearance in "Last Crusade," getting me even more excited to revisit a scenario in which Indy faces off against scumbag Nazis. Overall, this first big look at the film makes "Dial of Destiny" feel like a worthy entry into the "Indiana Jones" series of films. The cherry on top is the classic John Williams theme (with this film also potentially being his final work as a composer), accentuating the exciting imagery and sense of adventure the trailer gives in its brief two minutes. Get excited, everyone: Indiana Jones is back.