"Indiana Jones and the Dial of Destiny" was supposed to be a graceful swan song
for the beloved adventure hero, but it instead seems to have been…a poor choice.
Here's why it's not clicking with audiences like expected.
Although the box office numbers are disappointing – according to Variety, "Dial of Destiny" pulled
in an $82 million domestic gross over its first five days of release,
with a production budget of nearly $300 million – the movie is actually doing pretty well in terms
of its critical reception. It has settled at a 68 percent rating on the Rotten Tomatoes Tomatometer,
giving it "Fresh" status, and it has an overwhelmingly positive audience score of 88
percent. But Indy's final adventure started things off on the wrong foot with its early reviews.
"Shhh."
In May 2023, star Harrison Ford premiered the movie at the 76th Annual Cannes Film
Festival. The critical reactions from that showing were mixed-to-negative. Critics
including Owen Gleiberman of Variety and Manohla Dargis of The New York
Times wrote about their disappointment regarding various elements of the film,
such as its generic blockbuster movie feel and uneven plot.
For several weeks, the Cannes reaction dominated the conversation surrounding
the movie's quality. That early negative buzz certainly didn't do the movie any
favors in its pre-release marketing, even if it did ultimately turn out
to be far more warmly received by those that bothered to go see it.
"Dial of Destiny" isn't the first time that Hollywood has attempted to resurrect this
storied franchise. In 2008, nearly two decades after "The Last Crusade," came "Indiana Jones and
the Kingdom of the Crystal Skull." The fourth film in the series attempted to move the story forward,
placing an older and wiser version of Indy in the midst of a 1950s conspiracy
narrative full of Cold War intrigue. Fans weren't too happy with the result,
decrying the film's formulaic approach to recreating the spectacle of the original movies.
They also didn't love questionable new elements like the character of
plucky youngster Mutt Williams, played by Shia LaBeouf, who notably doesn't return for "Dial
of Destiny." For some viewers, "Kingdom of the Crystal Skull" was proof that the
"Indiana Jones" franchise would be better off left to rest in the glory days of old.
"Knowledge was their treasure."
It's unlikely, then, that those fans will be convinced to watch a second
revival in "Dial of Destiny," no matter how much of an improvement it may be.
"Dial of Destiny" is far from the only movie of its kind to have underperformed
this year. There are other examples from even the same month of release,
June 2023. DC's massive superhero blockbuster "The Flash" similarly bombed at the box office,
and Pixar's "Elemental" also vastly underperformed. All of these movies
are major productions attached to big studios and intended to appeal to general audiences.
It seems that "Dial of Destiny" is facing some issues that are endemic to the greater industry.
While there's no definitive answer to the problem plaguing the blockbuster movie scene
at the moment, there are a few factors to consider. Theaters have somewhat managed to
recover from their struggles from the COVID-19 pandemic, but there are still ripple effects.
Would-be moviegoers seem to be more selective regarding which movies can draw them back
into darkened theaters full of other people. There's also the matter of franchise fatigue.
The general landscape of the film industry is currently filled with all manner of sequels,
nostalgic revivals, reboots, and action-packed superhero flicks, and it's possible that the
luster of a new "Indiana Jones" movie, among other franchise fare, has been considerably dulled.
The fact of the matter is that not everyone who wants to see "Dial of
Destiny" is going to do so in theaters. Yes, the film debuted exclusively in cinemas,
but it's only a matter of time until it becomes available to stream at home,
and interested viewers may be content to wait until then to watch it.
There's currently no set date for when "Dial of Destiny" will become available to watch at
home through Disney+ and other services, but there probably won't be too long of a wait
if precedent holds. Most recent Disney movies, including as "Ant-Man and the Wasp: Quantumania"
and "Black Panther: Wakanda Forever," arrived on Disney+ and other digital storefronts somewhere
around 90 days after their theatrical release. That means that audiences likely only have to
wait a matter of months until "Dial of Destiny" is available to watch in the comfort of their homes.