“You’ve taken your chances, made your mistakes, and now, a final triumph!” – Helena, Indiana Jones 5
This line from the latest Indiana Jones 5 aka Indiana Jones and the Dial of Destiny trailer hammers home that this is likely our final adventure with our favorite archeologist. Released at the Star Wars Celebration, the cut of the latest trailer is easily capable of plucking at fans’ heartstrings. In fact, it made me quite emotional with its tone of finality. Coupled with John Williams’s nostalgic score, I was in tears.
As mentioned by Rachel here at Fangirlish, the latest Indiana Jones 5 trailer pulls no punches in addressing Indiana Jones’s age. From beginning to end, our hero, as portrayed by Harrison Ford, is feeling the weight of his past on his slumped shoulders. As if to prepare us for the next step in Jones’ journey, he admits early in the trailer to his goddaughter, Helena (Phoebe Waller-Bridge), that he’s retiring. This is it.
Or is it?
Helena’s search for the titular Dial of Destiny pulls Jones back in. In a series of montages, we see how he’s connected to the famed artifact. This is all before that swell of music begins to play in the Indiana Jones 5 trailer. You know the theme.
As Waller-Bridge’s Helena speaks to Jones, we see where the duo is going to go in the film. In that pivotal trailer line-drop, it’s easy to hark back to all through all the Indiana Jones movies. We’ve seen his ups, his downs, his loves, and his losses. In the process, we’ve seen Harrison Ford grow too.
And with retirement comes the next step in his journey. The search for the Dial of Destiny is his last chance to reclaim what he has lost and – perhaps – find what he’s been looking for throughout his entire life. There’s still an air of mystery as to what that is, but one thing is for certain.
It is time for us to say goodbye to our beloved hero in Indiana Jones 5.
Seeing Ford’s wisened face, stooped stature, and the delivery of gut-punching lines throughout the trailer is also difficult. We are reminded of how little time we have left with this legend. With his prior return to Star Wars and this final turn as Indiana Jones, there is also the ache that comes with the promise of closure. We’re likely to get it in Indiana Jones 5, but it’ll be bittersweet. An end of a chapter. Nay. An era.
