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“Indiana Jones and the Dial of Destiny” is somehow both never boring and never really entertaining. It walks a line of modest interest in what’s going to happen next thanks to equal parts innovative story beats and the foundation of nostalgia that everyone brings to the theater. It’s an alternating series of frustrating choices, promising beats, and general goodwill for a legendary actor donning one of the most famous hats in movie history yet again. It should be better. It could have been worse. Both can be true. In an era of extreme online critical opinion, “The Dial of Destiny” is a hard movie to truly hate, which is nice. It’s also an Indiana Jones movie that's difficult to truly love, which makes this massive fan of the original trilogy a little sad.

The unsettling mix of good and bad starts in the first sequence, a flashback to the final days of World War II that features Indy ( Harrison Ford ) and a colleague named Basil Shaw ( Toby Jones ) trying to reclaim some of the historical artifacts being stolen by the fleeing Nazis. Jones looks normal, of course, but Ford here is an uncanny valley occupant, a figure of de-aged CGI that never looks quite human. He doesn't move or even sound quite right. It’s the first but not the last time in “The Dial of Destiny” in which it feels like you can’t really get your hands on what you’re watching. It sets up a standard of over-used effects that are the film’s greatest flaw. We’re watching Indiana Jones at the end of World War II, but the effects are distracting instead of enhancing.

It's a shame, too, because the structure of the prologue is solid. Indy escapes capture from a Nazi played by Thomas Kretschmann , but the important introduction here is that of a Nazi astrophysicist named Jurgen Voller (a de-aged Mads Mikkelsen ), who discovers that, while looking for something called the Lance of Longinus, the Nazis have stumbled upon half of the Antikythera, or Archimedes’ Dial. Based on a real Ancient Greek item that could reportedly predict astronomical positions for decades, the dial is given the magical Indy franchise treatment in ways that I won’t spoil other than to say it’s not as explicitly religious as items like the Ark of the Covenant of The Holy Grail other than, as Voller says, it almost makes its owner God.

After a cleverly staged sequence involving anti-aircraft fire and dozens of dead Nazis, “The Dial of Destiny” jumps to 1969. An elderly Indiana Jones is retiring from Hunter College, unsure of what comes next in part because he’s separated from Marion after the death of their son Mutt in the Vietnam War. The best thing about “The Dial of Destiny” starts here in the emotional undercurrents in Harrison Ford’s performance. He could have lazily walked through playing Indy again, but he very clearly asked where this man would be emotionally at this point in his life. Ford’s dramatic choices, especially in the film's back half, can be remarkable, reminding one how good he can be with the right material. His work here made me truly hope that he gets a brilliant drama again in his career, the kind he made more often in the ‘80s.

But back to the action/adventure stuff. Before he can put his retirement gift away, Indy is whisked off on an adventure with Helena Shaw ( Phoebe Waller-Bridge ), the daughter of Basil and goddaughter of Indy. It turns out that Basil became obsessed with the dial after their encounter with it a quarter-century ago, and Indy told him he would destroy the half of the dial they found. Of course, Indiana Jones doesn’t destroy historical artifacts. As they’re getting the dial from the storeroom, they’re attacked by Voller and his goons, leading to a horse chase through the subway during a parade. It’s a cluttered, awkward action sequence with power that’s purely nostalgic—an iconic hero riding a horse through a parade being thrown for someone else.

Before you know it, everyone is in Tangier, where Helena wants to sell her half of the dial, and the film injects its final major character into the action with a sidekick named Teddy ( Ethann Isidore ). From here, “The Dial of Destiny” becomes a traditional Indy chase movie with Jones and his team trying to stay ahead of the bad guys while leading them to what they’re trying to uncover.

James Mangold has delivered on “old-man hero action” before with the excellent “ Logan ,” but he gets lost on the journey here, unable to stage action sequences in a way that’s anywhere near as engaging as how Steven Spielberg does the same. Yes, we’re in a different era. CGI is more prevalent. But that doesn’t excuse clunky, awkward, incoherent action choreography. Look at films like “ John Wick: Chapter 4 ” or a little sequel that’s coming out in a few weeks that I’m not really supposed to talk about—even with the CGI enhancements, you know where the characters are at almost all times, what they’re trying to accomplish, and what stands in their way. 

That basic action structure often falls apart in “The Dial of Destiny.” There’s a car chase scene through Tangier that’s incredibly frustrating, a blur of activity that should work on paper but has no weight and no real stakes. A later scene in a shipwreck that should be claustrophobic is similarly clunky in terms of basic composition. I know not everyone can be Spielberg, but the simple framing of action sequences in “ Raiders of the Lost Ark ” and even “ Indiana Jones and the Last Crusade ” is gone here, replaced by sequences that cost so much that they somehow elevated the budget to $300 million. I wished early and often to see this movie's $100 million version.

“The Dial of Destiny” works much better when it’s less worried about spending that massive budget. When Indy and Helena get to actual treasure-hunting, and John Williams ’ all-timer theme kicks in again, the movie clicks. And, without spoiling, it ends with a series of events and ideas that I wish had been foregrounded more in the 130 minutes that preceded it. Ultimately, “The Dial of Destiny” is about a man who wants to control history being thwarted by a man who wants to appreciate it but has arguably allowed himself to get stuck in it through regret or inaction. There’s a powerful emotional center here, but it comes too late to have the impact it could have with a stronger script. One senses that this script was sanded down so many times by producers and rewrites that it lost some of the rough edges it needed to work.

Spielberg reportedly gave Mangold some advice when he passed the whip to the director, telling him , “It’s a movie that’s a trailer from beginning to end—always be moving.” Sure. Trailers are rarely boring. But they’re never as entertaining as a great movie.

In theaters now.

Brian Tallerico

Brian Tallerico is the Managing Editor of RogerEbert.com, and also covers television, film, Blu-ray, and video games. He is also a writer for Vulture, The Playlist, The New York Times, and GQ, and the President of the Chicago Film Critics Association.

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Film credits.

Indiana Jones and the Dial of Destiny (2023)

Rated PG-13 for sequences of violence and action, language and smoking.

154 minutes

Harrison Ford as Indiana Jones

Phoebe Waller-Bridge as Helena Shaw

Antonio Banderas as Renaldo

John Rhys-Davies as Sallah

Toby Jones as Basil Shaw

Boyd Holbrook as Klaber

Ethann Isidore as Teddy Kumar

Mads Mikkelsen as Dr. Jürgen Voller

Karen Allen as Marion Ravenwood

Thomas Kretschmann as Colonel Weber

• James Mangold

Writer (based on characters created by)

• George Lucas
• Philip Kaufman
• David Koepp
• Jez Butterworth
• John-Henry Butterworth

Cinematographer

• Phedon Papamichael
• Michael McCusker
• Dirk Westervelt
• Andrew Buckland
• John Williams

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Indiana Jones and the Dial of Destiny

Archaeologist Indiana Jones races against time to retrieve a legendary artifact that can change the course of history. Archaeologist Indiana Jones races against time to retrieve a legendary artifact that can change the course of history. Archaeologist Indiana Jones races against time to retrieve a legendary artifact that can change the course of history.

• James Mangold
• Jez Butterworth
• John-Henry Butterworth
• David Koepp
• Harrison Ford
• Phoebe Waller-Bridge
• Antonio Banderas
• 1.7K User reviews
• 354 Critic reviews
• 58 Metascore
• 7 wins & 33 nominations total

• Indiana Jones

• Colonel Weber

• Teddy Kumar

• Young SS Officer
• Italian Ticket Seller
• (as Alfonso Rosario Mandia)

• Larry - Beat Poet Guy

• All cast & crew
• Production, box office & more at IMDbPro

Who Makes Harrison Ford Laugh?

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• Trivia In an interview on Harrison Ford/Vic Mensa (2023) , Harrison Ford explained how the filmmakers digitally de-aged him for the flashback sequence: "They have this artificial intelligence program that can go through every foot of film that Lucasfilm owns. Because I did a bunch of movies for them, they have all this footage, including film that wasn't printed. So they can mine it from where the light is coming from, from the expression. I don't know how they do it. But that's my actual face. Then I put little dots on my face and I say the words and they make [it]. It's fantastic." At 80, he is the oldest actor to be de-aged in a movie, surpassing Al Pacino , who was 79 when he was de-aged in The Irishman (2019) .
• Goofs Indy identifies the half lion half eagle creature carved on Archimedes' tomb as a Phoenix. The creature is actually a griffin and bears little or no resemblance to a Phoenix.

Dr. Voller : You should have stayed in New York.

Indiana Jones : You should have stayed out of Poland.

• Crazy credits The Paramount Pictures logo appears normally, and does not fade into a mountain-shaped opening shot, the only film in the Indiana Jones films to do so. Instead, the Lucasfilm logo fades into a lock on a door in 1944 Germany.
• Alternate versions On the International prints of the film, the original variant of Disney's 100th anniversary logo (with 100 YEARS OF WONDER tagline) was shown as the first logo instead of tagline-less variant of the same logo.
• Connections Featured in AniMat's Crazy Cartoon Cast: Changing of the Bobs (2020)
• Soundtracks Lili Marleen Written by Hans Leip and Norbert Schultze

User reviews 1.7K

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• Jun 30, 2023

'Indiana Jones' Stars Through The Years

• How long is Indiana Jones and the Dial of Destiny? Powered by Alexa
• What year does the movie take place?
• How old is Indy supposed to be in this film?
• June 30, 2023 (United States)
• United States
• Official Disney (Australia)
• Official Facebook
• Greek, Ancient (to 1453)
• Indiana Jones 5
• North Yorkshire Moors Railway, 12 Park Street, Pickering, North Yorkshire, England, UK (German railway scenes)
• Walt Disney Pictures
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• See more company credits at IMDbPro
• $294,700,000 (estimated)
• $174,480,468
• $60,368,101
• Jul 2, 2023
• $383,963,057

Technical specs

• Runtime 2 hours 34 minutes
• Dolby Atmos
• D-Cinema 96kHz Dolby Surround 7.1
• Dolby Digital
• Dolby Surround 7.1
• 12-Track Digital Sound

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‘indiana jones and the dial of destiny’: what the critics are saying.

Harrison Ford's fifth and final portrayal of Indiana Jones hits theaters on June 30.

By Abid Rahman

Abid Rahman

International Editor, Digital

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Indiana Jones and the Dial of Destiny premiered at the Cannes Film Festival on Thursday night. At the glitzy Palais screening, director James Mangold and stars Phoebe Waller-Bridge , Mads Mikkelsen, Boyd Holbrook and Ethann Isidore enjoyed a warm five-minute standing ovation from the crowd. But it was Indy himself, Harrison Ford , who was the center of attention, with the actor visibly moved to tears by the reception.

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A common theme among the early reviews is that the film is better than Indy’s last outing, the rather polarizing Indiana Jones and the Kingdom of the Crystal Skull from 2008, but not much better. Many reviewers took issue with digitally de-aging Ford for some scenes and the use of CGI overall. But there was praise aplenty for Waller-Bridge, and of course, Ford, who still oozes charm as the adventuring archaeologist.

Below are key excerpts from some of the most prominent early reviews.

The Hollywood Reporter’ s David Rooney wrote that “what the new film — scripted by Jez Butterworth, John-Henry Butterworth, David Koepp and Mangold, with the feel of something written by committee — does have is a sweet blast of pure nostalgia in the closing scene, a welcome reappearance foreshadowed with a couple visual clues early on.” But that “part of what dims the enjoyment of this concluding chapter is just how glaringly fake so much of it looks.”  

The Guardian’ s Peter Bradshaw was among the more positive critics of the film, and he described Dial of Destiny as having “quite a bit of zip and fun and narrative ingenuity with all its MacGuffiny silliness that [ Kingdom of the Crystal Skull ] really didn’t.” The review goes on to say, “The finale is wildly silly and entertaining, and that Dial of Destiny is put to an audacious use which makes light of the whole question of defying aging and the gravitational pull of time. Indiana Jones still has a certain old-school class.”

In contrast, Empire’ s John Nugent was very high on Dial of Destiny , writing, “All the hallmarks of the series are there as you’d hope them to be, lovingly preserved like archaeological treasures.” Nugent welcomed Mangold’s more somber direction and concluded by writing, “Indy’s final date with destiny has a barmy finale that might divide audiences — but if you join him for the ride, it feels like a fitting goodbye to cinema’s favorite grave-robber.”

Writing in the Times of London , critic Kevin Maher began his review with the pithy: “The good news is that it’s not as poor as Indiana Jones and the Kingdom of the Crystal Skull . The bad news is that it’s not much better.” Maher suggested that even the addition of Fleabag’ s Waller-Bridge couldn’t rescue the film, but he did credit Ford’s performance. “Ford, despite all this, remains on charisma overload. Even when the machine around him is on autopilot, he brings his weathered gravitas to perhaps his most significant character. Inevitably he, and Indy, deserved better,” Maher wrote.

Robbie Collin, writing in U.K.’s The Daily Telegraph , said that Dial of Destiny “ultimately feels like a counterfeit of priceless treasure: the shape and the gleam of it might be superficially convincing for a bit, but the shabbier craftsmanship gets all the more glaring the longer you look.” Collin also felt the film was too safe, writing that “the film is loaded with mayhem but painfully short on spark and bravado: there’s no shot here, nor twist of choreography, that makes you marvel at the filmmaking mind that conceived it.”

Total Film’ s James Mottram gave the film a rave review, writing that Indy “goes out on a high.” Mottram loved the nods to the past but also enjoyed Mangold’s attempt to show growth in the lead character. “The action is slickly handled by Mangold, not least a thrilling tuk-tuk chase through Tangier. But best of all, this is an Indiana Jones film with tears in its eyes. We see the character has grown older, but not necessarily wiser. Drinking a bit too much, he’s full of regrets about pursuing fortune and glory and leaving his loved ones behind.”

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Indiana Jones and the Dial of Destiny review - Harrison Ford cracks the whip in taut sequel

There’s still much to dig about the octogenarian archeologist as he teams up with Phoebe Waller-Bridge to re-defeat the Nazis

S o the boulder of intellectual property and franchise brand identity rolls on … bringing us Indiana Jones and the Dial of Destiny, the fifth film in which the legendary archaeologist and whip-cracking adventurer is back for another go-around. He is, of course, played by the legendary Harrison Ford , now 80 years young, but carrying it off with humour and style and still nailing that reluctant crooked smile.

It’s the first Indiana Jones film not to be directed by Steven Spielberg – James Mangold is now at the helm – but despite that, this one has quite a bit of zip and fun and narrative ingenuity with all its MacGuffiny silliness that the last one (Indiana Jones and the Kingdom of the Crystal Skull) really didn’t.

We all sat down to this movie hoping for a resurgence comparable to what JJ Abrams did with The Force Awakens, and if that didn’t exactly happen, it still gets up a storytelling gallop. Phoebe Waller-Bridge has a tremendous co-star turn as Indy’s roguish goddaughter Helena Shaw, who wears shorts and shirt making her look like a grownup, naughty Enid Blyton heroine. And in fact some amazing digital youthification effects give Indy himself a great opening flashback section back in the second world war.

Back in the bad old days of 1944, with the Third Reich beginning to crumble, intrepid young spy Indiana Jones is captured by the fiendish Nazis along with his pal, Professor Basil Shaw, in which small role it is a pleasure to see Toby Jones.

They grab what the Germans want: the extant half of a much-desired artefact created by Archimedes, the Dial of Destiny, which allows its owner to control the forces of space and time, but which Archimedes prudently split into two and hid the other half. A chase with a nasty German, Jürgen Voller (Mads Mikkeksen) leaves this whole business unresolved but fast-forward to the present day – the Space Age late 60s, and grumpy old Indiana Jones is retiring, miserable at his irrelevance in the modern world. But this same Voller under a fake name is the brains behind the Apollo 11 moon landing, having conned the US federal government, represented by Agent Mason (Shaunette Renée Wilson) and still dreams of controlling the universe and reintroducing Nazism by joining the Dial’s two halves.

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Only Indy can stop him, along with his scapegrace godchild Helena who is in fact making a dodgy living flogging antiquities on the black market – and she has a cheeky sidekick in tow: Teddy (Ethann Isidore). There are plenty of jolly chases, including a tuk-tuk vs classic Jag event in the narrow streets of Tangier and for the Indy purists, some creepy encounters with insects and an underground tomb whose passageways open up with a grinding noise.

It is probably a bit cheeky to be giving Ford a young female co-star under this “goddaughter” tag, with a bantering tension that is really not too different to one he might have enjoyed with a co-star in the original movies. Yet the finale is wildly silly and entertaining, and that Dial of Destiny is put to an audacious use which makes light of the whole question of defying ageing and the gravitational pull of time. Indiana Jones still has a certain old-school class.

• Peter Bradshaw's film of the week
• Indiana Jones
• Harrison Ford
• Phoebe Waller-Bridge
• Steven Spielberg
• Cannes film festival

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‘Indiana Jones and the Dial of Destiny’ Review: Turning Back the Clock

The gruff appeal of Harrison Ford, both de-aged and properly weathered, is the main draw in this generally silly entry in the long-running franchise.

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By Manohla Dargis

What makes Indy run? For years, the obvious answer was Steven Spielberg, who, starting in 1981 with “Raiders of the Lost Ark,” guided Harrison Ford’s hunky archaeologist, Dr. Henry Walton Jones Jr., in and out of gnarly escapades and ripped shirts in four box-office behemoths. By the time Spielberg directed Ford in their last outing, “ Indiana Jones and the Kingdom of the Crystal Skull ” (2008), Indy was in his late 50s and fans were speculating that the character was immortal, even if the franchise itself had begun running on fumes.

As a longtime big Hollywood star and hitmaker, Ford had already achieved an immortality of a kind. Indy-ologists, though, were more focused on the eternal life that Indy might have been granted by the Holy Grail when he takes a healthy swig from it in his third outing, “The Last Crusade” (1989). It’s pretty clear from his newest venture, the overstuffed if not entirely charmless “Indiana Jones and the Dial of Destiny,” that while Indy may not in fact be immortal, the brain trust overseeing this installment wishes he were. They haven’t simply brought the character back for another go, they have also given him a digital face-lift.

The face-lift is as weird and distracting as this kind of digital plastic surgery tends to be, though your mileage will vary as will your philosophical objections to the idea that Ford needed to be de-aged to draw an audience, even for a 42-year-old franchise that’s now older than most North American moviegoers. The results don’t have the spooky emptiness of uncanny-valley faces. That said, the altered Indy is cognitively dissonant; I kept wondering what they’d done to — or perhaps with — Ford. It turns out that when he wasn’t getting body doubled, he was on set hitting his marks before his face was sent out to be digitally refreshed.

The guy you’re familiar with eventually appears — with wrinkles and gray hair, though without a shirt or pants, huzzah — but first you need to get past the prolonged opener, which plays like a franchise highlight reel. These nods to the past are unsurprising for a series steeped in nostalgia. “Raiders” was created by Spielberg’s pal, George Lucas, who saw it as a homage to the serials that he’d loved as a kid. Lucas envisioned a hero along the lines of Humphrey Bogart in “Treasure of the Sierra Madre,” but with morals (more or less), while Spielberg was interested in making a Bond-style film without the hardware and gimmicks.

As soon as the younger Indy appears in “Dial of Destiny,” it’s clear that the nostalgic love for old Hollywood that defined and shaped the original film has been supplanted by an equally powerful nostalgia for the series itself. That helps explain why this movie finds Indy once again battling Nazis, who make conveniently disposable villains for a movie banking on international sales. After directing “Schindler’s List” (1993), Spielberg expressed reluctance to make Nazis “Saturday-matinee villains,” as he once put it . The team here, by contrast, knows no such hesitation, even if evoking Spielberg’s films inevitably raises comparisons that do no one any favors, particularly the franchise’s new director, James Mangold.

The movie opens in 1944 with Indy — wearing an enemy uniform as he did in “Raiders” — being held captive, a sack coyly obscuring his head while Nazi hordes scurry about. Once the sack comes off — ta-da! — the plot thickens with a mysterious antique (à la “Raiders”), nods to the Führer, the introduction of an Indy colleague (Toby Jones) and dastardly doings from a fanatic (Mads Mikkelsen, whose face has been similarly ironed out). There’s an explosion, a sprint to freedom, a zipping car, a zooming motorcycle (as in “The Last Crusade”) and a dash atop a moving train (ditto), a busy pileup that Mangold finesses with spatial coherency.

Things improve once the story cuts to 1969 and Ford and his beautiful, lived-in, expressively alive face make their entrance, with Indy staggering awake wearing just boxer shorts, an intro that elicits chuckles, admiration and bittersweet feelings because Ford’s years are etched into every crease. After some more preliminaries, Indy finds his usual fast-paced groove with familiar friends, foes, narrative beats and action-flick clichés, including a gal pal, Helena Shaw (Phoebe Waller-Bridge, from “Fleabag”), who’s an ethically challenged wisenheimer. The script — by Jez Butterworth, John-Henry Butterworth, David Koepp and Mangold — keeps playing the greatest hits, at times nearly blow-for-blow, kiss-for-kiss.

The story turns on the treasure, a prize that dates back several thousand years and, like time, just keeps slipping away. Pressed to retrieve it, Indy suits up — fedora, bullwhip, leather jacket, check, check and check — and he and Helena race around the globe chasing it while trading banter and, by turns, evading and fighting villains. For some reason, a grizzled Antonio Banderas pops in as a boat captain. At another point, Indy et al. land in Tangier, a setting that evokes “Raiders” and, uncomfortably, the scene in which Indy shoots a sword-wielding Arab, a death that Spielberg played for laughs and that distills that film’s breezy colonialist mind-set.

“Dial of Destiny” avoids such missteps simply by taking aim at Nazis. Indy and company still embark on breakneck chases in putatively exotic locations — including on tippy three-wheelers that careen through Tangier — but with less obvious collateral damage to the locals, if not their food stalls. Like all the action sequences here, this one drags on long enough to kill the fun. Mangold can do action. He’s best known for “ Logan ,” that rare comic-book movie that achieves a just-so balance between genre familiarity and novelty; he should be better known for “ Ford v Ferrari ,” a smart, nimble car story that underscores he can do one of the hardest things in film, which is to turn two people just talking to each other into cinema.

The Indiana Jones series was customized for mass appeal, which doesn’t leave room for Mangold to do much, though at times he slows things down enough for Ford to shift rhythm. It’s hard to believe this or any other installment would have worked half as well without Ford, whose gruffly appealing, unthreatening (to women, importantly) masculine persona has always felt natural and unforced. No matter how outrageous Indy’s trouble, Ford’s persona and outwardly effortless charm — and his ability to drop that rakish smile for something darker, meaner, even threatening — have kept the character tethered to the real world of feelings and consequences. Lucas and Spielberg sketched a cartoon; Ford created a character.

That character, or rather Ford, or really the two of them together are the main arguments for seeing “Dial of Destiny,” which is as silly as you expect and not altogether as successful as you may hope. Among other things, it takes a while to settle down. Everything seems overly strained, at least at first, including the pacing, the story and Waller-Bridge’s performance. It all improves as it continues, or maybe I just surrendered, yielding to the movie’s disposable pleasures, its yearning to entertain you, Mangold’s old-school classicism and, of course, Ford, who, as befits a Hollywood veteran confident enough to make a grand entrance in only his boxers, can still run away with a movie — and run and run — without breaking a sweat.

Indiana Jones and the Dial of Destiny Rated PG-13 for largely bloodless violence. Running time: 2 hours 34 minutes. In theaters.

Manohla Dargis is the chief film critic of The Times, which she joined in 2004. She has an M.A. in cinema studies from New York University, and her work has been anthologized in several books. More about Manohla Dargis

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‘Indiana Jones and the Dial of Destiny’: A fitting if far-fetched finale

The fifth film in the action-adventure franchise bends over backward, at times literally, to put a bow on the series.

Father Time casts his long shadow over “Indiana Jones and the Dial of Destiny,” and not just because the 42-year-old action-adventure franchise, now in its fifth installment, was already old-fashioned — a throwback to “Buck Rogers” and other serials of the 1930s — when “ Raiders of the Lost Ark ” debuted in 1981. Nor is that ticking of the clock that you hear merely echoed in the sound of news reports that this film will be the last outing for Harrison Ford (81 years old next month) in the title role, or that “Dial” marks the last film for composer John Williams, 91, whose instantly recognizable theme music can be heard through the new film. Franchise director Steven Spielberg, 76, has also finally ceded the reins to James Mangold (“ Ford v Ferrari ”), who makes a capable contribution to the canon here.

But in other ways large and small, the hands of the chronograph are spinning out of control.

The 21 biggest movies hitting theaters this summer

First off is the film’s prologue set in World War II: a derring-do-heavy flashback on a speeding train in which we watch a digitally de-aged Indy — pleasantly plausible — once again facing Nazis as he did in both the first and third films, as he and a colleague, Basil Shaw (Toby Jones), attempt to make off with the titular artifact. Also known as the Antikythera mechanism, this clocklike device is said to have been designed by the ancient Greek mathematician Archimedes and to be capable of predicting “fissures in time.” (Don’t ask.) This putative ability will prove significant in the climax of the story by Jez Butterworth, John-Henry Butterworth, David Koepp and Mangold, a supernatural tale that stretches credulity, even by the standards of an Indiana Jones movie.

Flash-forward to 1969, with a now-white-haired Indy — excuse me, Professor Jones — seen waking up from a nap (and perhaps that bad dream) to the sounds of the Beatles’ “Magical Mystery Tour,” appropriately enough, from a neighboring apartment. Indy collects himself and heads in to his office at Hunter College, from which he is retiring. But any quiet plans Indy might have for his golden years fly out the window with the appearance of two characters: Jürgen Voller (Mads Mikkelsen), a German rocket scientist now working on the U.S. space program, and Helena Shaw (Phoebe Waller-Bridge), the daughter of Basil and Indy’s goddaughter. Both of them seek to possess the highly prized Antikythera (which has been broken in half, with one half missing), albeit for different reasons: Voller, a fugitive Nazi, naturally, wants to “correct” Hitler’s mistakes; Helena, a cynic who traffics in collectible antiquities, just wants to sell the thing for whatever the market will bear.

And so begins another Indiana Jones movie, very much in the mold of every other Indiana Jones movie in that it quickly jumps from New York to the narrow streets of Tangier for a chase scene with Indy, Helena and her young ward Teddy (Ethann Isidore) in a tuk-tuk in hot pursuit of Voller and his thugs. Other exotic locales follow, including the tomb of Archimedes in Sicily — an underground cave filled with “Da Vinci Code”-like puzzles to be solved with minimal effort, an infestation of icky beetles and a funhouse-style secret stone door that slides open mysteriously, defying physics but obeying all the laws of entertainment.

Along the way, some loose ends are tied up, particularly as they apply to Shia LaBeouf’s character in the franchise, introduced in 2008’s “The Kingdom of the Crystal Skull,” who disappeared thereafter without explanation. A supporting character from the early franchise will reappear — more than one, actually — satisfying fans but adding little to the narrative, except in the case of the second cameo, which wraps up some unfinished emotional business in a serviceable but syrupy way.

Time does have a way of catching up with you, especially in a movie that appears to be bending over backward — literally at times — to put a bow on a beloved series of films, not all of which have been recognized as paragons of logic or storytelling.

With her tartly delivered dialogue, though, Waller-Bridge does bring a certain zest to the overly familiar proceedings, and — after initially being presented as sort of, well, unlikably mercenary and at times even heartless — Helena and Indy eventually develop a nice partnership, one forged via hardship, the necessities of narrative and a third-act plot development that pushes the limits of suspension of disbelief.

But critical thinking was never a prerequisite for appreciating an Indiana Jones movie. (It is, in fact, a detriment.) And this one is no exception. If “The Dial of Destiny” takes its cast somewhere far-fetched — and boy, does it ever — it makes sure to bring us all back to where we belong, just in time for the closing credits.

PG-13. At area theaters. Contains sequences of violence and action, coarse language, and smoking. 142 minutes.

‘Indiana Jones and the Dial of Destiny’ Review: Harrison Ford Plays the Aging Indy in a Sequel That Serves Up Nostalgic Hokum Minus the Thrill

James Mangold's action epic is made in the style of Steven Spielberg, but the exhilaration is gone.

By Owen Gleiberman

Owen Gleiberman

Chief Film Critic

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“ Indiana Jones and the Dial of Destiny ” is a dutifully eager but ultimately rather joyless piece of nostalgic hokum. It’s the fifth installment of the “Indiana Jones” franchise, and though it has its quota of “relentless” action, it rarely tries to match (let alone top) the ingeniously staged kinetic bravura of “Raiders of the Lost Ark.” How could it? “Raiders,” whatever one thinks of it as a movie (I always found it a trace impersonal in its ’40s-action-serial-on-steroids excitement), is arguably the most influential blockbuster of the last 45 years, even more so than “Star Wars.”

Popular on Variety

In the prologue, Indy is racing to get hold of the device before Jürgen Voller (Mads Mikkelsen), a mad-dog Nazi scientist, can steal it for himself. Mangold does a winning homage to the playful rhythms of early-’80s Spielberg, as Indy disentangles his neck from a hanging noose and finds himself in a car-vs.-motorcycle chase, only to wind up, along with his British archaeologist associate Basil Shaw (Toby Jones), dueling with Voller on top of a speeding train.

Have you ever seen an action sequence set atop a speeding train? We’ve all seen 10,000 of them, and this one, while efficiently executed, is brought off with just enough CGI that you can see the digital seams. It’s worth noting how audacious the action sequences in “Raiders of the Lost Ark” were, a sensation expanded upon in the darker, spookier, unfairly maligned “Indiana Jones and the Temple of Doom.” But by the late ’80s, when Spielberg gave us “Indiana Jones and the Last Crusade,” as A-okay as that movie was it was already (except for Sean Connery) a revamp on autopilot. And “Indiana Jones and the Crystal Skull” (2008) was the rehash of the revamp, reducing Indy’s antics to tepid formula.

“The Dial of Destiny” at least tosses the series in a new direction, by being the first “Indiana Jones” movie built around the impressive fact of Harrison Ford’s age. He’s 80 now, and a vibrant 80, still handsome and lean, with a scruff of gray hair and a slower, more gravelly voice as well as a combative physicality that now feels more rote than compulsive. After Indy and Basil leap off that train into a river and retrieve the Antikythera (though the other half of it must still be found!), the film cuts to 1969, where Indy himself is now a relic: an old man living in a cruddy New York apartment, waking up to his hippie neighbors blasting “Magical Mystery Tour,” pouring a shot of whiskey into his instant coffee as he glances over his divorce papers.

Mangold sketches in the period well, so that it stands in for the present day ­— not literally, but as a signifier of the idea that Professor Henry “Indiana” Jones has been yanked into the modern world. He’s teaching at Hunter College, where he’s getting ready to retire and keeps that one-half of the Antikythera stashed in the archaeology stacks. Then his goddaughter, Helena Shaw ( Phoebe Waller-Bridge ), shows up (they haven’t seen each other for 18 years), announcing that she’s an archaeologist too and would like to team up with Indy to locate the other half of the Antikythera.

It turns out that Helena has mercenary motives. And while Phoebe Waller-Bridge, of “Fleabag” fame, makes her saucy, spiky, and duplicitous in a cheeky way (she’s like the young Maggie Smith with a boatload of attitude), we never feel in our guts that Helena is a chip off the old Indy block. So while it feels like the film is setting her up to become the “new Indy Jones,” I wouldn’t bet the farm on that happening.

Indy and Helena are going after the Grafikos, the missing other half of the Antikythera, a journey that will take them from New York to Tangier, where Helena tries to unload the piece they already have at an auction for stolen artifacts. Then it’s on to Greece and Sicily, to caves and ruins and giant wriggling caterpillars. Voller is right behind them, along with three assistants: one (Olivier Richters) gigantic, one (Mark Killeen) who will shoot anybody on sight, and one (Shaunette Renée Wilson) who styles herself like a Black Panther. A chase through a ticker-tape parade for the Apollo 11 astronauts, with Indy leaping onto a police horse and riding it into the subway, is grabby in its very absurdity, and a car chase through Tangier, with Indy driving a three-wheel taxi, has enough comic dash to evoke what we cherish about this series. I laughed out loud when Indy leaps into another 3-wheeler at the very moment the one he was driving gets smashed to smithereens.

But those early high points aren’t really followed through on. Mostly, “Indiana Jones and the Dial of Destiny” works by translating Indy’s old daredevil kick-ass fervor into the pure will with which he’s now hunting for the artifact. As the film leaps international locations, the action starts to feel more conventional and less “Indiana Jones”-y. Did I mention that the reason the Antikythera is so valuable is that it can create fissures in time that will theoretically allow one to time travel? The film actually tests this out, with spectacularly preposterous results. But time travel, in “Indiana Jones and the Dial of Destiny,” is really an unconscious metaphor, since it’s the movie that wants to go back in time, completing our love affair with the defining action-movie-star role of Harrison Ford. In the abstract, at least, it accomplishes that, right down to the emotional diagram of a touching finale, but only by reminding you that even if you re-stage the action ethos of the past, recapturing the thrill is much harder.  

Reviewed at Cannes Film Festival (Out of Competition), May 18, 2023. MPA Rating: PG-13. Running time: 142 MIN.

• Production: A Walt Disney Studios Motion Pictures release of a LucasFilm Ltd. Production. Producers: Kathleen Kennedy, Frank Marshall, Simon Emanuel. Executive producers: Steven Spielberg, George Lucas.
• Crew: Director: James Mangold. Screenplay: Jez Butterworth, John-Henry Butterworth, David Koepp, James Mangold. Camera: Phedon Papamichael. Editors: Michael McCusker, Andrew Buckland, Dirk Westervelt. Music: John Williams.
• With: Harrison Ford, Phoebe Waller-Bridge, Antonio Banderas, John Rhys-Davies, Shaunette Renée Wilson, Thomas Kretschmann, Toby Jones, Boyd Holbrook, Olivier Richters, Ethann Isidore, Mads Mikkelsen, Martin McDougall, Alaa Safi.

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Screen Rant

Indiana jones 5 gets series-worst rotten tomatoes score (including crystal skull).

Indiana Jones and the Dial of Destiny debuts on Rotten Tomatoes after early reviews drop, earning the lowest score of the entire franchise.

Indiana Jones and the Dial of Destiny has debuted on Rotten Tomatoes with disappointing results. The film is the fifth theatrical outing for Harrison Ford's heroic archaeologist, who made his first appearance in 1981's Raiders of the Lost Ark . Hitting theaters on June 30, Dial of Destiny is set against the backdrop of the Space Race and follows Jones as he is dragged into a brand-new globetrotting adventure by his goddaughter Helena Shaw (Phoebe Waller-Bridge).

Rotten Tomatoes has aggregated the first batch of reviews for the film ahead of the official Indiana Jones and the Dial of Destiny release date thanks to its premiere a month and a half early at the Cannes Film Festival. In an unprecedented scenario, the film's score is firmly Rotten at 52 percent. This is the first Rotten score in the entire franchise (including the short-lived television series The Young Indiana Jones Chronicles ), even lower than the widely derided 2008 outing Indiana Jones and the Kingdom of the Crystal Skull , which stands strong at a Certified Fresh 77 percent.

How This Indiana Jones 5 RT Score Could Be A Good Thing

There are several things to note about the film's score at this point in time. The first is that Indiana Jones 5 's Rotten Tomatoes score is an aggregation of only 29 critics' reviews, which is somewhat significant but pales in comparison to the wider swath of 100 or more reviews that the other entries have gotten ( Crystal Skull has 308 reviews, for instance). There will be a deluge of new reviews coming in mid-June that could significantly alter the film's score.

The second is perhaps even more important. Even though the film's score is the lowest in the franchise, a 52 percent rating indicates that at least half of the critics who reviewed it liked the film. At this point in a franchise's run, being divisive is as much of a strength as being beloved. This early glimpse into the critical reaction to Indiana Jones and the Dial of Destiny could be an indication that the film is attempting something new and unexpected for the franchise.

While this may not please die-hard fans of the original Indiana Jones trilogy, it could show that it avoids merely copying the franchise's formula. Familiarity's a factor that may have resulted in Crystal Skull 's surprising score back in 2008, even though its reputation has soured considerably in the wake of that early reaction. Director James Mangold (replacing Steven Spielberg in the director's chair) may just have some tricks up his sleeve with Indiana Jones and the Dial of Destiny that will accomplish the reverse, allowing the movie to hold up on rewatch once the initial shock of being different passes.

Source: Rotten Tomatoes

Key Release Dates

Indiana jones and the dial of destiny.

6 Movie Franchises With Impressive Rotten Tomatoes Streaks

• Movie franchises face challenges maintaining a positive critical reception over time, but some have lengthy " fresh " streaks on Rotten Tomatoes
• The Marvel Cinematic Universe and Harry Potter maintained impressive positive streaks until recent releases broke them.
• Most franchises don't get more than five " fresh " movies in a row, but for Indiana Jones and The Hunger Games, that encompasses all their movies.

Rotten Tomatoes isn't a perfect indicator of whether a movie franchise is worthwhile or not, but those that maintain long streaks of " fresh " scores typically do so for a reason . Many movie franchises start off strong — enough so that they spawn multiple sequels and spinoffs — then steadily decline or dip in places throughout their runs. It's difficult for an IP to keep a high quality with every release, and this is especially true for the longest-running movie franchises .

Some franchises bounce back from these low points, while others cut their losses. And a select few do manage impressive review streaks before ending or falling off. Even if these franchises don't consistently get above 90% for all of their movies, they successfully maintain fresh ratings on Rotten Tomatoes' platform for years at a time . Given how unpredictable critic scores can be, this is no easy feat; it speaks to a franchise's consistency and quality when it's able to do this.

10 Movie Franchises That Became Too Big For Their Own Good

The marvel cinematic universe - fresh rotten tomatoes scores for 25 movies, streak started with iron man & ended with eternals, marvel cinematic universe (mcu).

Created by Kevin Feige

First Film Iron Man

Latest Film Black Panther: Wakanda Forever

Upcoming Films Ant-Man & the Wasp: Quantumania

The Marvel Cinematic Universe has recently struggled with reviews and box office numbers, but the movie franchise had a lengthy positive streak that lasted through The Infinity Saga . Starting with Iron Man in 2008, the MCU maintained "fresh" Rotten Tomatoes scores for every movie up until The Eternals , which received a "rotten" 47% from critics. A 25-movie streak is incredibly impressive, and it's something most other franchises haven't accomplished. While not every film from this era of the MCU is the same in terms of reception and quality, even the less-loved ones, like Thor: The Dark World, boast a fresh score above 60%.

Despite breaking its fresh streak with Eternals, the MCU has already made something of a comeback in terms of critic scores . Movies released right after Eternals, like Spider-Man: No Way Home and Doctor Strange in the Multiverse of Madness , have resumed getting above 60%. Ant-Man and the Wasp: Quantumania is the only other MCU film to receive a rotten score, coming in at 46%.

Universal Monsters Movies - Fresh Rotten Tomatoes Scores For 17 Movies

Started with the hunchback of notre dame & ended with the mummy's tomb.

The Universal Classic Monster movies were huge hits from the 1920s to the 1950s, and given the films' positive reception over several decades, it's no wonder the studio is trying to reignite it with the Dark Universe . Although some of Universal's later monster movies received negative critic scores on Rotten Tomatoes , the franchise remained consistently fresh across 17 consecutive films . Starting with the first movie in the franchise — 1923's The Hunchback of Notre Dame — Universal's monster movies boast fresh scores until 1942's The Mummy's Tomb.

Even after The Mummy 's Tomb, a handful of Universal monster movies received fresh critic scores — though the number of rotten ratings increased notably. And Universal's recent attempts at monster movies have mostly failed. 2023's vampire films, Renfield and The Last Voyage of Demeter both received under 60%. And most monster movies to come out after 2000 met similar fates, with 2020's The Invisible Man being a noteworthy exception.

The Batman Franchise - Fresh Rotten Tomatoes Scores For 14 Movies

Started with batman & mr. freeze: subzero & ended with batman v superman: dawn of justice.

Created by Bob Kane, Bill Finger

First Film Batman (1989)

Latest Film The Batman

Upcoming Films The Batman Part II

Batman movies can be hit or miss, but 14 of them received fresh critic scores on Rotten Tomatoes between the years of 1998 and 2016. Many of the films included in Batman 's fresh streak include animated movies, which dominated the franchise on the heels of 1997's critically panned Batman & Robin . However, Christopher Nolan's Dark Knight trilogy also helped maintain the franchise's positive reception during this time period. Sadly, the Batman movie franchise's streak was broken by Batman v Superman: Dawn of Justice in 2016, which got a mere 29% score from Rotten Tomatoes critics.

Fortunately, Batman 's projects seem to be on an upward trajectory again. 2019's Joker and 2022's The Batman bode well for the IP's future, especially since both are getting sequels. If these series continue to " wow " moviegoers, Batman could see another fresh streak in the near future .

Harry Potter - Fresh Rotten Tomatoes Scores For 9 Movies

Started with harry potter and the sorcerer's stone & ended with fantastic beasts: the crimes of grindelwald, harry potter.

Harry Potter is a multimedia franchise about an orphaned boy who enrolls at Hogwarts School of Wizardry, where he learns the truth about himself, his family, and the terrible evil that haunts the magical world. Adapted from the novels, Harry Potter is an eight-episode film saga that follows the journey of Harry Potter and his friends, Hermoine Granger and Ron Weasley, as they navigate the tricky world of growing up, school life, and magic. Starting from year one and moving to their seventh year, the films chronicle the students' time at Hogwarts while unfurling a sinister plot that centers around the unsuspecting Harry. With the return of the dark wizard, Voldemort, the students and professors at Hogwarts will fight to carry on as the world around them may change forever. Harry Potter has expanded beyond the world of its films and novels with several video games, a spin-off film series titled Fantastic Beasts, and even attractions at Universal Studios.

Created by J.K. Rowling

First Film Harry Potter and the Sorcerer's Stone

Cast Alfred Enoch, Katie Leung, Dan Fogler, Jason Isaacs, David Tennant, Ralph Fiennes, Ezra Miller, Mads Mikkelsen, Gary Oldman, Tom Felton, Eddie Redmayne, Richard Harris, Harry Melling, Matthew Lewis, Oliver Phelps, James Phelps, Bonnie Wright, Evanna Lynch, Imelda Staunton, Michael Gambon, Johnny Depp, Robert Pattinson, Emma Watson, Warwick Davis, Timothy Spall, Rupert Grint, Robbie Coltrane, Maggie Smith, Katherine Waterston, Jude Law, Jamie Campbell Bower, Helena Bonham Carter, David Thewlis, David Bradley, Daniel Radcliffe, Alison Sudol, Alan Rickman

The Harry Potter franchise boasted critical acclaim for most of its run , and only recent movies have broken its positive streak on Rotten Tomatoes . The original Harry Potter series, which consists of eight films, has overwhelmingly positive scores on the site. In fact, none of the original Harry Potter movies has below a 75% critic score on Rotten Tomatoes. Even the first Fantastic Beasts movie boasts a fresh 74%, indicating that the franchise's quality only dipped very recently. Due to controversies surrounding the IP and film, as well as other complaints, the final two Fantastic Beasts films are both under 50%.

With Warner Bros. pivoting its approach to Harry Potter to television, the franchise may not be able to come back from its negative reception on the movie end. However, the upcoming Harry Potter TV reboot could reignite interest in the property and lead to more films later on. It all depends on what response the new series gets, and it will be a while before it premieres.

Indiana Jones - Fresh Rotten Tomatoes Scores For 5 Movies

Started with raiders of the lost ark & ended with indiana jones and the dial of destiny, indiana jones.

Created by George Lucas, Indiana Jones is an action-adventure multimedia franchise that began with the launch of its first film, Raiders of the Lost Ark, in 1981. The series follows Dr. Henry "Indiana" Jones, Jr., an archaeologist who adventures across the world with various friends as he faces off against the likes of Nazis and other groups bent on collecting ancient artifacts of power. Seeking to preserve history, Jones races against his incidental foes to stop them from conquering - or destroying- the world.

Created by George Lucas

First Film Indiana Jones and the Raiders of the Lost Ark

Cast Ke Huy Quan, Amrish Puri, Denholm Elliott, Alison Doody, Phoebe Waller-Bridge, John Hurt, Shia LaBeouf, Mads Mikkelsen, Cate Blanchett, Karen Allen, Julian Glover, Sean Connery, Harrison Ford, Kate Capshaw, Ray Winstone, John Rhys-Davies

The Indiana Jones franchise arose from the 1981 classic — and unlike many other hits from this time period, it maintained a consistent quality over five films and four decades. While franchises like Jurassic Park bounce up and down in terms of the critical reception to their sequels, Indiana Jones boasts fresh Rotten Tomatoes scores for all five of its films. And while a five-movie streak on Rotten Tomatoes isn't completely uncommon, it's rare to see a franchise that is complete and doesn't have a single rotten score .

Even 1992's TV show, The Young Indiana Jones Chronicles , boasts a 78% critic score, highlighting the franchise's positive legacy. While recent Indiana Jones installments don't necessarily live up to the original film, there's no denying they do a better job at reigniting the franchise than most reboots and sequels. They also offer a satisfying conclusion, so it's no wonder they boast fresh Rotten Tomatoes scores.

The Hunger Games Franchise - Fresh Rotten Tomatoes Scores For 5 Movies

Started with the hunger games & ended with the ballad of songbirds and snakes, the hunger games.

The Hunger Games is a multi-movie franchise starring Jennifer Lawrence as Katniss Everdeen. The films are based on the young adult dystopian book series by author Suzanne Collins. The first film was released in 2012, followed by Catching Fire in 2013, Mockingjay Part 1 in 2014, and Mockingjay Part 2 in 2015. In 2023, the fifth film in the series was released, The Ballad of Songbirds and Snakes.

Created by Suzanne Collins

First Film The Hunger Games

Cast Tom Blyth, Elizabeth Banks, Woody Harrelson, Peter Dinklage, Stanley Tucci, Jason Schwartzman, Hunter Schafer, Rachel Zegler, Liam Hemsworth, Jennifer Lawrence, Viola Davis, Willow Shields, Phillip Seymour Hoffman, Lenny Kravitz, Josh Hutcherson, Donald Sutherland

Like Indiana Jones, the Hunger Games is on the shorter side when it comes to movie franchises, but its impressive, five-movie Rotten Tomatoes streak encompasses its entire run . The Hunger Games and Catching Fire kick things off strongly with 84% and 90% critic scores, respectively. And even though the later installments and recent Hunger Games prequel all fall in the 60s, they successfully maintain the dystopian franchise's fresh reception on the platform.

Receiving critical acclaim for every movie in a franchise is no easy feat, but given The Hunger Games' impact and quality, it's no surprise that the adaptation manages it. The Ballad of Songbirds and Snakes 2 is unlikely to happen, but if it does, it risks breaking The Hunger Games' streak if its score falls too far below the original prequel. This is the case for any new Hunger Games movie that makes its way onto Rotten Tomatoes , but only time will tell if that's a concern. The franchise could very well end with its 2023 release.

Source: Rotten Tomatoes

Abigail’s Debut Score on Rotten Tomatoes & Early Reviews Are Scary Good

The vampire ballerina's upcoming horror flick is impressing critics, which has resulted in a scary good rating on the RT Tomatometer.

• Abigail registers 85% on the Tomatometer against 13 reviews, at the time of this writing.
• The young actress portraying the vampire ballerina, Alisha Weir, shines, effortlessly switching from terrified to savage, and delivers a commanding performance on screen.
• Critics praise Abigail for being extremely bloody, fun, humorous and fresh; setting the bar high as the most enjoyable horror movie of the year.

The vampire ballerina is ready to play with her food and make some noise at the box office. Universal Pictures’ Abigail officially drops in theaters on April 19, but the critics are already sinking their teeth — not fangs — into the upcoming horror film. And, at the time of this writing, those reactions have resulted in a scary good score on Rotten Tomatoes. Abigail currently registers 85% against 13 reviews on the Tomatometer. Meagan Navarro of Bloody Disgusting writes:

With an insane commitment to arterial spray and an enthusiastic ensemble, Abigail winds up another crowd-pleaser from [Matt] Bettinelli-Olpin and [Tyler] Gillett. It's a bloody blast.

Abigail (2024)

Michael Gingold of Rue Morgue Magazine adds:

The standout is Weir, commanding the screen despite her small stature and effortlessly switching from apparently helpless, terrified child to savage predator with a mordant sense of humor.

Alisha Weir is the young actress responsible for bringing the latest vampiric villain to life on the big screen, and Sharai Bohannon of the A Nightmare on Fierce Street podcast calls the character Abigail “a new favorite monster.” Bohannon also says in the full-length review:

Abigail is a fun, bloody ride. It also has the most lovable ensemble of morally grey characters this year. The film introduces a new favorite monster into the genre and gives her room to take the biggest swings possible. I lived!

Early Reviews from the Critics Praise Abigail

Whether Abigail (Weir) turns out to be Dracula's daughter, or not, remains to be seen (no spoilers here). Regardless, the early reviews for Universal Pictures' latest horror entry are quite promising. And it will need every advantage since the macabre movie will go head-to-head with the Henry Cavill-led The Ministry of Ungentlemanly Warfare in theaters. But, for now, it's Abigail's time to dance in the spotlight and celebrate the film's scary good RT score. Jordan Williams of Screen Rant writes:

In what may become one of the greatest vampire movies of all time, Abigail provides an extremely bloody, fun, humorous & fresh take on the subgenre.

BJ Colangelo of Slash Film calls Abigail "a perfect horror movie" and also says in the full review:

'Abigail' sets the bar as the most fun you can have with a horror movie of the year. In other words, 'Abigail' is horror on pointe.

25 Great Vampire Movies to Sink Your Teeth Into

While this is a spoiler free report, fans going to see Abigail should know that the film's directors actually apologized to the movie's performers because of all the blood utilized during the production. Nevertheless, the excessive use of ichor hasn't stopped critics from raving about the horror flick. Collider's own Perri Nemiroff had her sights set high going into Abigail, and the horror flick still lived up to expectations. Nemiroff called the vampire movie:

A blood-soaked bonkers good time. A clever spin on the vampire genre filled with loads of wild set pieces and gore, further fueled by a perfectly cast electric ensemble.

Abigail opens in theaters on April 19. And fans can whet their appetites for the horror film by watching the official trailer below:

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