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    • Movie reviews: Hefty dose of whip-crackin’ thrills in 'Indiana Jones and the Dial of Destiny'

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    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. This ancient, analogue computer with the power to find fissures in time, however, isn’t the only thing about the movie that revisits the past.

    Everything old is new again in director James Mangold’s vision of the classic action-adventure. There’s the much talked-about de-aging of Harrison Ford, the grand old man of action-adventure, which effectively brings back the classic Indy of the original film, and the reappearance 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 de-aged Ford) risks everything to help his colleague, Basil Shaw (Toby Jones), keep Nazi scientist Jürgen Voller (Mads Mikkelsen) from getting his hands on a mysterious dial known as the Antikythera. Used properly, the dial has the ability to manipulate time, and say, change the outcome of a certain war.

    “Hitler made mistakes,†says Voller. “And with this, I will correct them all.â€

    Cut to 25 years later. America has just landed on the moon and the nation is jubilant, but it is a jubilation the weathered Indy does not share. In the wake of his separation from

    Marion Ravenwood (Karen Allen) and the death of his son, 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 shows up. Helena Shaw (Waller-Bridge) is Basil Shaw’s daughter, Indy’s estranged goddaughter, an archeologist and a thief. Her interest in the Antikythera lures Indy back into a world of international adventure, former Nazis and the echoes of history come to life.

    “You've taken your chances, made your mistakes,†Helena says to Indy, “and now, a final triumph!â€

    Nothing is likely to 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 mysticism is a cut above and nearly impossible to duplicate. The retro newness of “Indiana Jones and the Dial of Destiny†is an attempt to recapture the magic, and it does deliver a hefty dose of whip-crackin’ thrills, but like the de-aged Ford in the film’s opening 20 minutes, it doesn’t exactly feel like the real thing.

    It is, however, respectful of what came before. Mangold transcends the film’s recycled nature with some exciting action set pieces, and even if the stunts don’t feel as organic as they did 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 alleyways of Tangier that mixes humour, action and peril in equal measure.

    Cinematographer Phedon Papamichael captures the classic Indy look, an aesthetic and colour palette that disappeared sometime around “Crystal Skull.†Visually, it’s like a warm hug that spans back decades.

    Of course, the crucial element is Ford. He may need more CGI to hopscotch around on the top of trains and through sunken caves these days, but he brings the OG ‘70s movie star mojo and a traveller’s hat full of charisma that has not diminished over the years. There is a poignancy to Ford’s lion-in-winter portrayal of the character, and, as a result (NO SPOILERS HERE), there is an emotional component to the film’s final reel, as Indy confronts the anguish he feels, that may be the most touching moment in the entire series.

    He’s ably assisted by the wisecracking Waller-Bridge and stoically evil Mikkelsen.

    The story and action in “Indiana Jones and the Dial of Destiny†get slowed down from time to time by too much talk of the Lance of Longinus, Polybius Squares and the Ear of Dionysius. Mangold makes up for those moments with John Williams’s rousing, signature score and a wild and unexpected third-reel payoff. The movie may not turn back the clock to have the cultural impact of the original, but it is a lot of fun.

     

    RUBY GILLMAN, TEENAGE KRAKEN: 3 ½ STARS

    “Ruby Gillman, Teenage Kraken,†a new animated coming-of-age story from Dreamworks now playing in theatres, flips the usual idea of the tentacled sea creature from fearsome to heroic.

    The Kraken-out-of-water tale isn’t a franchise—although it may be the beginning of one—but it does owe a debt to recent Pixar films “Turning Red†and “Luca,†movies about the transformation of body and expectations.

    Years after leaving the sea to live on land and raise their family, ocean creatures Agatha (Toni Collette) and Peter Gillman (Colman Domingo) are secretive about their past.

    “We’re from Canada,†they say to explain away their blue skin, gills and lack of spines.

    Fifteen-year-old daughter Ruby (Lana Condor) goes along with the lie, and admits to “barely pulling off this human thing.†At school, she feels different and has a hard time fitting in outside of her squad, a small group of BFFs.

    “I just want to be Ruby Gillman, normal teenager,†she says.

    Despite her mother’s strict rule of never going near the water, days before the prom, when her high school, skater-boy crush Connor (Jaboukie Young-White) almost drowns, Ruby dives into the ocean to rescue him. Contact with salt water releases out her true self, a giant luminescent, Kraken.

    “I’m already a little weird,†she says, “but I can’t hide this.â€

    In short order, Ruby learns of her heritage, and that her grandmother, Grandmahmah (Jane Fonda), is a warrior queen, the Ultimate Lordess of and ruler of the Seven Seas, and charged with keeping the undersea world safe from the main maritime threat—evil mermaids.

    “But people love mermaids,†says Ruby.

    “Of course they do,†says Grandmahmah. “People are stupid.â€

    Grandmahmah wants Ruby to become her successor and possibly settle an age-old score.

    Themes of self-acceptance, family love and overcoming insecurity are common in films for kids and young adults, and “Ruby Gillman, Teenage Kraken†is no different. But what it lacks in originality—“Turning Red†got to the transformation as a metaphor for coming out of your shell first—it makes up for with good humour, fun voice work – particularly from Fonda and from Annie Murphy, who plays a mermaid – and an engaging lead character.

    Ruby is a sweet-natured math nerd wrapped up in a blanket of insecurity. As she attempts to navigate high school and her newfound Kraken alter-ego, she never loses the teen aura that makes her so relatable. She may be able to morph into a giant, but the biggest things in her life remain her family and friends. It’s heartfelt, and somehow, not as sappy as it sounds.

    “Ruby Gillman, Teenage Kraken†may not break new ground, or part the oceans, but it tells its story with panache, finding a way to merge a kid-friendly story with some decidedly adult jokes.

     

    NIMONA: 4 STARS

    “Nimona,†a new sci-fi young-adult animated action-adventure now streaming on Netflix, sets its story of outsiders, identity and acceptance in a futuristic kingdom where knights, on flying horse-shaped motorcycles, use old-school crossbows and high-tech gear to fight monsters.

    Adapted from the webcomic by N.D. Stevenson, the story is set in a techo-medieval kingdom where the defenders of the realm, called the Institution, are knights descended from noble backgrounds dating back 1,000 years.

    The sole exception is Ballister Boldheart (Riz Ahmed), a man of humble origins who earned his way into the Institute by relentless hard work and self-training in the art of killing monsters. His induction to 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 shapeshifting creature named Nimona (Chloë Grace Moretz), the very trouble-making monster he had sworn to hunt and kill. She can change into almost anything—a rhino, 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.â€

    “I’m not a villain,†insists Boldheart. “The real villain is still out there and I do need help.â€

    As Boldheart and Nimona create chaos within the kingdom and without, Ambrosious Goldenloin (Eugene Lee Yang), the realm’s champion knight and Boldheart’s love interest, is also searching for answers that will exonerate the Institution from wrongdoing.

    “If anyone can find them,†he says. “It’s me.â€

    “Nimona†bursts with imagination. The nouveau-medieval, fairy-tale world is wonderfully imagined, part “Henry V,†part “Bladerunner.â€

    It’s something original, a blend of old and new, with armour-clad knights using swords that shoot lasers and other nifty artifacts with high-tech twists. The world is brought to life with visual pageantry and panache that sets the tone for the actual story.

    Inhabiting this animated fantasy are characters battling very human issues. Nimona is someone who struggles with loneliness and finding a place in the world. She is an agent of chaos, a person with an appetite for destruction, but as the film’s runtime increases, so does our understanding of why she behaves the way she does. She and Boldheart are allegories of outsiders, characters who, within the context of the story, battle with their perception of their place in the world.

    As an exploration of queerness, the film’s message of being true to yourself arises organically.

    Boldheart asks her, “What would happen if you held it in?â€

    “I’d die,†she replies. It’s a powerful metaphoric message about being one’s self and just one of many that emphasize the movie’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 film never allows the messages to overtake the story. Co-directors Nick Bruno and Troy Quane ensure that amid the messages of benevolence and self-acceptance, are plenty of emotional moments and exciting, large-scale action scenes that will make your eyeballs dance.

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