Indiana Jones star Harrison Ford will be honored at D23 during the Disney Legends Awards Ceremony on August 11.
While Ford is known for his roles in Star Wars, Air Force One, and Witness, he's synonymous with the Indiana Jones franchise. He has led all five feature film entries in the series beginning with Raiders of the Lost Ark (1981).
Now that the dust has settled and he appears to have hung up the fedora and whip, it's time to rank all five films.
Temple of Doom (1984)
The confusing prequel/sequel to Raiders of the Lost Ark, Temple of Doom was a drastic change of pace for the franchise. It's understandable that Steven Spielberg wanted to find new enemies for Indiana Jones other than Nazis. This resulted in the extremely terrifying Thuggee cult being the antagonists of the film.
When the film soars, it soars. Ke Huy Quan made a name for himself as Short Round — I'm still upset that Dial of Destiny didn't bring him back — and the final 30 minutes are full of classic Indiana Jones hijinx.
The biggest issue is that a movie called Temple of Doom doesn't spend a lot of time in the titular temple. I appreciate a good slow burn, but the film really takes its time setting up the Thuggee cult. Once in the cult, the film also really rushes through (Indiana is only overtaken by the potion for a matter of minutes).
Overall, Temple of Doom should be applauded for trying something different. As future Indiana Jones installments would show, the series got comfortable with its aesthetic. At least it tried to be different, and that cold open in the restaurant is just so fun.
Kingdom of the Crystal Skull (2008)
I remember the excitement I had for Kingdom of the Crystal Skull. When it came out, I was just seven years old. I had grown up on the Indiana Jones films and could not wait to see Harrison Ford's long-awaited return to the fedora.
And it blew away seven-year-old me. A wide grin was sprawled across my face throughout the entire film, even when the fedora seemingly blew into Mutt's (Shia LaBeouf) hands.
In hindsight, I may have been too kind to the film. On one hand, there are some classic Indiana Jones moments in the film. The Hanger 51 opening is lots of fun and may be the best chase in the franchise.
There have always been supernatural elements in the Indiana Jones franchise. Perhaps leaning into aliens and unidentifiable objects was a misfire. Kingdom of the Crystal Skull did its best to retain the franchise's identity, but it ultimately missed the mark.
Dial of Destiny (2023)
15 years after Kingdom of the Crystal Skull, Dial of Destiny was released. That meant that Indiana Jones himself was also older (and grumpier). After giving Hugh Jackman's Wolverine a well-earned sendoff in Logan, James Mangold was hoping to do the same with Indiana Jones.
And he kinda did?
Look, I'm all for de-aging if it's used right. The Irishman, outside of one scene, did it pretty well. From the look of the trailers and stills released ahead of Dial of Destiny, it appeared they knocked it out of the park.
To be fair, Harrison Ford did look pretty good when standing still. The opening of Dial of Destiny goes back to World War II and features a train chase. It sure would have been nice to see the train, as the lighting was intentionally dim to hide the de-aging technology.
At least the filmmakers acknowledged Ford's physical limitations when it took place in the current day (1969). This isn't the same Indiana Jones who got dragged by a truck with his whip. Heck, he probably wouldn't be able to hang with Antonin Dovchenko (Igor Jijikine) from Kingdom of the Crystal Skull.
But at the end of the day, Dial of Destiny still largely felt like an Indiana Jones adventure. Bloated? Sure. Does the ending just go absolutely bonkers? Absolutely. At least it swung for the fences and gave Ford his well-earned sendoff.
The Last Crusade (1989)
Unlike Dial of Destiny, The Last Crusade opens with a train chase you can see. I always loved River Phoenix's portrayal of a young Indiana Jones. It resulted in a great chase and a heartwarming moment that led the character to where he is now.
While The Last Crusade did resort back to Nazis as its main antagonist, it featured the dynamic duo of Harrison Ford and Sean Connery, who plays Indiana's father, Henry Jones Sr. The two bicker like an old married couple, or more appropriately, father and son. It's a new dynamic for a franchise that usually revolved around Indiana and his love interest for the film.
Raiders of the Lost Ark (1981)
As a kid, I loved Raiders of the Lost Ark. Upon rewatching it, it dawned on me just how iconic the film is. The Indiana Jones franchise took the best parts of serialized Westerns and combined them with adventure films. It all began with Raiders of the Lost Ark.
From shootouts to a high-octane chase, Raiders of the Lost Ark has everything. The film is so iconic from the opening boulder chase to the “Why did it have to be snakes?” line.
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