Indiana Jones and the Dial of Destiny (in theaters) 

Whether or not you want to watch “Indiana Jones and the Dial of Destiny” depends on why you like Indiana Jones movies in the first place. 

If you’re looking for the classic structure of the original movies, or want to see an old-school hero rendered painfully human, then this is definitely the movie for you. James Mangold is careful to make sure this movie feels a lot like “Raiders of the Lost Ark” or “Temple of Doom,” complete with street-level adventure, helpful kid sidekicks, and a MacGuffin with an interesting historical hook and just a touch of the supernatural. If you’re here for character depth, Ford plays Indy as a man who has been thoroughly broken by life and grief. It’s hard to watch, but it’s a fantastic performance. 

If you’re here for the fun sense of adventure that came with previous movies, however, you’re bound to be disappointed. Though the ending is wonderful, most of the movie is soaked in a lingering sense of grief and despair that sucks a lot of the joy out of it. Only Phoebe Waller-Bridge’s character has the zip of the series’ earlier entries, though she’s wrestling with her own demons and old griefs. For whole stretches of the film, it feels more like a funeral than an adventure. 

There’s even a ghost, though it’s a CGI one. The first section of the film is marred by a CGI-constructed young Indy, and though the technology isn’t bad its presence is still jarring. The limitations of the medium means that Indy can’t act like himself for whole stretches, and it feels less like a missing adventure than a puppet show. Please, Hollywood, next time just cast someone that looks like Harrison. If we can accept the Ark of the Covenant, we can definitely accept that. 

Grade: Three stars

Nimona (Netflix) 

The best movie opening this week isn’t in theaters. 

Based on a comic by ND Stevenson, “Nimona” is a fantasy adventure that manages to be both hilarious and heartbreaking at all the right moments. The world building is clever, the dialogue snaps, and the tense moments are painful in exactly the way they should be. At the heart of it is one of the most beautiful friendships I’ve seen recently in any kind of media, a bond between two lost souls that will reach through the screen and make you feel a little less alone yourself. 

In a fantasy future world where a wall keeps out all the monsters, Ballister Boldheart is a street-wise knight trained to help defend the city. When he’s framed for a horrible crime, he runs into a mysterious young girl who insists on being his sidekick. Can Ballister clear his name, or will he and Nimona accept their roles as the villains of the story?

It’s the most unusual movie opening this week, but it’s the kind of unusual that will work its way into your heart if you give it a chance. “Nimona” doesn’t have the kind of advertising budget that the big-screen movies do, but it’s the one you’ll want to watch again and again. 

Grade: Four stars

Jenniffer Wardell is an award-winning movie critic and member of the Utah Film Critics Association. Find her on Twitter at @wardellwriter or drop her a line at [email protected].