Harrison Ford explores ‘changes brought on by age’ in new Indiana Jones sequel

Madrid, Jun 27 (EFE).- In “Indiana Jones and the Dial of Destiny”, the latest instalment in the famous movie franchise which hits theaters on Wednesday, Harrison Ford embodies the legendary explorer for the fifth and last time in a story in which the actor explores “the changes in his life that are brought on by age.”

“The character has been developed over 40 years, we’ve had the opportunity to see him with different relationships which bring different aspects of his character to light and in this last of the films, I wanted to face the changes in his life that are brought on by age because there is no running away from it, that is the reality that you see on screen,” Ford told Efe in an interview at the Cannes Film Festival last month, where he presented the action movie with co-stars, Phoebe Waller-Bridge, Mads Mikkelsen, Boyd Holbrook, and director James Mangold.

The 80-year-old said that it was the fact screenwriters adapted Indiana Jones to the passage of time that sparked his interest.

“I found interest in the character developed by the screenwriters, interest from me to give emotional complexity to the character,” Ford added before confirming that this will be his last time as Indiana Jones.

It took nine months to shoot the movie in five different countries in the midst of the Covid-19 pandemic.

Set in 1969, Indiana Jones is about to retire from his teaching career when his goddaughter Helen Shaw (Waller-Bridge) suddenly appears in his life.

Together they embark on a trip around the world in search of the Archimedean Dial — a device capable of locating portals for time travel, an artifact that Nazi villain Jurgen Voller (Mads Mikkelsen) is also on the hunt for.

Along the way Indy meets old friends, like Egyptian archaeologist Sallah (John Rhys Davies), from “Raiders of the Lost Ark” (1981), and new ones such as fisherman Renaldo played by Antonio Banderas, and Helen’s associate Teddy, played by Ethann Isidore.

Marion Ravenwood (Karen Allen), with whom Indiana began a relationship in “Raiders of the Lost Ark” and who reappeared in “Indiana Jones and the Kingdom of the Crystal Skull” (2008) to marry the explorer, also features in the new action-packed adventure flick.

The fifth instalment saw Mangold at the helm of the movie for the first time, after Steven Spielberg directed the previous four movies.

“He’s a remarkable filmmaker. Working with him is unique. He’s very strong willed and clear about what he wants but he brings great energy,” Ford said of Mangold.

He wasn’t the only new addition to the team: Brit screenwriter and actor Waller-Bridge, well known for her series “Fleabag”, brought “brought a new energy and a modern understanding to the character and to the film,” according to Ford.

“It’s being able to step into a dream that you’ve had your whole life,” Waller-Bridge told EFE.

“I imagined myself in the Indiana Jones world as a child, as you do when you watch those movies, you go there. And to be able to actually ‘go there’ was something I never imagined for myself,” she added excitedly.

The sense of awe and excitement around the production was also echoed by Danish actor Mikkelsen, who said working on the movie provoked a blend of both happiness and the sense he was in the midst of a great challenge.

“I don’t know if there is a word that combines fear and excitement at the same time. It’s like the feeling in a roller coaster,” said Holbrook who plays Klaber, Voller’s sidekick in the movie.EFE

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