Indiana Jones and the Dial of Destiny

A franchise that has been imitated numerous times has now resorted to copying itself with Indiana Jones and the Dial of Destiny, which — like its namesake — is showing its age.

The fifth adventure in the 42-year-old series is packed with nostalgic nuggets, from inside jokes and cameos, to Indy’s trademark fedora and bullwhip, to John Williams’ classic score.

However, the first Indiana Jones sequel since 2008 finds its eponymous explorer traversing a mostly familiar path. Harrison Ford brings a combination of grit and charm to his last go-around in the title role, which amounts to a cartoonish throwback with a handful of clever throwaway quips and modest thrills.

After an extended flashback, the story opens in 1969, with famed archaeologist Indy living alone as a semiretired college professor in New York. He’s reluctantly lured back into action in his 70s alongside his goddaughter, Helena (Phoebe Waller-Bridge), to reclaim an artifact with ties to the Ancient Greek mathematician Archimedes.

A former Nazi scientist (Mads Mikkelsen) is pursuing it, too, in part because of the device’s rumored power to alter time. He’s also harboring a grudge against Indy for an encounter decades earlier.

Accompanied by feisty teenage pickpocket (Ethann Isidore), Indy and Helena battle to keep the dial out of the wrong hands before it’s too late.

Traveling to Morocco, then Greece, and eventually to Sicily, Indy’s resilience and resourcefulness are tested as he navigates a maze of cloudy motives and shifting loyalties, including his own.

The central mystery is moderately intriguing, but the film is more compelling as a character study about Indy’s legacy, mortality, and reconciling with the past. The periphery characters are less memorable, with the exception of Mikkelsen’s menacing villain.

As directed by James Mangold (The Wolverine) — who takes over the franchise reins from Steven Spielberg — the latest installment obviously lacks the freshness of its decades-old predecessors. Still, it delivers some requisite thrills via the harrowing set pieces, including a squirm-inducing confrontation with scorpions in a narrow cave and an opening chase sequence aboard a train.

That scene uses digital de-aging technology for Ford’s character, which is visually convincing, although middle-aged Indy has the voice of an 80-year-old man. It’s neither a significant enhancement nor a distraction.

At any rate, with an absurdly convoluted final showdown, The Dial of Destiny is innocuous escapist fare primarily proving that Indy’s best days are behind him.

Rated PG-13, 154 minutes.