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Its the sight of Harrison Ford being overcome with emotion.
Helena asks Indy what he would do if he could go back in time and change one thing.
Ford plays the first part of the moment turned partly away from the camera.
When Indy admits he wishes to stay in the past, theres a desperation and brokenness to Fords delivery.
Fords long career earns a lot of adjectives, but powerful isnt the first that springs to mind.
He never seemed intent on knocking viewers over with emotional force.
The actor is bringing the same understated directness to the most recent phase of his career.
Its the death of an illusion.
The younger incarnation of Ford the movie star rarely presented himself this way.
And while they sometimes (briefly) broke down, they rarely fell apart.
They dont so much direct the waves of action as ride them.
EveryIndiana Jonesfilm ends with Indy witnessing a miracle that then passes, returning him to ordinary life.
Fords action-hero filmography is more about survival than winning.
Its about existing within limits and sneaking a little bit of goodness into a ruined world.
Theres only so much he can do.
This was the subtext of Fords career in his 30s, 40s, and 50s.
But the older Ford hero excavates this idea, polishes it up, and foregrounds it.
It was a timepiece all along.
The clock is running out for Indy, for Ford, for all of us.
Even if such things could happen, the script implies, they shouldnt.
Ford is the weathered face of this truth.
