Popular author Loretta Sage (Bullock) is stuck in a rut, churning out romance novels and struggling with writer’s block after her husband’s death. She embarks on a promotional tour with Alan (Tatum), the cover model for her adventure books. After a presentation, Loretta is kidnapped by a billionaire adventurer (Daniel Radcliffe) who believes she can lead him to the Lost City from her novels.
Daniel Radcliffe as Abigail in a still from “The Lost City”
Hollywood’s trend of ironic reinterpretation has gone too far, seemingly devolving into unsuccessful parody. “The Lost City,” the new project from Paramount and former indie directors the Nee brothers (“Band of Robbers”), suffers a similar fate. While casting 90s and 2000s star Sandra Bullock in the lead role was a smart move, the creators seem to have lost sight of their original goal. The result is an overindulgent focus on the actress in a fuchsia sequined jumpsuit, predictability, stale jokes, and a general weariness with the genre (and life).
Sandra Bullock as Loretta in a still from “The Lost City”
Plot and Parallels
The plot makes no secret of its borrowing from Robert Zemeckis’ “Romancing the Stone,” lifting the entire framework, including the romance novelist (Kathleen Turner), and dusting it with outdated modernity. Running from mercenaries in the jungle is not the same as sitting behind a laptop – that’s the truth. The team of screenwriters (in the best traditions of unsuccessful films, there are five of them) is eager to repeat the same jokes ad nauseam, admire Channing Tatum’s manhood with euphemisms, and give the main antagonist, magnate Abigail Fairfax, a gender-neutral name instead of borrowing a few details from Roman Roy of “Succession.”
Cameos and Target Audience
The crowning glory is Brad Pitt, who pops in for a five-minute cameo as a yoga instructor and ex-special forces operative. Who the target audience for such surprises is, even the authors don’t know: those who haven’t forgotten Zemeckis (30 and up), the TikTok generation, or fans of “Magic Mike” and “Harry Potter.”
Channing Tatum as Alan in a still from “The Lost City”
Character Dynamics
Volunteering to save Loretta, cover star Alan (a reference to Tatum’s own modeling past) goes through the trials of fear, misunderstanding, and ignorance of Latin before finally falling in love with the heroine and realizing that she is not as grumpy as she seemed before. The central duo pulls out all the stops to be memorable in any way possible, from scraping leeches off intimate areas to Latin American dances. Both are quite organic, but only a few can explore the same tropes as hundreds of rom-com heroes before them in an original way, and the actors are primarily let down by the script.
Performances
Radcliffe is comical, but within limits. Bullock manages to be relaxed and natural on screen. Over her impressive filmography, she has worked with countless screen partners, has not lost her “star power,” and has retained her sensitivity to comedy since “Miss Congeniality.” According to the actress herself, “The Lost City” may be her last film before retiring from cinema, which would be a very обидным and undeserved farewell.
Visuals and Overall Impression
Another depressing aspect is the film’s graphics. Following Marvel’s trends and shooting projects as quickly as possible, the directors arranged the beauties of the Amazon during post-production, which makes the events evaporate at the speed of a low-quality video game. Don’t judge a book by its cover, judge it by the model on the cover, the authors ask. However, neither the charisma of Bullock and Tatum, nor the tiring self-irony can justify the 1:50 runtime of a familiar attraction, shaky and not at all exciting.