“The Lost City”, an adventure comedy that expands the tradition of the genre

The Lost City (The Lost City) has a well-known but equally effective formula: two very different characters who are united by a great adventure, in a sexual tension that also has a lot of humor and several action scenes. These attractive ingredients together are carried out by a leading duo with a lot of chemistry and perfect timing. Although the spectator who enters the room may not know the history of cinema, all that tradition is what helps the Lost City know how to play the right strings.

Loretta Sage (Sandra Bullock) is a writer of successful romantic stories on a promotional tour. She is accompanied by the cover model of her books, Alan (Channing Tatum), who gives face and body to Dash, the protagonist of Sage's novels.

The presentation doesn't go quite well and Loretta doesn't have much affection for Alan, who is the center of attention of all the fans. But when Loretta is kidnapped by Fairfax (Daniel Radcliffe), an eccentric billionaire, Alan decides to go rescue her regardless of the consequences. For that he will ask for help from an adventurer named Jack Trainer (Brad Pitt) who will guide him through the jungle where the writer is.

Anyone who knows the cinema of the eighties will see a more obvious similarity to After the Lost Emerald (Romancing the Stone, 1984), directed by Robert Zemeckis and starring Michael Douglas and Kathleen Turner. In The Lost City there are a couple of quotes and tributes but, beyond that, both films have the tradition of the romantic comedy of entanglements within adventure films.

In all decades there have been examples of this type of cinema, and the box office has always accompanied it. A classic often imitated is, for example, John Huston's The African Queen (The African Queen, 1952), with Humphrey Bogart and Katharine Hepburn. And almost a remake of The African Queen is Jungle Cruise (2021) by Jaume Collet-Serra, with Dwayne Johnson and Emily Blunt. Again, humor, romance and jungle adventures.

For things to work it takes powerful chemistry between the protagonists, and The Lost City has two exceptional comedians. Sandra Bullock and Channing Tatum are impeccable in their roles and handle the genre perfectly. Now, if we think that in addition to those two stars, the film has Daniel Radcliffe, Harry Potter himself, as a villain, and if there is a long-haired Brad Pitt that resembles a parody of the adventurous hunks, then we have all the shine of a great Hollywood movie, something unusual these days.

Sandra Bullock, also producer of the film, announced that she would take some time after the release of The Lost City. This role and her special participation in Bullet Train (2022) will be the last thing we will see of her in the coming years. An extra reason to enjoy the acting talent and the natural way of making comedy of this true movie star.

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