Starring: Sandra Bullock, Channing Tatum, Daniel Radcliffe, Brad Pitt, Divine Joy Randolph, and Oscar Nunez.
Directed By: Aaron and Adam May
Where I Watched It: Paramount Plus
English Audio Description Available?: Yes
Description Provided By: Paramount Plus absolutely refuses to let you watch credits. I was maybe 10 seconds into the credits when it sent me to Jackass The movie. Odd choice for a pairing.
The Plot: Did you see Romancing The Stone? Well… Sandra Bullock is an author who would much rather be writing books about history, but no one would read those, so she incorporates her knowledge into trashy romance novels that are a huge hit, due in part to her cover model (Tatum), who she assumes is an idiot. But when her newest book starts talking about the Lost City Of D, an aspiring villain (Radcliffe), with similar character motivations found in Frozen, and forces her to help him find the Lost City. After realizing this author he’s quite fond of has been kidnapped, that male model she brushed off teams up with a guy with a particular set of skills (Pitt) to track her down. Later, also her manager/agent (Randolph) also does the same, but all she got was Oscar Nunez. Not quite Brad Pitt, but he’s still pretty great.
What Works: The cast. There’s nothing tremendously original or remarkable about the film, but it does feature a likable cast just doing their thing. Brad Pitt is hilarious and very over the top. Tatum does a bit of his usual self deprecating humor later. But really, Randolph and Nunez steal the show in the few scenes they have. It’s a movie that asks you quite simply, do you like these actors? if so, you will like this film.
Aside from just the cast, it feels like we’ve been here before. Not terribly original, rather just a device used to get this cast on the big screen. For those that lament that there is no such thing as bankability in Hollywood, i would counter that this cast of bankable talent made a film that wasn’t based on a comic book, franchise, or whatever, and it made just shy of 100M domestically/ I’d sadly that’s proof that some actors are still quite bankable.
What Doesn’t Work: For some reason, I didn’t like Bullock in this, and I love her in everything. Her character is so stand off-ish that it becomes hard to empathize and connect. She’s just kind of outright rude to Tatum’s model for no discernible reason, when its clear that he’s going out of his way to be nice to her. She just wants the spotlight, and thinks he’s an idiot. It makes it hard to root for those two to end up together, or for anyone to save her. He’s like a cute little puppy that just keeps coming back to its angry owner. Why?
Couple that with the fact that Daniel Radcliffe’s villain just isn’t written well enough. I thought he did fine with what he was given, but he’s kind of boring as a villain in this. He’s been better when given the proper material.
The Blind Perspective: I had no major problems with this audio description other than Paramount Plus not allowing anyone to watch credits. IT’s kind of frustrating. I always check theADNA, but there wasn’t anything on this. Nevertheless, I’ll say it did good for a romantic adventure comedy.
Final Thoughts: Comparing it to another recent adventure title, I enjoyed uncharted a little more. This is fine, but I’d give a slight edge to Uncharted. Again, if you like the cast, you’ll probably enjoy this. If not, then don’t bother. This is a star vehicle crafted around the actors. The movie would not be remotely interesting with a different set of less interesting actors.
Final Grade: B
