“Lost City” premiered March 25, 2022, and was met with mixed reviews. Not only is this a romantic-comedy, this film does much more than explore the themes of romance and comedy. It is an action/adventure film on the foundation of a Rom-com.

The film reflects another film, “Romancing the Stone.” Viewers can also see traces of “Raiders of the Lost Ark.” The action/adventure side of the story is straight up Indiana Jones. They’re hunting for an ancient treasure, and trying to beat the bad guys to it. 

Richard Lawson with VanityFair describes the film as “a big Hollywood spectacular in which two movie stars go to a far flung locale for a dangerous, sexy escapade,” gone wrong. Any character improvement or growth can be guessed from the beginning, if allowed at all. They specifically dig into Channing Tatum’s character. 

“[We’ve] seen this shtick from Tatum perhaps too many times before: the hunk who’s actually a guileless sweetheart, a dork in himbo packaging. His decency is so immediately telegraphed in the film that there’s no room for the happy surprise of a character turn,” Lawson wrote.

Other film reviews note on the things the film did right: “‘The Lost City’ may get dinged by some for being formulaic and silly, but it does many things well that are notable. It’s bright, both visually and atmospherically,” according to Abby Olcese at RogerEbert.com.

Warning: Spoilers ahead!

Lorretta Sage (played by Sandra Bullock) and Alan Caprison (played by Tatum) have an inevitable love story, but the plot does not just throw it in your face. It takes time to build a friendship and trust between the two characters. 

In the beginning, Sage wanted nothing to do with Caprison; he was only the model for the cover of her romance novels and nothing more. However, Caprison’s feelings were not the same as Sage’s. He had always admired Sage for her beautiful mind. So when Sage was kidnapped, Caprison dropped everything (other than his luggage) to save her. His reasoning (other than his major secret crush on her), he wanted to be more than a cover hero. Caprison wanted to be the hero of her real life too.

Abigail Fairfax (played by Daniel Radcliffe) kidnaps Sage after reading her novel and finding that she and her deceased archaeologist husband were studying to try and find this “Lost City” and the “Crown of Fire.” Fairfax, after buying the island that the “Lost City” was found on, decided that no matter the cost, he needed to have the “Crown of Fire.”

Caprison and Sage escaped into the jungle, then had to try to survive and fight off the kidnappers trying to apprehend Sage and kill Caprison. Sage, Caprison, Fairfax and guards finally discover the actual “Crown of Fire” is not actually worth any money. So as the large volcano on the island becomes active, Fairfax leaves Sage and Caprison to die.

In the end, Caprison and Sage escape and fall in love, Fairfax is locked up and Sage starts a new book that she can actually enjoy and be invested in. The film ties all of the loose ends up within the last 15 minutes.

All in all, this was a good film if you like cheesy, predictable Rom-coms. Though there were a couple of unexpected twists and turns, the jokes always hit, and they kept the story alive. Plus Channing Tatum’s Butt.