The action-adventure comedy film The Lost City hit theaters last March 25 and received generally positive reviews. The film is directed by Aaron and Adam Nee, who both co-wrote the screenplay with Oren Uziel and Dana Fox, from a story by Seth Gordon. The star-studded cast features Sandra Bullock and Channing Tatum with Daniel Radcliffe, Da’Vine Joy Randolph, and Brad Pitt in supporting roles. The plot follows author Loretta Sage who writes romance-adventure novels which feature a fictional hero named Dash, who is portrayed by cover model Alan Caprison. During her book tour, she is kidnapped by a billionaire convinced that the Lost City in her novels is real and Alan who learns about Loretta’s disappearance decides to rescue her. The chemistry between Bullock and Tatum in the film has garnered praise and in a review by Entertainment Weekly, they wrote, “But nothing in Lost City would really hang together without its main pair, whose chemistry movies like this inevitably live or die on. She’s a trademark Bullock heroine, forever vacillating between serene self-assurance and high anxiety; he’s like a happy Labrador, winning hearts and minds while heedlessly crashing into things.” If you enjoyed The Lost City as much as we did and you’re looking for the next adventure film to watch, here are five of our recommendations.
Jungle Cruise
Jungle Cruise is a 2021 American fantasy action-adventure film directed by Jaume Collet-Serra from a screenplay written by Glenn Ficarra, John Requa, and Michael Green. The film was produced by Walt Disney Pictures and is based on Walt Disney’s theme park attraction. The film shares similar humor with The Lost City and also features big stars, although Jungle Cruise keeps it safe with their jokes ensuring a family-friendly tone. The film stars Dwayne Johnson, Emily Blunt, Édgar Ramírez, Jack Whitehall, Jesse Plemons, and Paul Giamatti. The film follows Dr. Lily Houghton who asks help from captain Frank Wolff to take her to the Amazon in his small riverboat to find an ancient tree that is known to have healing powers. In their adventure, they must outrun a German expedition in search of the same tree. The Hindu published a review of the film praising its family-friendly entertainment. “It is good fun, an entertaining ride packed with monsters, magic and awful puns. Dwayne Johnson, as the steamboat captain Frank, makes terrible jokes and his chemistry with trouser-wearing botanist Lily (Emily Blunt) while not sizzling, is good natured and family-friendly. And he also has the sweetest jaguar for a pet.”
Jumanji: Welcome to the Jungle
The Lost City’s setting and humor are similar to the 2017 fantasy adventure comedy film Jumanji: Welcome to the Jungle. The film was directed by Jake Kasdan, co-written by Chris McKenna, Erik Sommers, Scott Rosenberg, and Jeff Pinkner, and stars Dwayne Johnson, Jack Black, Kevin Hart, Karen Gillan, Nick Jonas, and Bobby Cannavale. The film is a sequel to the 1995 film Jumanji starring Robin Williams which was based on the 1981 children’s book of the same name by Chris Van Allsburg. The film follows a group of trends who stumble upon the game Jumanji which is now a video game. In trying out the game, they are transported to the game as adult avatars who must complete a quest to finish the game and return home. The film received generally positive reviews and a sequel, Jumanji: The Next Level, was released in December 2019. Vanity Fair published a review of the film and praised the film saying, “Mostly, though, the film strikes a nice balance between serviceable, not-overly-slick action scenes—we’ve come a long way from those shoddily animated monkeys—and comedy that’s actually rooted in character, rather than cheap “do you recognize this?” references or worn-out stereotypes.”
The Mummy
Another action-adventure film worth watching is the 1999 American action-adventure film The Mummy written and directed by Stephen Sommers starring Brendan Fraser, Rachel Weisz, John Hannah, Kevin J. O’Connor, and Arnold Vosloo. The film follows a group of explorers in the Sahara Desert who accidentally let loose the terrors of a cursed Egyptian priest. The film received generally positive reviews and has two sequels, The Mummy Returns (2001) and The Mummy: Tomb of the Dragon Emperor (2008). There was also a reboot of the franchise which led to the 2017 film of the same name starring Tom Cruise. The Hollywood Reporter praised the action-packed film saying, “Still, there’s rarely a dull moment in Mummy, and Hannah, Fehr, Djalili, O’Connor and Bernard Fox (as a rummy Brit eccentric) hold their own with the special effects.
Tropic Thunder
The jokes in The Lost City are funny and the film was really entertaining but if you really want to laugh out loud, the 2008 action-comedy film Tropic Thunder should be on your list. The film was directed by Ben Stiller, who stars in the film and also co-wrote the screenplay with Justin Theroux and Etan Cohen. The cast features Jack Black, Robert Downey Jr., Jay Baruchel, Brandon T. Jackson, Tom Cruise, Nick Nolte, Danny McBride, Matthew McConaughey, and Bill Hader. The film follows a group of actors making a Vietnam War film. Their director claims to take a different strategy of capturing the scenes in a more realistic manner through hidden cameras by dropping the group of actors in the middle of the jungle to survive. The film is about making a film and it even creates parodies of several war films. The film received generally positive reviews despite some controversial issues and Downey was nominated for an Academy Award, a BAFTA Award, and a Screen Actors Guild Award, and received nominations for a Golden Globe Award together with Tom Cruise. Reelviews gave a glowing review of the film saying, “It’s good enough to get laughs and the flaws aren’t bigger than the stuff that works. Stiller shows no fear and throws in copious pop culture references that range from Star Trek (a clip from the episode “Arena”) to Close Encounters (a mound of heroin that looks like Devil’s Tower) to ‘N Sync. Tropic Thunder understands movies, understands the system in which they are created and, most of all, knows what it takes to make an audience roar with laughter.”
Pirates of the Caribbean
If you’re down for an adventure with a good storyline, the fantasy adventure film Pirates of the Caribbean: The Curse of the Black Pearl will be a treat. It is the first film in the Pirates of the Caribbean and it was directed by Gore Verbinski and stars Johnny Depp, Orlando Bloom, and Keira Knightley in lead roles. The plot centers on Captain Jack Sparrow who attempts to reclaim his ship by teaming up with blacksmith Will Turner as they rescue the governor’s daughter, Elizabeth Swann, from the cursed crew ship of the Black Pearl. The Curse of the Black Pearl was nominated for four other Academy Awards and BAFTAs and Depp won the Screen Actors Guild Award for Outstanding Performance by a Male Actor in a Leading Role and received nominations for Best Actor at the Academy Awards, BAFTAs, and Golden Globes. Empire raved about how entertaining the film is saying, “Pirates is a film that prides itself on lively detail and top-grade craftsmanship, but doesn’t take itself too seriously. That’s a lesson that nearly every one of its blockbuster rivals would do well to take on board. Audiences aren’t cajoled into feeling that they should be having fun; they simply are having fun because the movie is too.”
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