The commercials for this looked cute, as did Sandra Bullock when she’s on shows talking about Channing Tatum’s butt. But we’ve all been fooled by trailers that looked great, and the fear you have going in is that this could be something like Tomb Raider, Six Days, Seven Nights, Fool’s Gold, The Mummy, or any number of goofy adventures. And while this might not be as good as Romancing the Stone, it reminded me of those ‘80s movies that were a lot of fun; just as Uncharted did last month (which this is similar to in a few ways).
I am a bit bothered by the age difference, as Bullock is 15 years older than Tatum. It’s hard enough for older actors to get good parts in movies once they’re over 50 (oh come on, I was just joshin’ with that last paragraph).
They have a wonderful chemistry together, as do all the characters in this movie. And it’s a blast that the supporting cast is so much fun.
Loretta Sage (Bullock) writes cheesy romance novels that feature a Fabio-esque model on the cover named Allan (Channing Tatum). Fans call him Dash, the name of the male lead in the books.
Her publisher/publicist Beth (Da’Vine Joy Randolph, who is blast) is trying to push her to do a book tour she has no interest in doing. They make her wear sexy outfits she’s not comfortable in (“I have a wedgie in the back…and the front”), with appearances by Allan, in which she complains “There’s always a point during these where his shirt comes off.”
Abigail Fairfax (Daniel Radcliffe, who did an underrated rom-com 10 years ago called What If) is a rich guy who kidnaps her. He’s convinced that because she and her late husband were archeologists, she’ll be able to figure out some writing that he believes is a map to a tomb in a lost city that will bring him riches.
Allan wants to rescue her, and calls Jack Trainer (Brad Pitt) for help. The confusion over his name might not be the most original joke ever, but it’s done brilliantly here by how it’s written, and Da’Vine Randolph’s facial expressions.
Pitt is only a year older than Bullock, so they’re closer in age, and who can blame Loretta for having eyes for him over Allan? So who will win her heart on this rescue mission? It’s a blast when you find out how that turns out.
It was great to see comedian Patti Harrison, who was so good last year in the romantic comedy Together Together (Ed Helms) as a social media promoter.
There’s a terrific role for Oscar Nunez (The Office), who steals his scenes. He’s a wacky pilot, who made me laugh more than any pilot since the hippie pilot in the movie Kevin Costner says was the best he’s ever done (and I tend to agree) – Fandango in 1985.
And while I’ve complained about movies the last few years trying so hard to give us classic rock needledrops, the songs in this were used perfectly. Mostly it was for comedic purposes – hearing the hair/metal band Europe song “Final Countdown” a few times when Allan shows up to be the hero…or Pat Benetar’s “Shadows of the Night” as Brad Pitt and Tatum roll Bullock out in slow motion while she’s tied to a chair with her high heels poking out like a jouster’s stick…or Allan having his earbuds in and blasting Tone Loc’s “Funky Cold Medina.” During a more serious scene, we hear the great Nick Cave song “Red Right Hand.” I did feel there was a moment we could have heard CCR’s “Run Through the Jungle” but hey, you can’t have everything.
Some of the double entendres didn’t quite work, but most of the jokes did (one of them about kegels made me laugh for a solid two minutes).
Who cares that some things in this are utterly ridiculous and not the least bit believable. We go to movies to have a good time for a few hours, and that’s what you get with this.
3 stars out of 5.