This is another eighties movie that I saw recently. Ironically, however, I had never actually seen it in the eighties, when it came out. That said, I do remember the song.
As I think I mentioned in an earlier blog, particularly one about one of the Indiana Jones books, lately I have been in the mood for Indiana Jones. And some point recently, I was watching that television series, Best of the 80's, I think it's called, and they mentioned this movie in particular. It seemed that it was portrayed as an Indian Jones knock off, for all intents and purposes. It was also apparently more sexually suggestive than Indiana Jones, although the movie as a whole was supposed to be more watered down.
So, I wanted to see for myself.
I went ahead and ordered the movies (Romancing the Stone, and the sequel, Jewel of the Nile), in order to judge for myself.
Overall after watching the movie, I had to agree with those assessments. It is kind of a rip off of Indiana Jones (they make it different, yet there are enough similarities so that you know what they were aiming for), and it is more watered down, and runs more along comedic lines. Not that that is necessarily a bad thing..But it should be noted for all those who would simply dismiss it as a rip off, that it was in fact written by Diane Thomas years before Indiana Jones came out, to it's credit. It just comes across as a lighthearted Indiana Jones, because it obviously aims for the same kind of adventure sense, with a male hero figure, Jack Colton, that seems in the mold of his seeming alter ego, Indiana Jones.
Joan Wilder is a successful novelist (played very nicely by Kathleen Turner) who is a hopeless romantic. She wants adventure, and she wants the dashing hero type of guy, a sort of knight in shining armor, to come and rescue her. But she seems stuck in a rut, living a life that centers strictly on writing about excitement and romance that is actually absent in her real life.
All of that changes, however, in a hurry. Her sister's husband was evidently murdered in Columbia, and we find out why early on in the movie, when Joan receives a package that she does not immediately open. She takes it with her when meeting her publisher, but when she comes back to her apartment, she finds it has been ransacked. She then gets a call from her sister, telling her that she needs her to come to Columbia to give the map to her captors, who are threatening her with physical violence. Inside of the package, of course, is an antique treasure map.
Once at the airport, she needs to take a bus to Cartagena, but she is misled by a man who knows who she is and what she has with her. He wants the treasure map, and waits for his opportunity, knowing that he will get it, since he has directed her well into the Columbian rain forest. the bus gets in an accident, crashing into the parked vehicle of Jack Colton, who is played very capably by Michael Douglas. I like Michael Douglas, but this was one of the first movies that I saw where he shows a better range of acting, and does not appear to be the same character as he is in every other movie that I have seen of him.
The man with the bad intentions decides to take his chance and holds her up, but Jack Colton happens by, and he and the man get in a gunfight, which Jack wins. From that point onward, Jack essentially saves Joan - for a price. He has demanded $375 for the deed, and seems to be helping her. Yet, although there is an attraction between them, there is an underlying tension (of course). Jack hardly seems like the hero type to her, yet he is exciting, and she finds herself attracted.
In the meantime, however, Jack finds out about the map, and begins to secretly plan to make some kind of a move to make a run at the treasure.
In the meantime, the gang that is holding Joan's sister has dispatched Ralph (played by a much younger Danny Devito) to see if he can intercept Joan, and obtain the map. He keeps almost catching up to them, and almost getting his hands on the map, but not quite.
Finally, in their quest to get back to the city of Cartagena, Jack notices that they seem to be right by where the map has revealed the treasure to be. Behind a waterfall, they find it - a beautiful and gigantic gem that will have them living large for the rest of their life.
They make it back to a city, and that is where the two will part. By then, they have become a couple, but it seems they are still reluctant to reveal to each other the extent of how they feel for one another.
Yet, they will be reunited. When Joan finally gets to Cartagena and is contacted by the gang holding her sister, she goes to this old, abandoned fortress, and finds her sister in captivity. She gives them the map, and they give her and her sister their freedom. Yet, just as they are walking away, Jack Colton shows up, with a gun at his back. The corrupt police have gotten him, and they demand the map. That is when the showdown, and the biggest adventure of the movie, really begins!
It can be entertaining. Yet, it also has a definitive, goofy eighties movie feel to it. Not a bad movie, but just don't expect Indiana Jones. This is very different, but stands on it's own as decently entertaining.
No comments:
Post a Comment