The Lost City is one of the funniest movies of 2022 with stellar lead performances and comedy beats that just keep coming.
The Lost City hits theaters this weekend and at the surface it’s a regular action blockbuster but it is so much more, and completely blew me away. Though the story isn’t anything out of this world and hits the same basic tropes, the character writing, acting, and directing more than makes up for it.
Directed by Aaron and Adam Nee and starring Channing Tatum, Sandra Bullock, Daniel Radcliffe, and Brad Pitt, The Lost City follows a washed up author Loretta Sage. She writes about exotic places in her popular adventure novels that feature a handsome cover model, Alan. While on tour for her new book with Alan she gets kidnapped by a billionaire who hopes she can lead him to an ancient city for a lost treasure from her book.
Though this story sounds like a basic treasure hunt and action/adventure movie, the writing itself makes it really entertaining. The cast uses what they have in the story really well and Sandra Bullock’s performance as the lead is near perfect. While I don’t think there are any Oscar-worthy performances in this movie, each actor easily holds their own and all of them work really well together. It is clear they had a great time filming.
Speaking of the characters, Channing Tatum really surprised me in this movie. He plays one of the funniest characters I have seen in theaters ever. and my entire crowd was laughing any time he made a joke. Tatum and Pitt make a great comedic duo that I never knew I needed. Daniel Radcliff plays the villain, Abigail Fairfax, who is a billionaire that uses Bullock’s character to find the treasure. Yes, he is a very basic villain but once again his performance elevates the character to a whole new level. The dynamics between Bullock and Radcliff are great and although he isn’t very present in the second act, he is phenomenal in the first and third.
In comparison to other blockbuster action movies, The Lost City stands out because the humor always hits — which is very hard to do consistently throughout a film. This is primarily due to the perfect delivery by the actors. The Lost City also sets itself apart for the basic action-adventure-comedies visually. The effects in this movie are surprisingly great — from the city to the jungle — everything looks really vibrant.
One of the best things about this movie is that it isn’t reliant of big twists and turns. The script is done wonderfully and yes, it has its fair share of twists and turns, but not relying on those moments is a brilliant choice, and makes The Lost City really stand out from other films like it. It uses a basic action adventure mold, but has an underlying love story, and by the end that’s what it turns in to.
With that being said the movie isn’t perfect. The second half feels very jumbled after a slow first act filled with world and character development. Personally, I would much rather have a slower paced, character driven, story but I do like how this particular movie evolved over time. There was never a sudden jump between scenes and everything felt in place, allowing moments to breath, and the viewers to enjoy it for what it is.
As a whole The Lost City is a really good movie and it is easily the funniest movie of 2022, so far. The first half is a bit slower than my liking, but the second half embraces all of the craziness — making it the perfect balance of everything you would want in an action adventure movie. Don’t miss this one in theaters!
Rating: 4 out of 5
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About The Lost City
Reclusive author Loretta Sage writes about exotic places in her popular adventure novels that feature a handsome cover model named Alan. While on tour promoting her new book with Alan, Loretta gets kidnapped by an eccentric billionaire who hopes she can lead him to an ancient city’s lost treasure from her latest story. Determined to prove he can be a hero in real life and not just on the pages of her books, Alan sets off to rescue her.
The Lost City is in theaters now!
Aryan is an aspiring content creator and journalist who loves all genres of movies. He is passionate about discussing and having conversations about anything and everything pop culture related.