The Bite Magazine - Spring/Summer 2022 - Issue 31

THE LOST CITY Giedre Jackyte reviewed the highly anticipated action-comedy The Lost City and found the movie sparkly, gorgeous and frivolous like its lead star’s jumpsuit. bitefilmreview A t the beginning of 2022, director siblings Aaron and Adam Nee brought a new, highly anticipated action rom-com, The Lost City, to the screen. The film stars Sandra Bullock, Channing Tatum and Daniel Radcliffe, with Brad Pitt making a cameo appearance. Filming took place in the Dominican Republic and premiered at the South by Southwest film festival, followed by the Paramount Pictures theatrical release in the United States in March and the UK in April. Loretta Sage (Sandra Bullock) is a reclusive author and an ex-ar- chaeologist who became emotionally unavailable after her hus- band (fellow archaeologist) passed away. She found it difficult to contin- ue writing her romance-adventure novels, centred around a fictional hero named Dash McMahon, por- trayed by cover model Alan Capris- on (Channing Tatum). If that wasn’t enough, Loretta also imagined her- self as the hero in her books. However, she doesn’t seem to be en- joying her romances. She lacks the enthusiasm to complete the writing as she distracts herself by drinking Sauvignon Blanc with ice in the bath or blankly staring at the laptop screen. One thing is for sure; she would rather spend her days alone in the house than think about a new novel. Despite her desperate resist- ance, she is forced by her publicist, Beth (Da’Vine Joy Randolph), to complete the book. In addition to not enjoying writing her book, Loretta finds it challeng- ing to connect with her audiences after her publicist forces her to em- bark on a book tour with Alan. It also doesn’t help that Beth insists Loretta wear a bright pink sequinned jumpsuit so tight that it forces her to shuffle around, making her even more uncomforta- ble during the tour. It is also clear that the novelist does not think highly of her readers, referring to them as cheesy and unintellectu- al. On the other hand, Alan, now the public face of Loretta’s hunky creation, feels like a fish in the water and seems to be enjoying the book tour more than her. He shows up wearing his signature blonde Fabio wig, unbuttoned white shirt and super-tight trousers, becoming the main attraction of the stories. Considering Dash only exists in real life as Alan, the cover boy for the books and subsequent media tours and gen- erally hounded by thirsty fans, his dedication to the role mildly repulses Loretta. During her book signing, he answers questions as if he had a hand in writing her work before promptly ripping off his shirt. Thus, Alan becomes the physical manifestation of her self-loathing. After the chaotic reading, Loretta is forcefully taken by eccen- tric billionaire Abigail Fairfax (Daniel Radcliffe)’s henchmen. He thinks the writer can help him track down some treasure since she based her books on actual historical research with her late hus- band. Fairfax has discovered a lost city on a remote Atlantic island and is convinced this is the exact location of the ‘Crown of Fire’, a priceless treasure. When Loretta declines to help him decipher an an- cient map to the prize, Fairfax, who fears the site will be destroyed by an active volcano, kidnaps Loretta and takes her to the island. As we later find out, Alan is secretly in love with Loretta and witnesses her kidnapping. He recruits Jack Trainer (Brad Pitt), an ex-Navy SEAL turned CIA operative, to meet him at the island and coordinate a rescue attempt. With no assistance from Alan, Jack breaches Fairfax’s compound and frees Loretta (I must say, this is one of the best extraction scenes in a rom-com I’ve seen in a long time). Mesmerised, she asks Jack: “Why are you so handsome?” He replies, “My dad was a weatherman.” He is shot in the head soon after. Despite the shock, Loretta and Alan are forced to run for their lives into the jungle on their own. The charming yet dimwitted Alan and the uptight Loretta must now work together to escape Abigail and his henchmen. As you’d expect, things don’t go according to plan. The two escapees spend a day fighting off Fairfax’s henchmen be- fore reaching a nearby village. Upon hearing a folk song from a local, Loretta deduces that the crown is hidden in a sinkhole. The pair are kidnapped again and forced to share the treasure’s location with Fairfax. Upon reaching the area, they discover the tomb of a queen, whose ‘Crown of Fire’ was made of red seashells gathered by her husband, who is buried with her; the actual treasure of the legend wasn’t a priceless jewel but the inseparable love between the king and queen. Infuriated, Fairfax forces them into the tomb as the volcano erupts,