Rent Romancing the Stone on Amazon Video (paid link)
Written by: Diane Thomas
Directed by: Robert Zemeckis
Starring: Michael Douglas, Kathleen Turner, Danny DeVito
Rated: PG [PG-13]
Watch the trailer
Plot
A mousy romance novelist sets off for Colombia to ransom her kidnapped sister, and soon finds herself in the middle of a dangerous adventure hunting for treasure with a mercenary rogue.
Verdict
A love story writer ends up an an adventure that seems straight out of one of her books. It has action, adventure, romance, and treasure. It feels like a romance novel, though granted a pretty good one, but romance novels follow a pattern and this movie succumbs to feeling generic. The plot is frequently aided by contrivance. This feels like something manufactured akin to a romance novel.
It depends.
Review
Romance author Joan Wilder (Kathleen Turner) really likes her own books, crying over the ending of her latest she just completed. She's a book worm and shut in. That changes when she gets a call from her sister who seems to be more wild. Sister has found trouble in Colombia, needing Joan to bail her out by bringing a package containing a map she mailed to Joan.
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| Kathleen Turner, Michael Douglas play Joan Wilder, Jack Colton |
Multiple people are after the package Joan brought with her, but she ends up lost. Joan is saved by an exotic bird smuggler, Jack Colton (Michael Douglas). She negotiates a deal for him to lead her to a village. She's living a real life romance novel; saved by a rugged adventurer in an exotic locale. She's completely unprepared for the jungle, naive about the situation she's in. He saves her multiple times as they make their way through the jungle. She doesn't like him, telling him as much and listing all of the bookish ideals she thinks a man should have. All of this despite his efforts.
They finally reach a village where Joan proves useful in a comical encounter with a local. They find a drug lord that has the only car in the village and happens to be a big fan of her books. Hostility instantly turns into friendliness as he loans his favorite author his car.
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| Kathleen Turner, Michael Douglas play Joan Wilder, Jack Colton |
During this adventure Joan and Jack seem to fall for each other, but we wonder if his ultimate goal is the treasure map. He convinces her to find the treasure first to increase their leverage. They follow the map but encounter trouble along the way and are eventually separated. Joan still has the map and plans to trade it for her sister. She hopes Jack will show up, but she has doubts.
The big finale includes military police, smugglers, and alligators. Jack indeed shows up to Joan's relief. Everyone wants the treasure. Of course the protagonists come out on top, but Jack leaves Joan to chase the treasure. This feels like a romance novel, and whether that's a benefit depends on your perspective. It's fun enough, providing action and comedy in addition to the romance to keep it lively.
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