Line #21 Film/TheLostCity


1	[[quoteright:350:https://static.tvtropes.org/pmwiki/pub/images/e0265720_17b1_4b56_9024_ebe0d1e88afb.jpeg]]
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3	''The Lost City'' is a romantic adventure comedy from directors Aaron and Adam Nee (''Film/BandOfRobbers''). It stars Creator/SandraBullock (who also produces), Creator/ChanningTatum, Creator/DanielRadcliffe, Creator/DaVineJoyRandolph, and Creator/BradPitt.
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5	Bullock stars as Loretta Sage, the bereaved middle-aged writer of a series of popular adventure novels who finds herself kidnapped by eccentric billionaire Abigail Fairfax (Radcliffe) who believes that one of the lost cities she has written about is real and is determined to find it. Meanwhile, Alan (Tatum), the cover model for her books, seizes the opportunity to become a real hero and sets off to rescue her, with some help from ex-Navy SEAL Jack Trainer (Pitt). Loretta's overworked publicist and friend Beth Hatten (Randolph) is on their trail as well.
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7	The film released in theaters on March 25, 2022.
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9	----
10	!!Tropes:
11	* ActorAllusion:
12	** This isn't the [[Film/NowYouSeeMe2 first time]] Creator/DanielRadcliffe played an eccentric billionaire who press-gangs the protagonist into aiding in his schemes.
13	** Similarly, Creator/BradPitt’s character is introduced eating snacks on the go [[Film/OceansEleven like a certain Las Vegas robber]]
14	* ActionSurvivor: Played with in case of Alan. He's young and brash, but also completely unprepared and Loretta openly has to remind him few times that he's not Dash, the fictional character he's modeling for. Whenever put into some high-octane action, Alan is mostly just getting by - best exemplified when he tags along with Jack Trainer and is barely above bystander in the whole operation.
15	* AdvertisedExtra: Brad Pitt as Jack Trainer was featured in the trailers as Loretta's primary rescuer. He succeeds in getting her out of immediate danger [[spoiler:but is then shot in the head and not seen again until the mid-credits stinger, having somehow survived.]]
16	* AffectionateParody: Of both the action-adventure pulp ''and'' adventure romance novels.
17	* AgeGapRomance: Loretta is in her mid-50s, while Alan is no older than 40 (Channing Tatum's age during filming) and could very well still be in his 30s.
18	* AlwaysSomeoneBetter: While attempting to rescue Loretta, Alan hires ex-Navy SEAL Jack Trainer, who is much better equipped to do the job than him.
19	* AmbiguouslyBi: Alan likes Loretta but he is also amazed to see Jack Trainer.
20	* ApatheticCitizens: The movie points out that the volcano only is endangering the southern side of the island, but it's established that within a day's walking distance from the danger area there's a village where things are evidently so laid back they're having a festival. Air traffic is also still coming into the airport of an island with an active volcano. In reality, the entire island would be under watch even on the slight chance the volcano erupts in an unexpected way.
21	* ArtisticLicenseGeography: Isla Hundida is said to be located in the middle of the North Atlantic, despite being shown to have a tropical climate and be covered with jungles, and that the island is only accessible by puddle jumper from [[https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Guyana Guyana]], all of which would place it nearer to the equator.
22	* AutobotsRockOut: Alan going to Loretta's rescue in a scooter is scored by "The Final Countdown".
23	* BlatantLies: Abigail constantly keeps telling Loretta how friendly and cozy their work together is, even after already kidnapping and mistreating her.
24	* BloodyHilarious: [[spoiler:Alan's distress over being splattered with Jack's blood is very PlayedForLaughs.]]
25	* BoomHeadshot: [[spoiler:Jack Trainer is suddenly shot in the head by Julian. TheStinger shows he somehow survived.]]
26	* BrainlessBeauty: Alan appears to be this at first, but once they get to the jungle he shows he's [[CrouchingMoronHiddenBadass not as useless as he appears]].
27	* BrokenHeel: By the time Loretta comes down the cliff [[spoiler: where their car has fallen]], one shoe has lost its stiletto, so she breaks the other off.
28	* CallBack: [[spoiler: When their car crashes down a ravine and they get down to it for supplies that might survive]], Alan picks up a torn-off front doors. Loretta mocks him if he plans to pick all the other pieces and maybe try to reassemble them together. Much later, when [[spoiler: using her sequined jumpsuit as a bait for mooks on bikes]], Loretta picks the pieces torn off it, to which Alan asks if she plans to put them back together.
29	* ChekhovsSkill: Alan met Trainer on a relaxation retreat where he learned various breathing exercises, which he uses at least twice to help Loretta calm herself when she's frightened.
30	* ChekhovsVolcano: They point out the volcano, so you know it's gotta erupt sometime.
31	* ClosestThingWeGot: Abigail would rather work with Loretta's husband, a well-known archaeologist and researcher, but has to settle on her due to the man being dead for five years. Downplayed, as Loretta used to work as an archaeologist herself and has related set of skills and education to handle the translation - she's just not as good as her husband would be.
32	* ContrivedCoincidence: The volcano erupts pretty much the moment they find the crown.
33	* ConvenientlyPreciseTranslation: Subverted and discussed. When Loretta figures out the script she's given by Fairfax, she roughly describes the meaning of the glyphs, informing him that without a broader context and few more signs she can't do much more and that it's most likely a metaphor anyway. He has none of it and orders her to "translate it again", with threat of violence. [[spoiler: Much later, Loretta uses another piece of the script ''and'' consult a local about the folklore to finally figure out the location of the treasure]].
34	* CoolCar: Abigail trundles through the jungle in an armored truck fitted out with a luxurious interior complete with minibar.
35	* {{Cosplay}}: Alan is the official body model (and cover model) for the fictional character Dash [=McMahon=]. This includes performing in a wig.
36	* DamselInDistress: Both played straight and subverted. Loretta is kidnapped at the start of the movie and rescued by Trainer and Alan. Later Fairfax points his gun at Alan and says that Loretta has to crawl through a tunnel or Alan gets shot. As Loretta clambers up into the tunnel a stunned Alan says "Wait a second, ''I'm'' the damsel in distress?"
37	* DeadStarWalking: [[spoiler: There's a reason Creator/BradPitt isn't billed with the other two stars.]]
38	* DeathByMocking: [[spoiler:Alan stumbles on a narrow ledge, leading Julian to mock him. Julian then immediately slips off the ledge and falls to his death.]]
39	* DecoyProtagonist: Double subverted. Alan seems to be superseded by the super competent Trainer... [[spoiler: until Trainer gets shot, leaving Loretta and Alan to their romantic hijinks. TheStinger shows that Trainer survived, though...]]
40	* DisneyVillainDeath: [[spoiler:Julian]] slips in a cave and tumbles into the misty depths.
41	* TheDragon: Julian, Fairfax's most competent and relied-upon henchman, essentially serves as this for him.
42	* DueToTheDead: Abigail dismissively notes that Rafi thinks digging all over his home island to steal a queen's crown is disrespectful to his culture and ancestors. When the group actually finds her tomb, Rafi's forced to help open the coffin at gunpoint and immediately says, [[ForcedIntoEvil "Sorry, Abuela."]] [[spoiler:Being forced to shut Alan and Loretta in the tomb where they'll most likely die as well is his last straw, so he furtively dops his crowbar into the tomb for them to use and [[TheDogBitesBack steals Abigail's boat when the island's volcano starts erupting]] yelling, "You wanted to own the island, but [[MoneyIsNotPower the island will own you]]!"]]
43	* EmptyBedroomGrieving: A variant, with Loretta keeping her late husband's office closed, the way he left it when he died.
44	* EveryoneHasStandards: Rafi might be a hired muscle, but he shows great care about both his home island and is uneasy about all the abuse Fairfax put Loretta and Alan through. [[spoiler: Ultimately he just bails on his boss, leaving him stranded, while also leaving behind a crowbar for Alan and Loretta, allowing them to escape, too]].
45	* EvilBrit: Abigail Fairfax, obviously.
46	* EvilCannotComprehendGood: Fairfax cannot imagine that [[spoiler: the ancient queen would value a love gift of a crown of shells over a crown of rubies or gold.]]
47	* EvilIsHammy: Creator/DanielRadcliffe definitely knows how to chew through the scenery.
48	* FamilyThemeNaming: All three of the Fairfax brothers have first names that are more commonly given to women. But while Leslie and Beverly used to be mostly masculine before picking up popularity as female names, Abigail has always been a exclusively a female given name, regardless of Abigail Fairfax's protestations to the contrary.
49	* FanDisservice: Seeing Alan's butt wouldn't normally fall under this, but when it's covered with leeches...
50	* FauxAffablyEvil: Abigail tries to be cordial and friendly, but it's merely a surface-level façade of a massive jerk with lots of daddy issues he unloads on random people.
51	* {{Foil}}: Jack is a foil to Alan. Whereas Alan portrays a swashbuckling adventurer and wears a wig to do so, Jack is an actual swashbuckling adventurer with real, flowing golden locks.
52	* GenderBlenderName: Abigail Fairfax, who insists that his name is gender neutral. He has brothers named "Leslie" and "Beverly".
53	* GenreSavvy: Alan, who is well-versed in adventure romance series he's modelling for. And despite Loretta insistence that ThisIsReality, at least some of those things end up working pretty well.
54	* GenreThrowback: The film has been described as a throwback to '80s adventure movies, with ''Film/RomancingTheStone'' being the most often cited due to its near-identical premise.
55	* GentlemanAdventurer: Abigail Fairfax is the son of a media mogul and is obsessed with lost civilizations' treasures and monuments (albeit for entirely selfish reasons). He also made an attempt to raise the ''Titanic'' in the past. His efforts have never been successful, and it's implied people see him as a joke.
56	* TheGhost: Fairfax's brother is frequently mentioned but never seen.
57	* HeelFaceTurn: [[spoiler:When Fairfax orders Rafi to bury Loretta and Alan in a stone tomb after realizing that there was no treasure, Rafi secretly slips his crowbar into the tomb so Alan can pry the stone open to allow them to escape.]]
58	* HiddenDepths: While he sure can be and act dumb, Alan isn't a BrainlessBeauty. He has the foresight to bring more practical shoes for Loretta to wear and knows what kind of cheese she likes. He has various useful hobbies and skills and when situation calls for it, can improvise solutions. He gets over his embarrassment at being a cover model when he realizes how much happiness playing his character brings to people.
59	* HisNameReallyIsBarkeep: Jack Trainer, who was Alan's meditation trainer.
60	* HighHeelHurt: Loretta is being kidnapped while wearing a pair of stilettos. Alan brings a pair of "jungle boots" with him, foreseeing that her legs and feet will be in pain and when Loretta points out those ''still'' have high heels, he mentions that it's actually the best he could scramble from Allison's closet before leaving.
61	* HopeSpot:
62	** At the first stop of Loretta's book tour, she's bored by all the middle-aged housewives that just want to ogle Alan, so she picks a young woman in thick glasses who looks like she might actually have an intelligent question... but it turns out she's just as thirsty as the others.
63	** Jack Trainer has proven his absolute badass skills by defeating multiple {{mooks}} with Alan trailing behind unhelpfully and then safely rescuing Loretta. They'll surely escape now, right? [[spoiler: Cue BoomHeadshot.]]
64	** Alan and Loretta escape Fairfax's men and make their way to a town, where they contact the police [[spoiler:only for the police to contact Fairfax, who shows up and takes Loretta hostage a second time.]]
65	* IDidntMeanToKillHim: Loretta and Alan [[spoiler:react in horror when a trap they set for one of the mooks chasing them on a motorcycle causes him to crash into another mook and run them both off a cliff to their certain death. They try to rationalize that they weren't actually responsible for those deaths, claiming that it was their faults for "being mean on a motorcycle".]]
66	* IShouldWriteABookAboutThis: While it's hard to tell which one is it, the film ends up with Loretta either rewriting the ending of her latest book or publishing a completely new one.
67	* ImpracticallyFancyOutfit: Loretta's sequined jumpsuit and high heels. It's awkward and uncomfortable from the very beginning, and trying to flee through the jungle makes things even worse.
68	* InstantLeechJustFallInWater: Alan runs afoul of this after fleeing Fairfax's {{Mooks}} in a river, with leeches covering his lower back that Loretta has to peel off of him. Later, Rafi and a couple other goons follow their trail through the water and while doing so pick leeches off themselves much more casually.
69	* IsThisAJoke: Loretta initially believes that she's part of a hidden camera prank show set up by her publicist for her book tour when Abigail has two of his men kidnap her and ask for her help to find the Crown of Fire.
70	* JadedWashout: Loretta considers herself to be the case, for her academic career went nowhere, then she was reduced into writing trashy romance novels and ''then'' she got burned out by doing that. And somewhere along the way, her husband died, something she's unable to move on from. As various characters point out, she's much better than she thinks, but actively chooses to sulk in a corner.
71	* KilledMidSentence: [[spoiler: Jack Trainer has just pulled off a spectacular rescue of Loretta from the compound, and is in the middle of putting on the charm as he unties her from the chair, when a rifle bullet turns his head into PinkMist. Later subverted when TheStinger reveals that Jack somehow survived, presumably by RuleOfFunny]].
72	* LampshadeHanging:
73	** Loretta's ImagineSpot at the beginning of the movie, which has her picturing herself and Alan enacting scenes from her book as she writes them, lampoons the usual DeathTrap in an abandoned temple tropes of these kinds of movies. Specifically, they question how so many deadly snakes are just living in the temple waiting for them despite having nothing to feed on, and also how they seem to be deliberately avoiding the villain and his {{Mooks}} for no reason. Loretta eventually decides this is ridiculous and rewrites the scene.
74	** When [[spoiler:Fairfax is arrested]], he's asked why he was trying to run since they're on a boat and he couldn't possibly have gone anywhere.
75	* MacGuffin: The Crown of Fire.
76	* {{Malaproper}}: Alan mangles about a dozen words over the course of the film.
77	* MotiveRant: Subverted. Abigail ''tries'' to give one after recapturing Loretta, but Alan suddenly shows up and interrupts.
78	* MrFanservice: Alan serves this role InUniverse as a fashion model for Loretta's book covers. Also applies when we get to see Channing Tatum's bare bottom.
79	* NakedPeopleAreFunny: Leeches attach to Alan. To the point he needs to take off his pants, making Loretta very uncomfortable.
80	* NewMediaAreEvil: Allison, the young assistant to handle Loretta's social media, is highly cynical and [[LackOfEmpathy has the empathy of a cinder block]]. While Loretta ends up being kidnapped and first Alan and then Beth go for a rescue, Allison is busy posting superfluous and obviously ghost-written posts, full of [[invoked]] [[EngineeredHashtag #Engineered Hashtags]].
81	* NoCelebritiesWereHarmed: Alan's appearance when he's modeling for Loretta's books resembles that of Fabio, with the long blond hair and unfastened shirt fronts. Abigail even calls him Fabio at one point.
82	* PoliceAreUseless: Played for laughs. By the time Beth manages to finally get two beat cops to inform them about Loretta's kidnapping, Alan and Jack Trainer have already broke her out of Fairfax clutches. The cop duo is quite openly dismissive to the whole issue and once Beth tries to threaten them, they just blow her off, telling her it's outside their jurisdiction anyway if it happens outside the city, not to mention country.
83	* PushyGunTotingVillain: Fairfax slowly becomes this the closer they get to the treasure, though only after most of his henchmen get taken out of the picture and he's forced to actually do a lot of the work himself. He later becomes a full-blown PGTV when they discover [[spoiler: that the Crown of Fire was actually a headpiece made of seashells, and the treasure was the love between the king and queen of the island.]] Fairfax then [[spoiler: forces Loretta and Alan into the tomb]] at gunpoint.
84	* RelationshipUpgrade: Loretta and Alan get ''two'': from colleagues [[FireForgedFriends to friends]] and from friends to a romantic relationship.
85	* RomanceCoverScene: Alan's job is to model for those and also being the official model during fan meetings. We get few glimpses of the covers he's on and they all follow the stereotypical design.
86	* RunningGag:
87	** People commenting on Loretta's tacky outfit from the book tour that she's stuck with for half the movie.
88	** Jack Trainer being backed by theme songs [[Series/TrueDetective from]] prestige [[Series/PeakyBlinders dramas]].
89	* ScrewThisImOutOfHere: [[spoiler:Just as the volcano is about to cover the island, Rafi takes Fairfax's boat, intentionally leaving Fairfax on the island. While Fairfax is picked up by another boat, after Loretta and Alan recognize him, he tries to run away. It didn't work and he got captured]].
90	* SecondFaceSmoke: After Loretta is captured the second time, Fairfax's last motorcycle mook blows cigar smoke in her face. (He holds her responsible for the death of the other two motorcycle mooks.)
91	* ShipTease: Trainer puts the charm on Loretta as he rescues her. Unfortunately, [[spoiler: it doesn't last as he gets shot mid-sentence.]]
92	* ShownTheirWork: In-universe. Loretta is a former archaeologist and her husband was doing field work for his entire life. As such, despite writing trashy adventure romances, she still puts into them real tidbits of information that come from her and hers husband field - enough of them that Fairfax openly confronts her as to from where she got specific passage and glyph translation.
93	* SiblingRivalry: Abigail Fairfax's motivation for finding the Crown of Fire is very transparently to show up his younger brother Leslie, who was [[PassedOverInheritance given control of the family's media empire over Abigail]].
94	* SissyVillain: Abigail Fairfax, right from his [[GenderBlenderName name]]. Surrounded by luxuries, fashionable, well-groomed and having an army of mooks to [[NonActionBigBad do work for him]]. And due to that, also [[spoiler: [[LogicalWeakness a complete wuss]] when he has to act on his own]].
95	* SleepCute: Alan and Loretta share a hammock, starting out back-to-back. By morning, Loretta has turned around, resting her cheek on Alan's chest, with Alan's arm around her shoulders.
96	* TheStinger: The mid credit shows [[spoiler: Loretta and Alan as a couple in the meditation center. They’re later surprised to find out that the person who meditates behind them is Jack Trainer, who is revealed to have survived a head shot, though he has lost a part of his brain]].
97	* SurprisinglySuddenDeath:
98	** [[spoiler:Jack is suddenly shot in the head while he’s in middle of untying Loretta.]] [[spoiler: Subverted later on in the mid credit [[TheStinger stinger]] as Jack revealed to be alive and well]].
99	** [[spoiler: Julian, Fairfax's main henchman,]] ends up suddenly slipping and falling to his death, with no input needed by the protagonists.
100	* TalkingIsAFreeAction: When Jack, Alan, and Loretta pause next to Jack's rented car after escaping Fairfax's camp, Jack gently tells Loretta that she's safe now (something [[BrickJoke Alan said he wanted to do]]). This pause [[spoiler: gets Jack shot in the head]].
101	* ThemeMusicPowerUp: [[BigDamnHeroes When Alan rides after the villain's truck to rescue Loretta]], [[spoiler: the score bursts into an orchestral version of Europe's "The Final Countdown" - Alan's entrance music on the book tour.]]
102	* ThereIsOnlyOneBed: Well, only one hammock, but otherwise played straight.
103	* TomTheDarkLord: The sociopathic villain's name is Abigail, and TheDragon, a bald, mustached brute, is named Julian. In both cases, this gets lampshaded.
104	* TrademarkFavoriteFood: Loretta has a publicly known love of cheese. Abigail doesn't know which type she specifically likes so he presents her with tables piled with every luxury cheese available. As it turns out, what she loves is supermarket string cheese and appreciates the one Alan brings her.
105	* TraintopBattle: Alan fights one of Fairfax's mooks on the roof of a speeding armored truck.
106	* TranquilFury: Abigail Fairfax’s reaction after Loretta turns down his offer. He never raises his voice, but closeup shot of his face shows his barely concealed rage.
107	* TropicalIslandAdventure: Whenever the island is supposed to be, it checks all the boxes, right down to a ticking clock in form of an active volcano ready to erupt any minute.
108	* UnexplainedRecovery: [[spoiler:TheStinger reveals Jack Trainer somehow [[TisOnlyABulletInTheBrain survived his apparent death by headshot]], despite having averted PrettyLittleHeadshots when it happened. His only explanation is "[[NinetyPercentOfYourBrain We only use 10% of our brain.]] I just moved onto another 10%."]]
109	* UnflinchingWalk: Partially averted. Loretta and Alan are startled by the explosions as they flee Fairfax's camp. Jack, who set them off, isn't. Loretta isn't walking, as she is tied to a chair and being pushed in a wheelbarrow. [[https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=7opdOc35uCQ See it here.]]
110	* UpperClassTwit: It's all but said aloud that this is how Abigail Fairfax is seen in-universe: a rich scion of a media mogul that keeps squandering daddy's money on one after another extravagant, yet failed archaeological expedition, in a vain attempt to make a name for himself. All he achieved so far was just cementing his public perception as a failure. And given the ending, [[spoiler: likely tarnishing his reputation beyond recovery]].
111	* WeNeedADistraction: [[spoiler: Eventually the flashy, sequined jumpsuit Loretta is wearing]] becomes a bait to lure bunch of mooks into a trap.
112	* WhatTheHellHero: When Loretta dismisses her novels as schlock, Alan calls her out for being so dismissive of something that's brought pleasure to many people.
113	* WhoIsDriving: When Beth and Oscar are flying in Oscar's cargo plane, they end up engaged in an emotional conversation. Eventually, Beth has to ask who is flying the plane. Oscar tells her that it's on autopilot, and Beth has to insist that he goes back to fly the plane.
114	* TheWorldsExpertOnGettingKilled: [[spoiler:Jack Trainer, rescue expert who pulls off a spectacular extraction from Fairfax's compound, ends up getting suddenly shot in the head by Fairfax's goons before he can escape with Loretta and Alan, leaving them on their own.]] [[spoiler:TheStinger reveals he ultimately somehow survived this.]]
115	* WorthlessTreasureTwist: [[spoiler:All this work to find the lost "crown of fire" buried with an ancient queen, expected to be a headdress covered in crimson gems. When they find the tomb, what they find is a headdress of seashells that the queen's husband made while courting her, which were originally bright red, hence the "crown of fire." Not only are there no jewels, but even the shells have rotted away and/or lost their red color, so there's not much left of the headdress by the time they find it. The "treasure" was purely sentimental and nothing of value]].
116	-->'''Fairfax:''' I don't understand. Where's the treasure?
117	-->'''Loretta:''' [[spoiler:She's holding him]].
118	* WritersBlock: Loretta is struggling with one in the opening and eventually just decides to publish the book with a GainaxEnding, along with discussing [[invoked]] [[TorchTheFranchiseAndRun simply cutting the series short]]. [[spoiler: The ending actually leaves it ambiguous if she went through with this, started a new series, got a new ending or maybe any combination of those]].

Context Film / TheLostCity