History Film / TheLostCityOfZ

* FortuneTeller: While he's at the front during World War I, Fawcett visits a classic gypsy-woman fortune teller who affirms his belief that finding Z is his destiny.

* ForegoneConclusion: Fawcett will achieve nothing, find nothing and ultimately disappear in the jungle, never to be found. This makes large sections of the film pretty hard to stomach to anyone with even the most vague familiarity with Percy Fawcett, as the story focuses entirely on the events leading to said disappearance, rather than anything that followed and was far more exciting (including being the reason the film was made in the first place).

* LoserProtagonist: Fawcett. The man is a joke in the military and his career there goes absolutely nowhere. His claims as explorer amount to [[BelievingTheirOwnLies believing his own stories]], with no real proof to back them. His achievements in the field mostly come from surviving yet another expedition, just as ill-prepared as the previous one. And ultimately, he goes missing in the jungle. However, this is a serious drama, rather than a comedy, playing his countless faults absolutely straight, rather than as a source of humour, which leads to a character that's ''very'' hard to root for.

* PinballProtagonist: Except for initiating each of the three presented expeditions, Percy Fawcett is entirely reacting to the events that unfold each time and remains completely passive. This does make sense in-story, however, as he has no idea where to even go and the aimless nature of his exploration is the whole point.

* PlotDetour: The film has ''serious'' pacing issues, trying to portray 20 years of life of Fawcett, few different expeditions and probably most jarringly, having a ''World War I extended sequence'' in the middle of it. As a result its in the same time sluggishly slow ''and'' rush with its plotting, as each sub-story abruptly ends without any payoff, just to start another.

* VeryLooselyBasedOnATrueStory: There was a man named Percy Fawcett, who had few expeditions into the Amazons, obsessing over the lost civilization of Z being ''somewhere'' in the jungle. He then disappeared during his final expedition, achieving nothing of note. He was also a military man. That's about the amount of things that match the real life. Ironically, the story ''heavily'' plays up various dramatic and dangerous situations, for the actual expeditions were even less eventful.

* VeryLooselyBasedOnATrueStory: There was a man named Percy Fawcett, who had few expeditions into the Amazons, obsessing over the lost civilization of Z being ''somewhere'' in the jungle. He then disappeared during his final expedition, achieving nothing of note. He was also a military man. That's about the amount of things that match the real life.

* BaitAndSwitch: When biologist and polar explorer James Murray (Creator/AngusMacfadyen) accuses Fawcett of abandoning him (see HateSink below for the back story), Fawcett protests that not only did he save Murray's life, he did so facing resistance from his men, who by then were ready to JustEatGilligan. When Murray continues to insist that he apologize, Fawcett finally says, "Very well, I will apologize...to my men!"

* NeverTrustATrailer: No, this is not a mystery/adventure movie. Nor there is a lot of action in it - the trailer collected almost all of it. What you are up to is a biopic drama that happens to be about a jungle explorer, following him over the course of two decades and few separate expedition.

''The Lost City of Z'' is a 2017 film written and directed by James Gray, based on the non-fiction book of the same name telling the story of British adventurer Percy Fawcett's quest to find a lost civilization in TheAmazon.

* IChooseToStay: At the end of the movie, [[spoiler:Percy and his son choose to stay in the jungle when they find the civilization that the former was obseesed with finding]]. This is further cemented when [[spoiler:Keltie receives a package from Percy: A compass that he promised he would send if ever found Zed]].

* BaitAndSwitch: When biologist and polar explorer James Murray (Angus Macfadyen) accuses Fawcett of abandoning him (see HateSink below for the back story), Fawcett protests that not only did he save Murray's life, he did so facing resistance from his men, who by then were ready to JustEatGilligan. When Murray continues to insist that he apologize, Fawcett finally says, "Very well, I will apologize...to my men!"

''The Lost City of Z'' is a 2017 film written and directed by Creator/JamesGray, based on the non-fiction book of the same name telling the story of British adventurer Percy Fawcett's quest to find a lost civilization in TheAmazon.

In 1906, the Royal Geographic Society asks then-Major Fawcett (Creator/CharlieHunnam) to trace the border between Brazil and Bolivia, as the two countries are seeking a neutral party to head off a boundary war. Despite enduring a classic RiverOfInsanity voyage, Fawcett and his faithful aide-de-camp Henry Corbin (Creator/RobertPattinson) succeed in the mission and become fascinated by some pottery and carvings deep in the jungle where supposedly no humans -- let alone civilized humans -- had ever lived. Fawcett takes the then-unpopular position that the peoples of the Amazon built a sophisticated culture, which doubles as a critique of imperial attitudes toward the land and its natives. He becomes obsessed with proving his case, rather to the detriment of his family life, but learns a great deal about the jungle, its inhabitants, and himself.

* TheAlcoholic: Fawcett's father was this, leaving him with a chip on his shoulder regarding the family honor. Corbin also appears to be this at the beginning, but surviving the enforced sobriety of the jungle seems to set him straight.

* InHarmonyWithNature: The Native Americans are implied to be this, especially compared to the Europeans. Corbin marvels at one point about how they take only as much as they need from their environment.

* PuttingTheBandBackTogether: Corbin and Manley are so loyal to Fawcett that not only do they return to the Amazon with him, they arrange transfers so that they can fight in World War I together. [[spoiler: Averted in the last expedition, though: Manley has been killed at the front, and Corbin has a new family and declines to join.]]

* BaitAndSwitch: When biologist and polar explorer James Murray (Angus [=McFadyen=]) accuses Fawcett of abandoning him (see HateSink below for the back story), Fawcett protests that not only did he save Murray's life, he did so facing resistance from his men, who by then were ready to JustEatGilligan. When Murray continues to insist that he apologize, Fawcett finally says, "Very well, I will apologize...to my men!"

** James Murray, a companion of Fawcett's on his second expedition and likely the closest thing to a flat-out villain in the film. He's rude, arrogant, and feels the fact that he's been to the North Pole makes him perfectly qualified to explore ''anywhere''. In the Amazon, he constantly complains, acts like a complete jerk to the natives, and runs away with his tail between his legs when he encounters a tribe who have a human corpse on a roasting spit (admittedly an off-putting sight, but as a frustrated Fawcett tries to explain, it was part of a [[BlueAndOrangeMorality completely non-malicious]] DueToTheDead ceremony). When they finally find him, he's managed to mangle his leg, and it promptly becomes infected, leading Fawcett to give him a horse and some food to attempt to get back to civilization. When he against all odds manages to survive and get back home, he thanks Fawcett by [[UngratefulBastard trying to sue him]].

* {{Ubermensch}}: Baron Gondoriz, a rubber tycoon who's essentially running his own feudal state deep in the jungle, complete with slavery (in 1906). He helps Fawcett based on the cold-blooded calculation that if the border dispute between Brazil and Bolivia is settled peacefully, "nothing will change."

* HistoricalHeroUpgrade: While Fawcett did generally side with the Native Americans against imperial incursions, the film glosses over his more racist attitudes. For instance, like many at the time, he believed that any sophisticated American civilization must have been built by ancient immigrants from the Mediterranean. The film also undersells his general incompetence, painting him as a BoldExplorer [[https://www.spectator.co.uk/2017/04/the-lost-city-of-z-is-a-very-long-way-from-a-true-story-and-i-should-know/ when he made what other historians and explorers]] considered basic mistakes, was incredibly rude and obnoxious to locals, and more or less got himself and his son killed. [[http://www.thewhiterock.co.uk/?page_id=3089 As noted by the Villas Boa brothers]], famous Brazilian anthropologists, the real Fawcett was ''"[[TooDumbToLive as anyone else would have been, of the harshness and lack of tact that all recognised in him]]."''

* TheLoad: accompanies Fawcett on his second journey, but he's unable to cope with the tropical conditions and eventually puts the mission weeks behind schedule. When he develops a severe leg infection and creates more trouble in his delirium, some of the team seriously consider leaving him to die so that the rest of them have a chance at getting out.

''The Lost City of Z'' is a 2017 film written and directed by Creator/JamesGray, based on the non-fiction book of the same name telling the story of British adventurer Percy Fawcett's quest to find a lost civilization in the Amazon.

* TheLoad: Biologist and polar explorer James Murray (Angus [=McFadyen=]) accompanies Fawcett on his second journey, but he's unable to cope with the tropical conditions and eventually puts the mission weeks behind schedule. When he develops a severe leg infection and creates more trouble in his delirium, some of the team seriously consider leaving him to die so that the rest of them have a chance at getting out.

In 1906, the National Geographic Society asks then-Major Fawcett (Creator/CharlieHunnam) to trace the border between Brazil and Bolivia, as the two countries are seeking a neutral party to head off a boundary war. Despite enduring a classic RiverOfInsanity voyage, Fawcett and his faithful aide-de-camp Henry Corbin (Creator/RobertPattinson) succeed in the mission and become fascinated by some pottery and carvings deep in the jungle where supposedly no humans -- let alone civilized humans -- had ever lived. Fawcett takes the then-unpopular position that the peoples of the Amazon built a sophisticated culture, which doubles as a critique of imperial attitudes toward the land and its natives. He becomes obsessed with proving his case, rather to the detriment of his family life, but learns a great deal about the jungle, its inhabitants, and himself.

* ImAHumanitarian: Played with. At one point Fawcett's team encounters a tribe who have a roasted human corpse hanging over a fire pit. However, it turns out that this is their DueToTheDead, as they believe that eating their kinsman's body will pass his spirit into them.

* HistoricalHeroUpgrade: While Fawcett did generally side with the Native Americans against imperial incursions, the film glosses over his more racist attitudes. For instance, like many at the time, he believed that any sophisticated American civilization must have been built by ancient immigrants from the Mediterranean.

* TheLoad: Biologist and polar explorer James Murray (Angus McFadyen) accompanies Fawcett on his second journey, but he's unable to cope with the tropical conditions and eventually puts the mission weeks behind schedule. When he develops a severe leg infection and creates more trouble in his delirium, some of the team seriously consider leaving him to die so that the rest of them have a chance at getting out.

* RiverOfInsanity: Fawcett's first voyage looks like this, as various team members meet unhappy deaths and the survivors start to go a little crazy. Ultimately subverted, though: not only is that voyage successful, but by the end of the film [[he's totally at peace with himself and the idea of dying in the jungle.]]