Romancing the Stone (1984)

Movies like this were awesome...huge from the Golden Age of the Silver Screen into the '90s when they started to peter out until, well, until they vanished leaving us with nothing but Super Hero films to fill the void......I have nothing against Super Hero films, but I love adventure films too.I can see where folks would not like it, especially the people that take themselves too seriously. It is stuck in a genera that is at once extremely pulp and kind of serialized. Even if it's not a sequel, you know the story.The Goonies, Nate and Hayes, Jake Speed, Firewalker, Vibes, Big Trouble in Little China, Young Sherlock Holmes...and of course the crown, the king, the Indiana Jones movies.They are all close enough to one another to really fit into the same mold. The characters change, the concepts stay the same and....we love it.Enter the Roguish hero and the damsel in distress in an exotic location to find X marking the MacGuffin, but first they have to work their way through obstacles both natural and man made in the form of a nasty antagonist and a couple of henchmen. Throw in a semi-bumbling sidekick and you have what I like to call "High Adventure." "Romancing the Stone" follows that outline and if you are the kind of individual that is still young enough at heart to love adventure films...you will inevitably like this movie.If you are the kind of man or woman that takes everything extremely seriously and refuses to play at all, not matter what it is. If you are the type that would use the word "compete" instead of "play" or "game" than you are going to hate this movie.

ROMANCING THE STONE is one of those big 1980s blockbuster movies that haven't dated very well as the years have gone by. For some reason, a lot of '80s films seem more dated than their counterparts that were made back in the 1950s. Still, this one is enjoyable enough if you're in a forgiving mood, even if it is a blatant rip off of RAIDERS OF THE LOST ARK (and made without that film's wit, charisma, and style).The story enough is the tried-and-tested romantic-comedy-adventure template: a mismatched duo are on the run from a bunch of nefarious bad guys, who will stop at nothing to get the precious treasure map/jewel/secret treasure/etc. This film wins a lot of charm from the talents of a laid back Michael Douglas, at his charismatic best, and feisty Kathleen Turner, who turns out to be more than a match for the gung-ho hero. Essentially the plot sees them escaping from the bad guys in various South American countries, battling jungle flora and fauna as well as each other. Danny DeVito pops up for some comic relief and the bad guys are suitably sinister.Don't expect much from the script. Sparks fly from the Douglas and Turner characters but that's about it. There's a lot of contrivances and coincidences along the way which you have to take with a pinch of salt. There's nothing particular memorable or surprising here but as a light hearted romp it's fairly watchable and enjoyable.

I saw this on cable a few days ago and checked it out. What a mistake. The film is basically a chick flick disguised as action / adventure comedy. It really was not funny which is strange because it has Danny DeVito starring back in his prime. Really, Danny DeVito is still in his prime but you know what I mean. The only reason I'm giving this film a five out of ten is because it finally wakes up during the last 20 minutes. The last 20 minutes of the movie are what the whole thing should have been but whatever, we're talking about a movie that is more than 30 years old so who cares. There is a sequel to this film called The Jewel of the Nile which currently has a lower ranking than this movie but I'll check it out if I ever see it on TV. Purely out of curiosity. And it looks like Danny DeVito is also in The War of the Roses but now I'm just getting lost in IDBM. What can I say about this movie? It is totally boring until the last 15 or 20 minutes and not worth hunting down to watch.

Romancing the stone (1984) starring Kathleen Turner, Michael Douglas and Danny DeVito is an immensely entertaining film that is full of romance, action, and some comedy is even thrown in the mix for the audience to enjoy. The script is very delightful and fun. And the action scenes are thrilling, well coordinated, and well edited, hence the academy award nomination for best film editing, which was well deserved. Kathleen Turner was very delightful to watch on screen, she has great on screen chemistry with Michael Douglas, and she carries her own weight very impressively. And Michael Douglas really fits his character well, and he is very engaging in the action scenes. The movie really is just a whole lot of fun to sit down and enjoy, and the setting is great too, very fitting for the movie. Now this film is not a family movie, there is a pretty substantial amount of profanity, it's targeted towards a teen and adult demographic. 8/10 for romancing the stone.