Romancing the Stone

Directed by Robert Zemeckis, Romancing the Stone follows a romance novelist (Kathleen Turner’s Joan Wilder) as she and a brash American (Michael Douglas’ Jack T. Colton) attempt to rescue her kidnapped sister (Mary Ellen Trainor’s Elaine) in Colombia. Filmmaker Zemeckis, armed with a screenplay by Diane Thomas, does a terrific job of instantly luring the viewer into the proceedings, as the movie opens with a fun sequence that effectively establishes the old-school adventure vibe – with the promising atmosphere heightened by the engaging, charismatic efforts of both Turner and Douglas. And while the movie’s midsection is perhaps not quite as engrossing or captivating as one might’ve hoped, with the inclusion of a few puzzling attributes compounding the far-from-flawless feel, Romancing the Stone, which has been punctuated with several agreeably larger-than-life set-pieces, builds towards a satisfying third act that ensures it concludes on a memorable, positive note – thus confirming the film’s place as a mostly watchable throwback that benefits from its above-average performances.

*** out of ****