#diane thomas

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‘Romancing the Stone’ and Its Screenwriter’s Tragic Tale

Diane Thomas was a waitress when she made headlines for the script sale of what would become a box office smash. But the Cinderella story ha

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Romancing the Stone (1984). 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.

I've never really enjoyed Michael Douglas as a romantic lead, but man, he crackles in this one, in no small part because he and Kathleen Turner have such great chemistry. She gets the richer character arc, but he gets satisfying beats to play opposite her and it makes them a pretty fun dynamic to watch. The movie definitely falls into era-typical sexist and racist tropes, which can be jarring, but outside of that, it's the sort of adventure-rom-com I wish Hollywood was still making. 7/10.

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The Jewel of the Nile (1985) Review

The Jewel of the Nile (1985) Review

Joan Wilder is abducted when on a trip along the Nile and her now boyfriend Jack Colton must try and rescue her as well as the jewel! ⭐️⭐️ Continue reading

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SUNDAY OLD SCHOOL: Romancing the Stone (1984) Review

Sunday Old School - On certain Sundays I pick a classic film to review and talk about, because that’s why they are classics, they should be remembered!

There is no sex scene with the stone. The title is misleading!! Unless its a euphemism for masturbation, which in that case I don’t know what to think!!

Plot: A romance writer sets off to Colombia to ransom her kidnapped sister, and soon finds herself in the middle of a dangerous adventure.

Back in the day they did know how to make proper fun adventure films! From the ‘Indiana Jones’ films to this, you were always guaranteed a good time. Yes, it wasn’t the most intelligent form of entertainment, however they were all about escapism, stepping into the shoes of the main hero and joining them on their journey for treasure and love, all whilst throwing fun one-liners and having a jolly good time. In ‘Romancing the Stone’ we have our first collaboration between Michael Douglas, Kathleen Turner and Danny DeVito, all three of which would return for a sequel in ‘The Jewel of the Nile’ and DeVito directed film ‘The War of the Roses’ (which is completely different in tone to the other two films!). The reason why all three of these worked with each other so much was because they had great chemistry, especially Douglas and Turner, whilst DeVito lightens any kind of film with his presence. I mean, does anyone remember his minimal role in ‘Mars Attacks!’? Added nothing to that movie whatsoever but you couldn’t fault it for that since it was DeVito being as DeVito as possible. 

So anyway, ‘Romancing the Stone’ is one of those films where you have to set back your sense of disbelief, as the amount of things that happen to our heroes in this film is close to ridiculous. When Turner’s writer Joan Wilder arrives in Colombia to save her sister, she is instantly thrown into the mix of the plans of a whole line up of desperadoes. From the local thugs and mountain bandits to the local police, all of them going after her, and only one man can save her from it all, the charming charismatic Jack Colton played with all the enthusiasm by Michael Douglas. However don’t be mistaken, Kathleen Turner is anything but a weak female movie character, since as the film progresses she learns how to fend for herself and by the big finale where everything goes completely bonkers crazy she is confronted by the main villain of the film, whom she has to fight herself, and the movie does the cheeky trick of making you think that Douglas is going to get to her and do the usual hero saving the damsel in distress kind of deal, however by the time he gets there she has already defeated the baddie so then the only help Douglas can provide is a caring hug.

I’ve watched this film back when I was a kid, and it still holds up to date. Endlessly rewatchable, so enjoyable, and even though it’s sequel ‘The Jewel of the Nile’ was a simple studio cash-grab that relied on the success of its predecessor, that shouldn’t tarnish the original film. It’s nothing special or unique, but damn are you going to have a good time!

Overall score: 7/10

TOP MOVIE QUOTE: “Dammit man, the Doobie Brothers broke up! Shit! When did that happen?”

P.S. This film gives a whole new meaning to camp-fire!

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