Following in the footsteps of The Haunted Mansion and the extremely dull (albeit mega successful) Pirates of the Caribbean franchise, Jaume Collet-Serra is the latest to adapt a Disney ride.
Dwayne Johnson - Frank Wolff
Emily Blunt - Lily Houghton
Edgar Ramirez - Aguirre
Jack Whitehall - MacGregor Houghton
Jesse Plemons - Prince Joachim
Summary
From the Amazon came the legend of the Tears of the Moon.
A single petal from the tree can cure any illness and break any curse.
In the 16th century, a team of Spanish conquistadors led by Aguirre die in the jungle searching for the tree.
Despite local tribe using petals to nurse them back to health, when they refuse to reveal tree's location, the Spanish destroy the village.
That's gratitude for you.
As punishment, the tribe's chief curses them to never die, but also never leave.
1916.
Dr. Lily Houghton plans to use the tree's power to benefit humankind.
She hires Frank Wolff and his vessel La Quila (named after the Goddess of the Moon) to realise ambition.
The adventure for 'Skippy' and 'Pants' begins.
Fun for all the family
Expecting an awful Indiana Jones knock-off, I was pleasantly surprised by a great mix of action, comedy and romance.
Leads effortlessly bounce off each other and on-screen chemistry sizzles.
A special mention goes to Whitehall, who made me chuckle on several occasions.
I don't care who it was done for, but scene strongly inferring character is gay was completely unnecessary.
CG baddies may be a bit too intense for younger children, so 12A certificate is justified.
Aside from nods to Romancing the Stone and feel of The Mummy (1999), film reeks most heavily of The African Queen, particularly how relationship develops between Johnson and Blunt.
Even clobber is virtually identical to Bogart's.
To be fair, 1951 classic inspired much of attraction's design, so similarities are probably more in homage.
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