Disney’s new adventure based on their popular park ride stars Dwayne Johnson as Frank Wolff, a hard drinking, fast-talking steamboat captain on the Amazon River.
Set in 1916, he’s hired by Dr. Lily Houghton, (Emily Blunt) a feisty British botanist, to take her and her brother MacGregor (Jack Whitehall) down the River to find the Tree Of Life.
The tree is supposed to have flowers that possess tremendous healing powers. But first, Lily has to steal the key that will open the mystery of the hidden trees. We get to see how determined and capable she is, in a fun chase scene where she outmaneuvers her antagonists.
There’s snakes, cannibals and rapids to contend with, besides a German villain (Jesse Plemons) with a U-Boat and mythical Conquistadors made of snakes and swarming bees with honey dripping down their gnarled faces.
It’s a fun film, however, all of the rousing action would be unimportant if Johnson and Blunt weren’t starring. She can be capable and in charge, yet has a soft, vulnerable side to her and Johnson is one big guy, but he’s also very playful and self deprecating. Oh yeah, and don’t forget that smile!
Without the two of them, it would be just another ride down a River.