The true life adventure story THE LOST CITY OF Z tells the tale of British explorer Percival Fawcett and his life long quest to uncover the great legendary city of Zed.
Charlie Hunnam (King Arthur, Sons of Anarchy) is very good as Fawcett. Proper English society denies him advancement at the break of the 20th century.
His father lost two fortunes and he's cursed by his lineage, but talented and hard working.
When he's given the chance to chart unexplored portions of South America, he's drawn into the scale and mystery of the Amazon and its peoples.
With the feel of earlier epics like "Greystoke" and "The Man Who Would be King", the film unwinds slowly, with terrific photography of the UK and the heart of the Amazon.
This is the best I've seen Hunnam in movies, but I wasn't a fan of "Pacific Rim" and "King Arthur" was garbage, so this was the first time I could see him create a character. He's terrific.
As Fawcett finds success, makes claims about what he's found that challenge proper society, 1920 morals and English superiority, he's drawn to return again and again to the jungle.
Sienna Miller (American Sniper, Live By Night) is very good as Fawcett's long suffering wife. Modern for her day, independent and smart, she raises their children while waiting for brief visits from her husband to return home.
Tom Holland (our new Spiderman in the Avengers) is excellent as Fawcett's son, wrestling with admiration for his father's bravery in the face of deep resentment for his constant absence.
Robert Pattinson (Twilight, Good Time) is also terrfiic as Fawcett's loyal guide and companion for many years. Ian McDiarmid (the Emperor in Star Wars) plays a mentor who launches the quest.
Fawcett's adventures in the jungle are exciting, terrifying, sometime slow and always challenging. Facing death from every angle, its insane that he ever returns to face the Amazon.
The final half hour is haunting and disturbing as Fawcett makes his final trip in search of the early society, this time with his teenage son at his side. What happens to them is eerie and upsetting.
Made outside the traditional studio system, Amazon Studios dropped $30 million on the production and it looks better than many $100M films.
You get the impression that you're watching the most expensive art film ever made as the 141 minute running time is not always fast paced. That being said, I never found it boring.
Critics and audiences seem to have hated the film, but I enjoyed it.
It's not filled with action, but its populated by very good actors playing people you'll care about.
The final moments detailing some history of the past couple years adds a new twist to Fawcett's quest.
It features a beautiful music score by newcomer Christopher Spelman and stunning photograpy by Darius Khondji, who also shot "Se7en" and "Panic Room" for David Fincher.
If you have a leisurely afternoon, take a trip deep into the unknown with Fawcett.
Z gets a B.
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