Sure, it’s appreciated when filmmakers try and push themselves and the artform into new and more complex territory, but not every film needs to be an earth-shattering epic with at least a dozen different statements on the human condition. Well-made, if simple, comfort food can hit the spot better than a Michelin-star meal full of exotic and overpriced ingredients; it’s all about who’s putting the menu together. And this film, a tribute to cheesy romantic adventure novels, is the right kind of simple cinematic dish made with heart.

Every actor here, from the leads to the supporting roles, play the material with just the right balance of knowing cheek and whole-hearted earnestness. Sandra Bullock as the initially-isolated novelist Loretta brings remarkable subtlety to her performance, in effect delivering some of her best work since Gravity. By sharp contrast, Channing Tatum as Alan Caprison, the resident Fabio stand-in, is high-pitch goofy throughout, every bit as sweet and knowingly artificial as the drink that shares his last name. He gets the biggest laughs, the best physical moments, and even the best bit of dialogue in the entire film.

Speaking of the writing, the film sets up its treasure-hunting kidnap plot right away, with an excellently cast Daniel Radcliffe as the obsessed billionaire behind it, and no one scene outstays its welcome. The Lost City doesn’t run around in line-o-rama circles just to fill up space like far too many other comedies do, and instead focuses on what the audience would want to see: Bullock and Tatum being cute together as they go on a jungle adventure. Well, that and Brad Pitt giving a sneak preview of what’s hopefully to come with David Leitch’s Bullet Train (Pitt and DOP Jonathan Sela work very nicely together).

While aspects of the dialogue and story give loving rib-nudges to the aesthetic of these kinds of escapist romantic fantasies, it’s never done with malice or even that much subversion. Much like writer Dana Fox’s previous work with Isn’t It Romantic, it acknowledges how silly a lot of the inherent tropes are, but also understands why these worlds appeal to its audience. It’s uncomplicated, almost blissfully, and speaks to uncomplicated emotions and desires, but made from a genuine want to entertain. Even if it’s from butt leeches.

The Lost City is a breezy, to-the-point rom-com adventure that doesn’t try to do any more than it really needs to in order to entertain. It deserves props for its ‘don’t bore us, put away the thesaurus’ approach to a genre that’s prone to waffling on nowadays, and it helps highlight that there’s nothing wrong with being straightforward and earnest and… well, silly.

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