The Lost City of Z is most definitely an odd duck. It’s a film that’s not the easiest to market, with true historical subject matter that most people aren’t familiar with. Beyond that, the film doesn’t fit into any specific time of year. Had the subject and the overall production been more high profile, The Lost City of Z would have been a prime late summer or even holiday release. Instead, the film is coming out in that funny period between late spring and early summer where studios unleash films they aren’t sure will succeed at more competitive times of the movie year. And it’s easy to see why this is the case here. The Lost City of Z is a period piece bloated in both content and runtime, both of which work against it time and time again. Yet when the film works, it REALLY works.
From acclaimed writer/director James Gray, The Lost City of Z tells the story of British Army Colonel Percy Fawcett (Charlie Hunnam), who in the late 1800s embarked on an exploration of the Amazon with the assistance of fellow explorer Henry Costin (Robert Pattinson). Upon his return, Fawcett was ridiculed for his claims of having found a mysterious city cultivated by Amazonian natives, prompting him to lead a return journey, which meant leaving his loving wife Nina (Sienna Miller) and son Jack (Tom Holland).
The main problem facing The Lost City of Z is that, as a feature film, its far too jam-packed with content for its own good. Not only does the film spend a deservedly large amount of time on Percy’s initial journey to the amazon, but it must contend with the two additional journeys he made there as well, each of which occupy enough for a film of their own, with elements such as dangerous natives and fellow travelers who turned out to be liabilities taking up their own amount of screen time. As if that weren’t enough, Gray must also give time to the criticism and skeptical attitudes that Percy had to endure when back in England as well as devote ample attention to his experience in WWI and his home life, which includes showing how his work affected his marriage to Nina and his relationship with Jack. That much story and time is asking a lot of any audience, let alone one with modern-day attention spans, most of which will certainly get bogged down by everything that happens here. Ideally, The Lost City of Z belongs somewhere more appropriate, such as on The History Channel as an epic mini-series. The events would be given more space to breathe and would be far easier to take if Percy’s travels were spread over a few nights. As it stands, the big screen in simply the wrong medium for Gray to tell the story of the man who reportedly served as the real-life inspiration for Indiana Jones.
The main reason the film works on the level it does is because of Gray. Long since heralded for his darker tales of human complexity such as The Yards and Two Lovers, The Lost City of Z is a complete 180 for the director. Yet he infuses it with such a quiet dignity and his characters with an undeniable grace that most of the film’s shortcomings, including too much plot and standard turns in story, are quickly forgiven. Even though The Lost City of Z is as big-budget as they get, so many of Gray’s more intimate touches can be found here, including the stunning cinematography, which once again make his film feel like a true piece of art, and his love of strong female characters, evidenced by the way he portrays Nina’s feminist spirit. Ultimately, though, it’s the way Gray captures the passion and conviction of the people he has chosen to represent on screen with so much care and understanding, nailing their love and beliefs, that instantly makes The Lost City of Z not only involving but deceptively captivating.
Another reason The Lost City of Z manages to work as well as it does, when it does, is the performances. The film features a unique trait in that it contains a cast that, although successful in their own right, has never been given characters with which to fully exercise the depths of their acting abilities. Here, each member of the cast turns in some of the best work of their careers. Hunnam brings forward Percy’s strength and determination, while Pattinson plays Henry with an understated wisdom. Meanwhile, Miller takes hold of Nina’s devotion and steadfastness and brings it to glorious life with the utmost loveliness, while Holland displays true range as he shows Jack’s own journey from deep resentment to understanding and bravery.
The Lost City of Z would have been quite a task for anyone to take on with so much story and period detail attached to it. It’s almost certain that the film will not make much of a profit, nor will it be remembered come awards season (a shame since, despite the story problems, the film is certainly worthy of a few accolades). However, the entire exercise shows that a director like Gray, a filmmaker who represents the kind of solid and poetic characteristics that make the indie film world thrive, can function in the land of big studio films. In the age where every hot indie director is given a superhero movie as a follow-up project, my hope is that in years to come, The Lost City of Z will be looked at as a one of the few truly successful marriages of indie sensibilities and large-scale filmmaking, and the beauty that can happen as a result.
