Sandra Bullock is one of those actors who, for whatever reason, I rarely seek out when choosing a movie, and yet I can't think of a single time I didn't enjoy her performance. (If you're reading this, Sandra, I'm still waiting for a sequel to Practical Magic; I'm happy to hear that one's in the works.) The Lost City wasn't even on my radar until it popped up among my Netflix recommendations and, since it was apparently not long for that particular streaming service, I decided to watch it while I still could.

It's quite fun. And, while it never quite achieves the same over-the-top thrills as 1984's Romancing the Stone, upon which it was obviously (loosely) based, it comes very close ... and in some ways, it's even better.

Bullock is Loretta Sage, a reclusive author of action-romance novels who has lived in a shell since the death of her archeologist husband. She is kidnapped while on a book tour by Abigail Fairfax (Daniel Radcliffe), an obsessed, scenery-chewing man of means who believes Loretta's expertise on a certain ancient language will help him find the valuable Crown of Fire from a hidden tomb on a remote island that's about to be engulfed by lava.

Loretta's publisher Beth Hatten (Da'Vine Joy Randolph) and her besotted cover model Alan Caprison (Channing Tatum) contact former Navy SEAL Jack Trainer (Brad Pitt) to mount a rescue. Alan (who is quite besotted) tags along, although he quickly realizes he is out of his depth and completely upstaged by the dashing Jack, who is everything Alan pretends to be when posing as Loretta's heroic, Fabio-like protagonist.

However, for reasons not to be disclosed here, Jack isn't in the movie for long and doesn't complete the mission.

Is Alan up to the task? Can he become the hero he portrays when he's promoting Loretta's books? Well, suffice it to say, things quickly go sideways ... including a scene involving leeches and way too much screen time for Channing Tatum's butt. Meanwhile, Loretta finds herself getting absorbed into the quest, despite the immediate danger she's in.

The Lost City is a pleasant distraction, entertaining and cute without too much depth. The charm of the lead actors goes a long way to cover its flaws, but mostly it's just a good, old-fashioned action-comedy that passes the time and is not time wasted.