7200th Review – The Jewel of the Nile (1985)

“Literary functions are not exactly Jack’s speed. I mean, the guy’s favorite author is the man who wrote “Pull tab to open”.” – Gloria

Number of Times Seen – at least 5 times (Theater in ’85, cable, 28 Apr 2000 and 15 Dec 2020)

Brief Synopsis – Jack and Joan travel to the Middle East and get tangled up in a quest for an ancient and powerful Jewel.

My Take on it – This is a film that takes off right from the first scene and that is largely due to the fact that most viewers are expected to already be familiar with these characters from the previous film.

The story works almost as well as the original did and that is somewhat unusual for a sequel of films like this one.

The choice to change the global local works well in helping keep the story feeling fresh and innovative despite the fact that there are some similarities between this story and the original on in Romancing the Stone (1984).

Kathleen Turner and Michael Douglas once again show how great their chemistry is with these characters and it shows throughout.

They do a wonderful job showing what happens to these characters following the past adventure and keep things quite satisfying here.

Danny Devito also returns for this film, but his characters seems too out of place here and it feels as if he has been added for no real reason besides his stardom.

The film’s action sequences are bolder than they were in the previous film and that helps enhance the story while also allowing for things to be more engaging to watch here.

Bottom Line – Fun sequel that works almost as well as the original. The change of local helps make things feel fresh and innovative without the need to retread old aspects of the story. Turner and Douglas are once again great in these roles and helps keep things going due to their great chemistry together. The ability to see what happens to these characters following their first adventure is done well and keep things feeling satisfying. Devito is also back, but his character feels a bit too tacked on instead of really fitting in to this new story. The action aspects of the story are bolder than in the original, yet still work in keeping things engaging throughout. Recommended!

MovieRob’s Favorite Trivia – The end title song is Billy Ocean’s “When the Going Gets Tough, the Tough Get Going”. In the music video for the song, stars Michael Douglas, Kathleen Turner and Danny DeVito lipsync and dance as doo-wop backup singers. Because the three stars were not members of the Musicians Union, the video was banned in the UK. Despite this handicap, the song would be Ocean’s first #1 UK hit. (From IMDB)

Rating – Globe Worthy (7/10)