Fountain of Youth

Starring: John Krasinski, Natalie Portman, Eiza Gonzalez, Domhnall Gleeson, Arian Moayed, Laz Alonso, Carmen Ejogo, Stanley Tucci, Benjamin Chivers, Michael Epp
Directed by: Guy Ritchie
Rating: PG-13
Genre: Action, Adventure
2025

Times Seen:
Tim: 1

Summary: Two siblings (John Krasinski, Natalie Portman) join forces on a globe-spanning adventure to find the Fountain of Youth.

Review:
Tim: I feel like I'm constantly yearning for more treasure-hunting adventure movies. I just love the sub-genre so much, and we haven't had nearly enough of these kinds of movies. The Indiana Jones movies are classics, but the new ones haven't delivered. Sahara was great, but it failed to become a franchise. So, I went into Apple+'s Fountain of Youth with hopes. Could this be the next great adventurer franchise? Let's see what Guy Ritchie was able to do.

Unfortunately, this movie fails to meet expectations. It's so painful to write this, because there were elements of this movie that I truly enjoyed. It flirted with being a good film, although it ultimately cannot even reach that reachable milestone. I suppose this is a decent film, but every element was in place for this to be far better than it was. It's surprising to see where this movie ended up, quality-wise. The premise itself is great- you have an adventuring team, searching across the world for the fabled Fountain of Youth. Come on, that's so exciting! The team is led by an estranged brother and sister, so you get a lot of fun sibling bantering. There's big action sequences, a host of clues and puzzles- this movie absolutely should have worked.

It's odd that it doesn't. I really like John Krasinski and Natalie Portman and I love the idea of them being siblings. They are both good performers, but I never quite believed their sibling relationship. The dialogue was often tough, and their delivery felt forced. Krasinski has more good moments because of his history in comedy, but their dynamic never felt authentic or that enjoyable. I do think they weren't given great dialogue, but it's odd to consider their collaboration doesn't work. Krasinski by himself makes for a fairly good lead- Luke Purdue might not be the greatest name, but the character was solid. Portman had a much harder role- Krasinski can be suave and charismatic, she has to be a bit uptight, but also brilliant, also needs to be a good mother, while also being a courageous treasure hunter. It's all a bit too much thrown into her character and Portman can't quite crack it. She's good in multiple areas, but the ask was too much. Krasinski seems to be having legitimate fun with the role, Portman just wasn't given the same opportunities. Her performance feels like work.

I thought the rest of the team was underutilized. They have a man and woman supporting them, and I honestly couldn't tell you anything about them, except that they are always asked to stay outside. It's so weird to consider what an afterthought these characters are. Compare this to the team-building the Mission: Impossible movies do- you love that team because you know them all. This movie flies right over developing these two other characters and for that reason, the "team" never gels, never feels worthy of our attention. I did enjoy Domhnall Gleeson's performance- he brought a different tone and vibe to the movie. Eiza Gonzalez is effective, too. She at least tackles the role with energy and made the movie better at every turn. I also loved seeing Stanley Tucci, but he was given truly nothing to do. He shows up twice I believe? Says a few lines of dialogue and that's it. He's inhumanely underutilized, for a man of his talent. That stunk.

The adventure itself is fine- I enjoyed the mystery, the clues, the action sequences. It was a bit frustrating that the movie didn't have any really big, memorable set pieces. It felt like the scope was too small- Apple needed to invest more in this film. We needed one big, incredible action sequence. We get some car chases and gunfights. One of the closest to impressive sequences involves raising the Lusitania (at least, a section of it). In theory, this should have been a true highlight- it felt a little flat, though. There's nothing we haven't technically seen before. Guy Ritchie films it almost halfheartedly. I enjoyed the sequence, but it's never great. There's another art heist scene with the Wicked Bible, but again, it feels too small-scale. The big climax takes place in a Pyramid, and yes, some of the scenes there are impressive. It did feel a bit too predictable, though. The script was average, never great.

Recognizing that I do love these kinds of movies, I did enjoy Fountain of Youth. I could have rated it higher, because I had fun with it at times and I did like the action sequences. However, I could never shake the nagging feeling that everything I was watching could have been better. The dialogue could have been crisper, the performances more authentic, the whole movie just more fun. I mean, look at Uncharted- that movie is very similar to this one, and it was wildly more entertaining. The banter felt more authentic and was more humorous. In the end, I couldn't raise this movie just because I'm a fan of the genre. This is a decent film, but it's one with frustrating flaws that hold it back from achieving anywhere near it's potential. This will likely not start a franchise, likely signal to others that action adventure treasure hunter movies won't work. I'll have to continue to wait and pine for a great one.

Rating 1-10
Tim's Rating: 6.5



If You Enjoyed This Movie, We Recommend: Uncharted, Sahara, Raiders of the Lost Ark, 13 Hours