In the 1980s, some unexpected gems of movies seemed to come out of nowhere. And Romancing the Stone was one of them
With a nod perhaps to Raiders of the Lost Ark (1982), Romancing the Stone is a 1984 romantic comedy written by Diane Thomas.
Starring Kathleen Turner, Michael Douglas and Danny DeVito, the film was a box office smash.
The Plot
Joan Wilder is a lonely (albeit successful) romance novelist in New York City. Upon completing her latest novel, she leaves her apartment to meet her editor, Gloria.
On the way there, she is handed a letter that contains a map. It was sent by her recently murdered brother-in-law, Eduardo.
While she is gone, a man tries to break into her apartment and is discovered by her apartment supervisor. The man kills him. Joan returns to her apartment to find it ransacked.
That’s when things get worse. She receives a phone call from her sister (Eduardo’s widow, Elaine). Elaine has been kidnapped by antiquities smugglers, cousins Ira and Ralph. They order Joan to go to Cartagena with the map she received. This is Elaine’s ransom.
Without giving much more away, things get very adventurous and the movie is edge of the seat stuff.
It’s a bit dated now but I recommend this film.