The Lost City of Z: It’s a Jungle out There

Charlie Hunnam — who played a beguiling twink in the original British Queer as Folk and a gruff biker in Sons of Anarchy — here takes on the role of real-life explorer Percival Fawcett, who mounted multiple expeditions into the Amazon from 1906 to 1925, in search of an ancient lost city he called “Z.”

Time and again, we see him plunge into the deadly jungle, aided by a faithful lieutenant and eventually bringing his son along as well. These adventures take a heavy toll in the form of long, painful absences from his family and the insults of treacherous detractors. Though there are some exciting action sequences in the jungle, the film’s focus is on Fawcett’s lifelong struggle against those who doubted him. THE WORD: Audiences will feel director James Gary reaching to uncover an eternal truth about the nature of exploration that haunts Fawcett’s story. COMING TO: Theaters