Jewel of the Nile (Blu-ray)

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What I remember most about "Jewel of the Nile" is not its plot, but the hit song "When the Going Gets Tough, the Tough Get Going" by Billy Ocean. That was such a catchy tune and back in the day when MTV actually played music videos, it provided the ultimate trailer for "Jewel of the Nile." I cannot recall whether or not I had seen the film in theaters, but I had loved the first movie and always looked forward to the sequel when I first realized it was forthcoming. Jack Colton wasn´t nearly as cool as Indiana Jones, but this was another series that featured a lot of action and at the time Michael Douglas and Danny DeVito were both very familiar faces. The details of when I saw the film may have escaped me, but revisiting the picture with the Blu-ray release quickly brought back some memories and while this picture isn´t nearly as good as the first film, it does have its moments.

The story continues the lives of Jack Colton (Douglas) and Joan Wilder (Kathleen Turner) and the boat that appeared at the end of the first film. They are deeper in their relationship, but Joan is having problems writing and Jack is not prepared for marriage and does not care much for book signings. There is apparent strife in their relationship and things are only amplified to a point where Jack decides it is time to leave and return to a life of adventuring. During this time Joan is approached by an Arab ruler named Omar (Spiros Focas) to write his memoirs and travel with him. Joan accepts and leaves Jack behind. While Joan is leaving Jack runs into the antagonist from the first film Ralph (DeVito) and they begin an argument that is interrupted by another Arab named Tarak (Paul David Magid) who informs them that Omar is not a king, but a dictator and his intentions with Joan are not exactly noble.

This thin and somewhat laughable plot allows Douglas and DeVito to become partners in this film instead of adversaries, but their find strain in their partnership when their characters are informed that Omar controls the Jewel of the Nile, which is incredibly valuable. Lots of fun action sequences and a little adventure is introduced, but the big surprise is that the Jewel is actually a man named Al-Julhara (Alan Foulds) who is well loved by his people and not monetarily worth anything. Joan is privy to this information, but does not tell either Jack or Ralph as she wants to keep their interest peaked and makes excuses to have them allow Al-Julhara to continue on with their adventure. The film eventually ends in a huge climax that allows Michael Douglas to slide down a very large curtain in a scene reminiscent of Golden Age swashbuckling pictures, but ends on a very silly note.

I am certain that I enjoyed "Jewel of the Nile" far more as a youth when Al-Julhara was a more interesting and humorous character when I wasn´t too familiar with Indian culture and thought he was a tremendous caricature. The film was far funnier and far more entertaining when I was just a fresh teenager who loved laughs, big explosions and the fact that the writers managed to get an F-16 into the film. Now that I am older I find this to be a far inferior film to "Romancing the Stone" and can see that it is a poorly written picture that relies on bigger and more expensive stunts and special effects to entertain its audience. The joke regarding Al-Julhara being the Jewel of the Nile wears thing after a couple viewings and his character comes off as a likable buffoon and not as a clown as he did when I was younger.

The film still has its moments and there is some fun to be had while watching the movie. Douglas, DeVito and Turner have a strong chemistry on-screen and watching the three of them act is a real treat. They would later star in the superior "The War of the Roses" after a planned third film in this series was canned and had anybody else been involved in this sequel it would not have the limited appeal that it does now. You watch this movie to enjoy its three principal actors and the fun they had working together that is easily conveyed to the audience. The story is weak and the action sequences are perhaps just a little too far over the top, but Douglas, DeVito and Turner do their best to have their interesting characters entertain in a story that does not deserve their involvement. I have always wished that Jack Colton would have had one more grand adventure and it has never seemed fitting that this was his last.