By Brian Skutle

When I would watch “Romancing the Stone” (1984) as a kid with my mom, it wasn’t because of Robert Zemeckis directing it. It was an enjoyable adventure to watch along the lines of “Raiders of the Lost Ark” (1981) and “The Goonies” (1985), but now, I think there is something more for why my mom loved it. I didn’t necessarily realize that she might have more of a reason for loving Joan Wilder (played by Kathleen Turner) than her just being the main character. It wouldn’t be until long after that I would see that.

My love of movies was aided immeasurably by my mother. I’d wanted her to join me in sharing her love of movies with my podcast listeners for a while. In 2018, we finally recorded a discussion with her for that purpose. But I was uneasy about sharing it initially. By that point, I knew she had memory issues, and there were times when she meandered off topic. I finally released it this year, and in preparing it, there was a point when she was talking about another movie, and how it formed her appreciation for strong female characters. I think she recognized similar things in Joan Wilder.

At the start of “Romancing the Stone,” Joan Wilder is a brilliant writer of harlequin romance novels, but you can’t imagine her surviving anything outside of the walls of her own apartment. She writes lustful, adventurous stories of tough women who long for that rugged, dashing man to sweep them off their feet, but the first time we see her, she’s celebrating finishing her latest book with her cat. As a 45-year-old, that now seems as good an idea for a celebration as any, and screenwriter Diane Thomas isn’t commenting negatively on it, but when you watch the film, you see that she’s a hopeless romantic, and her imagination is what leads her to think of her stories more than any lived experience. When she is sent a treasure map by her recently-kidnapped sister (Mary Ellen Trainor), and must travel to Columbia to rescue her, that’s about to change.

When people discuss the “strong female characters” of the 1980s, their mind immediately goes to Sarah Connor and Ellen Ripley, naturally (and deservedly), but I think Joan Wilder is up there with both of them. Yes, Jack Colton (Michael Douglas’s character) is the rugged, dashing man to sweep Joan off of her feet and help her along the way, and it- in a way- puts Joan in the “damsel in distress” position often, but it’s her actions that drive the story, not his. Yes, she is too trusting of Zolo (Manuel Ojeda), but when you consider she probably only leaves her apartment to meet her editor (Holland Taylor) back in New York, you can forgive her her naivety. Everyone she meets has an agenda, and yes, Colton’s is rooted in her ability to pay, that still puts her in control of the situation.

As I’ve gone back to watch more films, and get caught up with other works by specific names, it’s interesting to see how certain movies play off of established iconography when it comes to actors. I love that Turner in this film is miles away from the femme fatale housewife in “Body Heat” (1981), but she still radiates sex appeal when her and Colton are on the town the night before they go after the stone of the title. In that stretch, she becomes one of her heroines, and the chemistry between her and Douglas, along with the terrific score by Alan Silvestri, make you believe that these two would find a way to come together, and it’s not just because of plot conventions- as they’ve gotten to know one another, their connection grows stronger. She brings out a softer side in him, and he starts to see the strength and confidence that wasn’t obvious when they first met. She starts to see it, as well, and isn’t afraid to dive in. In the end, it isn’t Colton who saves Joan and Elaine (Trainor’s character), it’s Joan’s resourcefulness. The type of resourcefulness that comes in handy for a writer.

By the time she returns home, and writes the novel of her experiences, you can tell something is different, and a simple exchange between her and her editor solidifies it. She calls Joan a “world class hopeless romantic,” and Joan simply responds, “Hopeful. A hopeful romantic.” That hope is confirmed when her dream ending comes true moments later. And we love it, because Thomas’s script earns it and Turner and Douglas sell it beautifully. Zemeckis made better films as his career progressed, but “Romancing the Stone” might have given us his strongest female character.

Read Brian’s Review of “Romancing the Stone” here.

Listen to Brian’s Discussion with his mother here.