LOS ANGELES, May 22 (UPI) -- Fountain of Youth, on Apple TV+ Friday, aspires to the sort of globe-trotting mythical adventures of Indiana Jones, and in turn the adventures that inspired him. Despite an A-list ensemble and international locations, Fountain is merely insincere mimicry.
Luke Purdue (John Krasinski) is an adventurer who explores foreign lands and steals their treasures. He is introduced in a Bangkok street chase evading gangsters who want the artifact he stole.
Luke visits England where his sister, Charlotte (Natalie Portman) is getting divorced. Her job as a museum curator gives Luke an in to steal a Rembrandt looking for a clue to the Fountain of Youth.
Charlotte reluctantly follows Luke on his quest, working with his team of Deb (Carman Ejogo) and Murph (Laz Alonso), all working for billionaire Owen Carver (Domhnall Gleeson). Esme (Eiza Gonzalez) is on their tail trying to prevent them from finding the Fountain, and at one point Charlotte brings her son, Thomas (Benjamin Chivers) along.
Indiana Jones is the gold standard of this kind of worldwide adventure for mythical treasures, but even Indiana Jones doesn't live up to that standard anymore. 1999's The Mummy got close but even its sequels devolved into intangible special effects.
