The Beach (2000)

This was the first film Di Caprio made after Titanic and as such you could only imagine the expectations especially from the fangirls back then. It was huge. What bout the movie? Well it is a Danny Boyle film many forget and he is a class act. The Beach is based on a book of the same name and has some stunning picturesque locations(Thailand) but there are no redeeming qualities among any of the characters and the film just sort of...trudges along. You can watch it but there's nothing much to recommend- both Boyle and Di caprio have done far better work.

... and I thought it was a pretty good film. When it first came out it was DiCaprio's presence that caused me not to watch it, and after watching him grow as an actor over the last 15 years, DiCaprio is what got me curious enough to give it a try.DiCaprio plays Richard, a tourist who hates the tourist traps he can afford in Thailand. A guy in Richard's hotel named Daffy -for appropriate reasons - kills himself, but first draws a map to an island that he claims is nirvana. Richard convinces two French tourists to come with him and they actually do find a colony of people living outside of any civilization other than the one they have built for their own survival and pleasure. The leader is Sal (Tilda Swinton) who tells the three that the drug dealers who control the island allow them to stay there but have said there can be no more people joining them - it hurts their chances at having their thriving cannabis business remain undiscovered. Sal says that they can stay, but is bothered by the map, burns it, and asks if they gave a copy to anyone else. Richard lies and says no - he gave it to a group of stoners he met before they got there. Whether they are on their way there or are too drug addled to make the trip, Richard does not know. So he figures the lie will hurt nobody.This is basically an adult "Lord of the Flies". The lesson it teaches is that no matter where you go, unfortunately your human nature and all that comes with it hitches a ride. That is why Richard could easily see the evils of the city but it took some time for problems to arise at "the beach". It's just a matter of more humans in one place than another.And who would figure on a story in which armed drug dealers actually turn out to be the good guys, probably because they know the truth about human nature better than their nirvana seeking neighbors. To see what I mean, watch and find out.

Danny Boyle's The Beach was an awful viewing experience for me and thinking back on it is just as unpleasant, so naturally I don't want to spend a lot of time talking about it.The reason that The Beach is so awful is because it is so pretentious and full of itself. It gives a painfully obvious and blatant expression on a social commentary that feels so forced. The Beach is also extremely boring. I was patiently waiting for the movie to pick up, but after an hour of pure nothing, I gave up hope and assumed that the rest of the film would be just as uneventful. Sadly, I was right. The Beach feels like a 2-hour long Expedia commercial. The music is cheap and terribly cheesy and the cinematography is sometimes interesting, but mostly just dull.Leonardo DiCaprio did give an entertaining performance even though he did overact quite a bit. Tilda Swinton wasn't bad either, but the rest of the cast is just so forgettable and boring that it even weighs down these two characters. Robert Carlyle was one of the few redeemable aspects of The Beach. His character was utterly mad and it seemed that he loved playing this character, which made him a blast to watch.The story is painfully slow. We have to endure long stretches of Leo's character expressing his obsession for a girl he barely knows, then we are suddenly treated to a horrifically graphic shark attack scene. The tone of The Beach is never established. Most of the movie is extremely depressing and generally uncomfortable to watch, but then the movie ends on a gleefully happy note as if nothing bad even happened.The best way I can explain The Beach is that it is a confused, hyper mess of a film that tackles a social commentary so blatantly obvious that it comes off grossly pretentious. And any time Danny Boyle tries to have fun, it comes off as just awkward. While The Beach does have a passionate cult following, I simply cannot find enjoyment in the film myself. It's dull, pretentious and just messy. I respect Danny Boyle as a film maker but I really don't know what he was hoping to achieve with this one. I'm just grateful that the whole experience was completely forgettable. Another trip to this mind- numbing "paradise" wouldn't be good for my sanity.

If we get to think about it, Danny Boyle's highest point as of 2000 was definitely the year 1996. Trainspotting was such a smash hit and a defining moment of the whole generation that it was just too tempting to try recreating its success. And, with a new emerging star of Leo DiCaprio, whose pretty face has been looking at us from the posters on the girl room walls ever since his Titanic days, the task seemed like a piece of cake: add some palms, beaches, spice it up with a French hottie and add some Robert Carlyle's brilliance as a cherry on top and a guarantee of the old-school spirit. Nothing could possibly go wrong. Or so they thought...Some spirit you can't deny this film indeed. Boyle's signature upbeat techno soundtrack, lush imagery and the whole sense of an acid trip do make this film look like its director's older child. And even though DiCaprio of 2000 is more of his annoying adolescent self than of that solid and mature figure he's become later, he is natural enough that you don't have to wish Ewan McGregor was back at his place.However, this time something's missing, some invisible but crucial glue that holds the story together and makes it evenly paced. Trainspotting was so amazing because it never dragged for a second. The Beach, on the other hand, feels much more jerky, combining the intensity-packed moments with outright droning or unnecessary filler. And while that depressing Scottish scenery could make even a filler look refreshingly novel, beaches of Thailand, although beautiful and calling, are more fulfilling for a tourist brochure than for a movie with a certain pretence of cultural weight.Still, it's not the patches of horrible dialogue and ridiculous continuity that bring this film down. Apparently Danny Boyle is better at building a story than dismantling it. And since The Beach' plot reaches its paradisaical climax only halfway through the movie, desecrating this paradise and bringing us back to the mortal world was a paramount task. And that's where it all went haywire, with lack of logic, consistency and sometimes even basic sanity. When an organic utopia falls apart it's never pretty, but one doesn't have to turn it into a travesty.All in all, The Beach is good at being a story of a spoilt kid's dream adventure going slightly sour. As for anything behind that pretty but shallow facade, like strong characters or a gritty story of their struggle for their ideals, don't hold your hopes too high.