Leonardo Dicaprio Movie:

				Salesrank: 286742
		Used Price: $15.00
		MPAA Rating: R (Restricted) Media: DVD

Editorial Review:
Leonardo DiCaprio sought to distance himself from the purity of his character in Titanic, and his role in The Beach is in many ways a polar opposite. As Richard, a young American seeking to "suck in the experience" of freestyle travel in Thailand, he's a chronic liar, a pot-smoking hedonist, an amoral lover, and ultimately an unstable snake in a doomed Garden of Eden. This crazy descent might be expected from the filmmakers of Trainspotting, but The Beach is a movie without a rudder, venturing into fascinating territory, promising a stimulating adventure, and then careening out of control.

After receiving a not-so-secret map to a secluded island from a stoned-out loony (Robert Carlyle, full of dark portent and spittle), Richard sets out to find the hidden paradise with a young French couple (Virginie Ledoyen, Guillaume Canet). What they find is a tropical commune existing in delicate balance with Thai pot farmers, and before long--as always--there's trouble in paradise. There's trouble in the movie, too, as DiCaprio is reduced to histrionics when the plot turns into a muddled mix of Lord of the Flies and Apocalypse Now, with shark attacks tossed in for shallow tension. Director Danny Boyle attempts perfunctory romance and a few audacious moves (notably DiCaprio's vision of life as a violent video game), but what's the point? Tilda Swinton registers strongly as the commune's charismatic leader, but her character--and the entire film--remains largely undeveloped, and pretty scenery is no guarantee of a laudable film. --Jeff Shannon

The Beach [Region 2] Reviews:
An Underrated Adventure
2009-11-25 - I know, I know, it's not the book. Guess what? No movie is. Standing on it's own, I think it's one of the more underrated adventure movies out there. It has some great actors/actresses from around the world (Virginie Ledoyen, Tilda Swinton)-- even Leonardo, who I don't normally like, is the perfect fit for a brash, somewhat phony but adventurous American. Fantastic, beautiful, on location scenery in Thailand: places I had been, that I had seen. It has great narrative from the book. A great haunting soundtrack (UNKLE, Moby, Leftfield, Underworld). It's also got a kind of innocent magic to it-- which, i can tell you from traveling, is true and real-- and then the loss of that magic, which is also part of the story. Give it a chance, forget what other people say.

Weak
2009-11-15 - After 1/2 hour of watching I turned it off. It just wasn't my idea of interesting. Plus the fact that I'm NOT a pot smoker, so I couldn't relate.

Good!
2009-05-29 - good effort here. It's an interesting view of a uptopian effort and how it can go seriously wrong.

Life's a Beach.
2009-05-25 - Richard (Leonardo DiCaprio) is back packer traveling Thailand. A tourist that hates tourism. He loathes the fact that people travel to new places, to do exactly what they do at home. Live in a nice place, go to regular restaurants, and watch TV. When he finds a crummy run down hotel room, he's unexpectedly visited by a man, by the name of Daffy, that seems a tad crazy and is talking about an island that is the meaning of perfection. The island has a beach inside of it that is closed off, mainly, from the ocean. White sands, crystal clear waters, the peacefulness people say they'll make their 3rd Genie wish on, and all the weed a man can smoke for the rest of his life. Of course Richard doesn't completely believe him, but Daffy make him a map, and Richard decides to stop doing the normal thing, and to go and find this island. But who wants to die alone right? So he grabs a French couple that he said hi to earlier, and off they go to find the island. When they finally find the island, it's almost everything they dreamed of, with a twist. The island is inhabited with farmers that are very protective of their weed operation, but they allow a very small community of people to live by the secluded beach, so long as they don't tell people about the island. Richard and the two Frenchies are accepted into the community with the promise that they told no one where they were going. Life is good. Lounging, smoking, playing games, fishing, screwing, and the daily chores of island living. Until one day, when some other travelers decide to come to the island. Travelers that Richard forgot to tell the inhabitants that he gave a map too. The peaceful life is about to change.

The Beach is a trip, no pun intended. What draws me to this movie is the fact that I love traveling, and I love tropical islands. To live this life would be almost perfect for me, sans the drug farmers. While some might say the story is lacking or that the movie is slow, well, what do you think beach life is? It's exactly that. I thought the story was great, up to a point. Close to the end, Richard is made to stay in one spot to watch the newcomers who haven't swam over to the island yet, because it was his fault they were there. Well while he is waiting, he begins to go a little crazy. Ok... maybe more than a little crazy. And this is where I think the movie begins to crash. Watching him run down a path like a video game with 3 lives and a score board was just... so out of place it just totally takes me out of the movie. While some parts of it were good (like when he sneaks into the farmers sleeping area), most of it was just really dumb. But then the movie picks back up when the newcomers are welcomed with a hail of gunfire and the older inhabitants are now threatened.

Definitely a cool movie. Give it a rent though if you are thinking about watching it, because I don't think it's for everyone. I like it a lot though.

P.S. - Man I love traveling alone like the character Richard. It's crazy the amount of new people you can meet when you have no one else to talk to. I met a lot of new people when I went to Jordan to visit the Dead Sea. I'm planning a trip for Sydney, Australia in 2010. Can't wait!


The Beach Review.
2009-03-20 - When I bought this DVD I was so excited because I hadn't seen it for years. But when it finally came in the mail, I was disappointed. It was very scratched up. When I watched it, it skipped some parts and had to pause and play several times to get it to play correctly. But it's okay, it was only $3!