Beauty over content

Rating: Null/10 (20 February 2000)

As an avid, British movie fan, the prospect of Figment's fourth movie outing, an adaptation of Alex Garland's stunning debut novel, excited me greatly. Despite all the negative publicity, things seemed promising. Trainspotting, Figment's finest work, was also an adaptation of a cult novel, so I felt convinced that John Hodge (screenplay writer) would do a great job. And I also felt that Leonardo was right for the role of Richard; and let's not forget, a great actor. The trailers were wonderful: the cinematography appeared stunning, and the soundtrack sounded awesome.
So, on the opening night, there I was, expecting something wonderful. And sadly, I was disappointed. The film starts well, there's no denying it. For the first ten minutes or so I thought I was safe. But after that, it just went downhill. Yes, the cinematography, and indeed the cast, were as beautiful as the trailer promised. And yes, the soundtrack was superb - Porcelain, noteably. However, all the subtleties of character and complicated group dynamics which rendered the book so fascinating were totally removed. Rather than opting for an intelligent adaptation of the book, Figment had gone for a grossly over-simplistic sex-on-the-beach story.
I don't blame Danny Boyle (director). He does a fairly good job, and there are moments in the film which undeniably capture the spirit of the novel. I blame John Hodge, who I know is capable of so much more. But Trainspotting was written for a British audience for reasons of artistic merit. The Beach was written to keep Fox and Leonardo DiCaprio happy. Their target audience was not cynical British fans of the book, such as myself, but for a worldwide market, and Leo's fans. But I still feel they should have struck more of a balance.
Don't get me wrong, it's not a bad film. From the interviews with Leo that I read, he seemed to understand his character in the book very well. And the first and last handful of scenes are just right. Maybe I was wrong to expect Figment to be able to condense everything in the book into a film that wouldn't last about two and a half hours, with rambling voiceovers and the like, but I think if Figment were still making films for a small audience, and not trying to please the masses, this is what they would have done. But having said that, if they were doing that, it's unlikely they could have afforded to do what they have. So it's a no-win situation. So it would appear that the process of making the film better reflects the impossibility of achieving perfection than the film itself.