The Book Isn't THAT Much Better...

Rating: 7/10 (5 September 2005)

THE BEACH (3+ outta 5 stars) Most people who are familiar with the book deride this movie as if it was a crime of the highest magnitude. Well, having read the book and not being overly fond of it (it was a good, light read and nothing more) I judge the movie to be a fine adaptation. Sure, they had to chop out some characters and situations and speed things along because it is only a 2 hour movie... but I think what they kept in is reasonably entertaining. The plot, dialogue and acting are all up to par. The movie as a whole may not be up there with "Trainspotting" or "28 Days Later"... but as a "star vehicle" for rising young actor Leonardo DiCaprio it does the job... and the result isn't something that he should be overly embarrassed about as it keeps popping up in his resume. A young, pretentious American goes abroad to experience life as regular tourists seldom do. He hears of a mysterious island that is supposedly the closest thing to paradise on Earth.. but once he gets there he learns that people and paradise don't mix well together. The movie is not nearly as bad as the reviews of the time would have you believe... it's also not nearly as deep and profound as fans of the book would have you believe.