Don't listen to the critics!

Rating: 8/10 (21 March 2000)

After Leonardo DiCaprio's very ordinary and in my opinion senseless academy nomination for his role in `Titanic', it took some time, till the rumours about his new film `The Beach' spread around. I mostly heard things like, they want to bring it into this years academy awards, or this whole environment stuff that went on because off the set building on the island. Next thing were the critics, when the film was released and their opinions about how worse `The Beach' was. Seeing the first trailer actually raised memories on `Lord of the flies' and quite weak stories about bad guys and good guys. Then the different opinions of my own friends and the belief in Leonardo as a quite good actor, as films before `Titanic' reflected, lead me into the cinema a few days ago.
And I was surprised how good this film actually was. The first few minutes showed an American Boy in a state of life, where we all want to travel around the world, escape from reality, school or university life. Just have fun and see what the world has to offer, if there is the possibility for a better life. The film had some interesting and realistic scenes from Asiatic city life, which partly reminded me, of Hong Kong. Then the idea was raised, that there might be an island, just perfect, incredible and unique. It is the reflection of a picture taken from a dream. And that's actually what the life on this island seems to be. People try to live a dream because they are sick of the hectically way our own society offers. I loved the camera images when Richard and Sal came back into the city. It was like entering a sick, wrong world. But the beach is peaceful and they try to keep it that way as long as possible. But as it is very natural, everything turns into chaos and nothing lasts forever. This maybe is cliché, but looking at the fact that even planet earth, won't be there anymore in the far future, gives a realistic, thrilling touch. The perfect dream is nothing more than a soap bubble. So reality bites in form of a shark, in form of Richard who gave the map of the island away. People were killed, the harmony totally destroyed and the dream is gone.
Richard himself is an interesting developing actor. Typical American kid, which is shown in his computer imaging mind, of the shark attack and the war game in the jungle. That's an interesting part of the film when Richard is supposed to get the map back. In his state of boredom, while not knowing what to do, he fades back into a computer society kid, that has nothing else to do when bored, than playing war games and stuff. He mixes this with the aim to get the card back and develops some kind of `fixed idea', that he might have learned so much strategy and hero images in computer games to reconstruct them which turns him nearly into a maniac.
The great camera work in the film, the acting and the plot are underlined by a wonderful soundtrack. And against most opinions I think this film is worth watching. At least to built an own opinion. I haven't read the book yet. But I'll put it on my `To-Do'-List.