Expensively produced cheap entertainment--a fantasy without the treasure

Rating: 6/10 (8 December 2010)

The Beach (2000)
You want to like this movie, for sure. It's about a dream come true, if if you've ever travelled even a little in this backpacker Gringo trail kind of way, you'll feel like you're there.
But then, it's also just a movie, and it shows an indulgence now and then, an implausibility not in the big idea (which is absurd--and digitally invented, by the way, the beach part), but in certain interactions. The people are implausible, the situation, the feel good idealism. When it goes bad, it's only in a ridiculous way (the first hint is when our star, Leonardo DiCaprio, defends himself from a shark and he gets blamed for making the shark angry).
The beach itself is a kind of tropical trope (I never thought I'd get the chance to say that--tropical trope, tropical trope). That is, it is only what perfect beaches are--protected sands, aqua waters, no bugs, no snakes, no poor natives trolling for alms. It's a kind of Club Med without the corporation. So naturally it's appealing, but only in a superficial way. And the whole movie echoes this obviousness, this shallowness. Even the big conflicts are kind storybook simplistic, and a bit silly, or overly sad (near the end, with the shootings).
DiCaprio is terrific, really likable. The other famous star is Tilda Swinton who does her best in a role that maybe didn't have room for much depth--she's the ruler queen of sorts. The others I didn't know (a couple are director Danny Boyle regulars, it seems). Oh, did I say Danny Boyle? Yes, this is a film by the guy who did Slumdog Millionaire and Trainspotting, both throbbing, excessive, and amazing movies in their own ways. And probably equally insensitive (to the poor in India, the anti-drug forces), so it's no surprise that he stepped on the toes of the locals when filming "The Beach" by bulldozing the beach and ignoring protests. (The big tsunami reshaped it back to what it was, a small consolation for that disaster.)
So, if you don't mind a lot of niggling issues and downright meaninglessness, and just want to fantasize a bit, you might enjoy a lot of this movie. You might settle for Cape Cod, though, if that's your second choice.