The Beach

M

mcalano77

New member
I only watched this last night, and was pleasantly surprised, I was expecting it to be absolutely dire, but it turned out to be quite enjoyable. Anyone else got some views on it?

W.
 
yeah i actually really enjoyed it, ive seen it twice now :)

I thought it was gonna be REALLY awful, but turned out to be quite a good film...
 
I have this film - I enjoy it too. Must get the book. My fav scene is the glowing shrimps.........and I love the little twist toward the end of it.

:D

yep, its a yep-yep from me.
 
I saw this film a while ago, but I didn't know what to expect either. But I thought it was a really good film and would recommend it to anyone.
 
I saw "The Beach" when it first came out at the cinema, and I enjoyed it too. Mind you I might be a bit biased as I love Danny Boyle's films.

My only question about this film is, was Leonardo the right actor for the lead character? I thought he was OK but I was wondering if a different lead could have that film even better.

Whitey
 
I saw "The Beach" when it first came out at the cinema, and I enjoyed it too. Mind you I might be a bit biased as I love Danny Boyle's films.

My only question about this film is, was Leonardo the right actor for the lead character? I thought he was OK but I was wondering if a different lead could have that film even better.

Whitey
 
I think he done ok, much better than I thought he would. Maybe someone like jude law would have done a better job, and made the film 5*. There again you might thing he's a shite actor and only detracted from the film :confused:
 
I saw it when it first came out too, and I'd read the book a year or so beforehand. I enjoyed the film, but enjoyed it much more watching it the other night.
I think Leonardo was fine for the part. The only trouble was, he'd just made Titanic and The (crappy) Three Musketeers and was being hailed as the next white hope, so a lot of hype went with the role.
Unusually for me, I preferred the film to the book. I found Alex Garland's prose a bit hard to get interested in. It seemed to hint at more than it delivered. Tilda Swinton was also excellent casting.
 
No, I think they could have found someone much better instead of just an actor with a big name. I don't think he was the right person to play Richard ... just something about his presence. All wrong. Plus he looks twelve and I can't stand his voice/accent (which is made worse by all the narrating in the film). Stuart Townsend would have been a better Richard, IMO.

I did not like this movie at all. The entire time I was waiting for it to end. They left a very important character out (Jed) and messed up the ones they left in ... I wanted to punch Francoise in the face every time she opened her mouth.

Can you tell I didn't like it? :D
 
Read the book - Loved it

Film came out - ruthlessley slated in reviews so avoided it for a while...

Eventually saw it on DVD and thought it was really good!
 
I read that Ewan McGregor was originally cast in the part of Richard by the film-makers (with whom he had worked on Shallow Grave and Trainspotting) but this whole idea was rethought once Leonardo DiCaprio expressed interest in the role.

This article (from last year) covers the story:

http://www.news24.com/News24/Entertainment/Movies-News/0,,2-1225-1235_1166796,00.html

The film is aesthetically great, but misses some of the major themes of the book: Richard's very real sense of alienation, for example (in the book, as I recall, he doesn't sleep with anyone, though someone correct me if I am wrong - in the film we see Leo having sex with at least 2 of the main female characters, if I remember rightly). Also, the idea that you don't always get what you want - in the book, Richard never gets to be with Francoise and she is like an idea to him rather than a reality - much like the beach's "perfect" community is. Maybe if he had managed to be with her the dream would have fallen apart just like the community did.
 
He was cast away from the group when they found out about the map he had left behind, he had to look out for the surfers on the other side of the island. This is when he gets all messed up.
Not sure if the book actually makes him a recluse for all of his time on the island, but the film certainly made him like that in this section :)
 
I've got it on DVD and its quite an OK film - Its nice and gentle, a bit like castaway. I occasionally stick it on just for a bit of dreamy TV.

Plus that french chick gets her baps out! :D
 
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