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Leonardo DiCaprio, Tilda Swinton, Virginie Ledoyen, Guillaume Canet, Paterson Joseph ... see more see more... , Robert Carlyle , Peter Youngblood Hills , Jerry Swindall , Lars Arentz Hansen , Joshua Cole , Helene de Fougerolles , Victoria Smurfit , Stacy A. Hart , Daniel York , Raweeporn Srimonju , Daniel Caltagirone , Peter Gevisser , Staffan Kihlbom , Abhijati Jusakul , Michael R. Thorpe , Jukka Hiltunen , Bindu De Stoppani , Zelda Tinska , Myriam Acharki , Somchai Santitarangkul , Kawee "Seng" Sirikanerat , Somboon Phutaroth , Weeratham "Norman" Wichairaksakul , Jak Boon , Krongthong Thampradith , Sanya "Gai" Cheunjit , Kaneung "Nueng" Kenla , Somkuan "Kuan" Siroon , Lidija Zovkic , Samue Gough , Magnus Lindgren , Andrew Carmichael , Nina Jacques , Sheriden Jones , Gunilla Karlson , Sian Martin , Isabella Seibert , Elizabeth Thomas , Timothy Webster , Ramon Woolfe , Saskia Mulder , Simone Huber , Patcharawan Patarakijjanon

For his first major project after the overwhelming success of Titanic, Leonardo Di Caprio took a risky path in this adaptation of Alex Garland's acclaimed novel, directed by Danny Boyle. Richard (Di C... read more read more...aprio) is an American backpacking through Asia with a handful of friends from Europe. While in Bangkok, he meets a mad Scotsman who calls himself Daffy Duck (Robert Carlyle). Shortly before Mr. Duck kills himself, he gives Richard a crude map to a place in Thailand that he claims is paradise on earth: beautiful, unspoiled, and uninhabited. For lack of anything better to do, Richard and his companions try to locate the spot, which, after a dangerous and taxing journey, takes them to a beach as beautiful as Duck said it would be. Richard and his friends settle in, but before long they discover that they are not alone; a large group of fellow travelers has already dug themselves in, and they have established a community with the same social evils that Richard was hoping to leave behind. Just as important, there is an army of natives who grow marijuana in the nearby hills and do not appreciate the presence of these visitors. The Beach proved controversial during production, partly due to production delays and shifting release dates, partly due to environmental concerns after crew members bulldozed parts of the Thai island of Phi Phi Le for the planting of non-native trees. ~ Mark Deming, Rovi

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59% liked it

193,593 ratings

Critics

19% liked it

116 critics

R, 2 hr.

Directed by: Danny Boyle

Release Date: February 11, 2000

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DVD Release Date: January 9, 2001

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Stats: 7,596 reviews

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Flixster Reviews (7,596)

  • thmtsang
    May 13, 2012
    thmtsang
    Excellent story with breathtaking scenery set in Thailand. Leo's character Richard is an American tourist and he embarks on an adventure to find a paradise island. But at what price? My favourite scenes are when Francoise pretends to be eaten by a shark, when they debate how they... read more are to get down from the waterfall and the scene where they are together in the water. Excellent cast and soundtrack. Directed by Danny Boyle.
  • paulkoh110
    December 27, 2011
    paulkoh110
    The film goes all over the place and in the end barely saves itself. The acting is good but nothing special and Boyle's directing wasn't exactly there. More of an exercise with a big budget, Boyle uses new techniques to grab our attention but ultimately leaves most viewers unsati... read moresfied.
  • cosmo313
    October 9, 2011
    cosmo313
    This is the film adaptation of a novel about an American (British in the novel) backpacker named Richard traveling through Thailand to see the world and experience new things. Richard is getting fed up with the way the world has become, and, as luck would have it, he gets word of... read more an oft talked about secluded island paradise off the Thai coast that few people know about, especially how to get there. It's the stuff of legends, but one day Richard meets a disturbed Scotsman named Daffy who tells him the island and its beach are real, and gives him a map to it before committing suicide.

    Intrigued, and with nothing better to do, Richard meets up with a French couple and the three of them set out to find the isalnd and its beach, to see if maybe it really is thing they've all been looking for. They do manage to find it, but quickly learn that dreams of reaching a paradise are best left as dreams.

    As a concept and a novel (I'm guessing, since I haven't read it). the scenario here is wonderful and works quite amazingly. With how it is done in this film however, it falls short of greatness and could have used some work. It does have some good things going for it though, so, even though I wanted more, I liked this enough to give it a pass.

    This film was a bit of a rough transition period of DiCaprio. He had yet to shed the image movies like Titanic and Romeo + Juliet had given him, and he doesn't quite suceed at disposing of it here. He does decent enough, though I think diertor Danny Boyle's go to guy Ewan McGregor would have been a better fit. It's just too bad he and Boyle got into a dispute and the studio basically forced DiCaprio into things. Like I said, he's okay though, even though I think this character seems a little "typical" or obvious for someone like him. Tilda Swinton does a good job as the bigwig in paradise though, and Robert Carlyle does his thing as Daffy.

    This film skirts around elements of subtext and deeper themes and messages, but mroe often than not, the focus is on hedonsim and half baked idealism. I know Boyle is a smart and talented filmmaker, so I'm not sure if he just didn't give a shit here, wanted to lighten it up, or if the studio was responsible. At least the film touches upon thigns even if it doesn't totally expound upon or focus on them like I hoped for.

    Look, this film is flawed, and I am being pretty kind to it, but it isn't boring, and the music is nice too. The best things going for it, as you might have guessed, are the location shooting and the cinematography. This film picked a great place to shoot at, and the results don't disappoint. The landscapes look awesome, and even the scenes on the mainland really come alive. It just kinda sucks that the film sirals out of focus now and then. I'm okay with showing descents into madness, and bringing odd hallucinations to life, but the madness thign has been done far better, and I was easily reminded me of that since this film not so subtly features Apocalypse Now. Also I get why they have the video game sequence, but it just comes off as silly.

    So yeah, I'm letting myself get won over against my better judgment, but look, I did address the issues I have, and I think I gave a pretty balanced account of things. I like this kind of movie, and it at least put forth some effort to be good, even if it didn't totally succeed.
  • TheDudeLebowski65
    August 28, 2011
    TheDudeLebowski65
    The Beach started off well enough and it kept my interest until the middle. After that, the film went down hill, and I felt that performances were too wooden and boring. This film had potential, and considering Danny Boyle made this, you'd expect something terrific. But the film ... read morejust ended up being a total waste of time. What's really a shame is that there's a great cast that star in this film, but not even them can hold this picture together. I think it's a shame, because The Beach started off in such a way that you thought the film would end on a high note. Alas, it was not to be. The ending was awful, and it ruined everything that was good about the film. The Beach looses its fire halfway through the film, and the story becomes ridiculous. I think The Beach missed the mark in terms of effective storytelling, and it's apparent that the filmmakers are struggling with the material at hand because the end result is a film that misses the mark. I had high hopes for this film, and I was let down. This is not Danny Boyle's finest hour that's for sure. There's a good cast at work here, but because of the script obvious limitations, no one can really deliver on screen. The result is a film that tries too hard to entertain and result is a mediocre film that fails to keep you interested till the very end. I found myself struggling to finish watching this, and once I did finish it, I asked myself, why did I even bother? A good cast is wasted here, and a potentially good story is absolutely ruined by a terrible second half that makes the first half obsolete.
  • Tomassgringo
    January 5, 2011
    Tomassgringo
    In my opinion, the only real issue I had with this movie was - it was too long! Far too much time is spent on certain elements of the movie that could have been edited better. I know for sure I enjoyed it much more than most of my friends and maybe going into it with low expect... read moreations helped me enjoy it more.
  • MeetMeinMontauk
    December 27, 2010
    MeetMeinMontauk
    Well I think where this film loses it is in the story and direction. And that is a very bad thing. There were elements presented that went nowhere. And it seemed scattered and divided like everyone forgot the purpose of the movie halfway through. I think it also attempted WAY too... read more much. A little Lord of the Flies, a little disillusionment of our youth, a little who cares? I mean who actually cared about the characters with all the themes going on?
    Had some gorgeous shots and some neat effect ideas, like the video game part, but it wasn't all weaved together and connected. Not DiCaprio's best. Though really, he was fine in it.
    Also, the soundtrack and some of the stylistic techniques, were CRAZY dated,
  • garyX
    October 3, 2010
    garyX
    A traveller in Thailand encounters a manic stranger who entrusts him with a map to a secret island paradise. The Beach feels very much like a hangover from the 90s in that it makes the same mistakes many films of that particular decade made; namely it mistakenly assumes that a fe... read morew smug new age platitudes and pop music are a substitute to depth of plot or characterisation. Much of the film feels like a cross between a travelogue and an australian soap opera as a bunch of insufferably self obsessed hedonists play at Robinson Crusoe, shag and play beach sports. I can't really fault DiCaprio's performance as he does the best he can with what he's got to work with but all of the characters are so difficult to care about that I just never gave a crap. It got a bit more interesting towards the end when Leo goes batshit but it's marred by some horrible directorial gimmicks (the videogame sequence being the worst offender) and it just takes an eternity to get to the meaty stuff which is over with far too quickly. It has some very nice scenery and Robert Carlyle puts in a memorable cameo but otherwise it's about as exciting as a two hour long tourist infomercial.
  • MizturY0da
    September 8, 2010
    MizturY0da
    3 stars
  • LorenzoVonMatterhorn
    September 8, 2010
    LorenzoVonMatterhorn
    "And me, I still believe in paradise. But now at least I know it's not some place you can look for, 'cause it's not where you go. It's how you feel for a moment in your life when you're a part of something, and if you find that moment... it lasts forever..."

    Twenty-someth... read moreing Richard travels to Thailand and finds himself in possession of a strange map. Rumours state that it leads to a solitary beach paradise, a tropical bliss - excited and intrigued, he sets out to find it.

    REVIEW

    No matter what you think of it, Danny Boyle's "The Beach" deserves credit for not being forgotten, for still provoking discussion so many years after its release. I've never met anyone who has seen it who didn't have a clearly-formed opinion on it, nor anyone who had seen it but forgotten it. It has its defenders, but its reputation is still quite bad, and it's probably regarded as a turkey more often than it is defended as a misunderstood great.

    Truth is, it's neither a complete disaster (although I haven't read the supposedly great book it's based on, which might affect my opinion) nor a great or even particularly good film. It's about half a watchable movie, mostly thanks to the first hour or so, which sets up the events of the final hour, and where DiCaprio is doing just fine with his role. The film starts entering turkey mode about an hour in, and reaches a climax of absurdity when DiCaprio, now morphed into Tarzan, is put in a stylized video game sequence. Come on Danny, we know you're better than that.

    I actually like DiCaprio as an actor, but I'm not sure what the hell he's doing in about half of this movie, though he's hardly completely to blame, considering the half-baked, bizarre, screwed up freak of a script here. It seems like a good enough idea on paper: adapt cult novel using the same team that made "Trainspotting", also adapted from a cult novel, such a big hit (same producer, screenwriter, and director). Perhaps "The Beach" just shouldn't have been adapted, because the 'philosophy' here, and any supposed 'depth' ends up being absolutely ludicrous, and much of the latter half of the film is just plain bad. Still, I've seen too many truly bad films, ones where gouging my eyes out became an option half-way through, to hate this film. The first half is too watchable and it just looks too good to really be the complete disaster many say it is. It's a missed opportunity, but visually gorgeous and probably worth a curiosity viewing.
  • TheGame90
    June 19, 2010
    TheGame90
    I liked this one....feelt like a somewhat unique story. and DiCaprio is funny when he gets angry. But I have obviously seen the ending before

View All The Beach Reviews

Critic Reviews

Lisa Alspector
April 6, 2010
Lisa Alspector, Chicago Reader

A narrative that tries to juggle thriller elements, tons of pop culture imagery, and way too much philosophical baggage. Full Review

Rick Groen
March 22, 2002
Rick Groen, Globe and Mail

Ultimately, it seems more bland than bad. Full Review

Peter Travers
May 11, 2001
Peter Travers, Rolling Stone

The Beach, designed to provoke audiences, stops for too many Hollywood moments to get the job done.

(CNN.com) Paul Clinton
January 1, 2000
(CNN.com) Paul Clinton, CNN.com

The Beach is beautiful, everyone has a lovely tan. But it's nothing to write home about. Full Review

John Anderson
January 1, 2000
John Anderson, Newsday

The Beach needed a director, because it's a little tough to tell what Danny Boyle was doing all those months in Thailand.

Jay Carr
January 1, 2000
Jay Carr, Boston Globe

It's Beach Blanket Bingo revisited, but with a Eurocast and more exotic locations.

Amy Taubin
January 1, 2000
Amy Taubin, Village Voice

Plays like a combination of The Blue Lagoon and a video game. Full Review

Stephanie Zacharek
January 1, 2000
Stephanie Zacharek, Salon.com

Lacks imagination and energy. Full Review

Ernest Hardy
January 1, 2000
Ernest Hardy, Film.com

The Beach wears its self-importance on its sleeve, but never truly earns it.

Michael Wilmington
January 1, 2000
Michael Wilmington, Chicago Tribune

A movie that tries to take us from heaven to hell but winds up leaving us in limbo: exasperated and dumfounded.

Critic ratings and reviews powered by RottenTomatoes.com

Fresh (60% or more critics rated the movie positively)

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Facts

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    • Richard: That is an ASSHOLE idea!
    • Richard: You hope and you dream. But you never believe that something's gonna happen for you. Not like it does in the movies. And when it actually does, you expected to feel different, more visceral, more real. I was waiting for it to hit me.
    • Richard: Trust me, it's paradise. This is where the hungry come to feed. For mine is a generation that circles the globe and searches for something we haven't tried before. So never refuse an invitation, never resist the unfamiliar, never fail to be polite and never outstay the welcome. Just keep your mind open and suck in the experience. And if it hurts, you know what? It's probably worth it.
    • Richard: And me, I still believe in paradise. But now at least I know it's not some place you can look for, 'cause it's not where you go. It's how you feel for a moment in your life when you're a part of something, and if you find that moment... it lasts forever.
    • Richard: No offence an' all, but, you're fucked in the head, right?
    • Francoise: Richard, this is just the kind of pretentious bullshit that Americans always say to French girls so they can sleep with them.
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