"The Beach" The paradise that Danny Boyle and his friends aimed for, and its collapse

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2022.08.16Atsunobu Ushizu

"The Beach" synopsis

Bangkok, Thailand. Richard was traveling alone and was looking for inspiration. Meanwhile, Richard hears rumors of a legendary isolated island. It is said to be a dream paradise located in a place completely cut off from the outside world, so beautiful that you can be freed from everything in everyday life. Richard is skeptical, but the strange man who told him about the legendary beach suddenly dies, leaving behind a map showing the beach's location. This leads Richard to set out on a journey to find the legendary solitary island.

To be honest, ``The Beach'' (2000), directed by Danny Boyle, was released at the dawn of the new millennium, and to be honest, it is a work that has a wide range of pros and cons.

I'm having a bit of a hard time understanding what this movie is trying to say, but at the same time, I'm impressed by Danny Boyle's visual direction, which seems to be getting more and more out of control, and by his previous film, Titanic (1997). It is true that I felt an irresistible, dark charm to DiCaprio's awesomeness, which has reached a completely different level than his predecessors.

All of its good and bad points have combined to make it one of those films that I somehow find myself unable to resist the urge to watch every two or three years. It's very similar to the scene at the beginning of the movie where Robert Carlyle's character Daffy, with his pale face and bared teeth, makes a creepy invitation: "Are you interested in the beach?"

“The Beach” preview

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A thriller novel inspired by life in Southeast Asia

Alex Garland, who is now known not only as a novelist but also as a screenwriter and film director, wrote the original novel in 1996. According to an interview article, when he was in his early 20s, he had a vague desire to travel as a journalist and share the culture, information, and events unique to each region.

Although he tried living in Southeast Asia for this reason, it did not lead to work as he had envisioned, and in the end he wrote a novel based on his experiences here that expanded his imagination through his own subjectivity. will be written.

In recent years, Garland has written and directed many works that deal with AI, science, technology, etc. In comparison, the content of ``The Beach'' appears to be quite different at first glance. However, when I think back on the idea of a paradise isolated from the world, the exclusive system of coexistence that can only function in that space, and the madness and fear that overflow like a dam has been cut, I realize that ``The Beach'' is, so to speak. I can't help but think of it as the ``core'' that remains when all the trappings of Garland's later works are stripped away.

Looking at the interview article, Garland said something like, ``I wrote this as a criticism of backpacker culture itself and the use of Southeast Asia like a theme park'' (*1), and at the time of its publication, As someone who was unable to grasp the true meaning of this statement, I find it very interesting.

Furthermore, the negative history of various countries such as colonial policies that kept Southeast Asia under occupation may have something to do with this, and the main story of the movie and the original story of `` Apocalypse Now '' (1979) are similar. From these quotations, it is clear that the story is intended to relate to what the United States did in the Vietnam War (although the story is set in Thailand).

However, for better or worse, this film is more about the various episodes that happened behind the scenes of its production than simply enjoying the Arrival and story. Or rather, it should be said that it is a complete chronicle of a paradise, including behind-the-scenes stories and later stories.

Friendships and their disintegration in Trainspotting

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