The Blue
Lagoon
A Review By CharlieGirl
Ah, The Blue Lagoon. One of my all-time favorite films. Actually, I only saw it for the first time early in January. I didn't even get to see the entire movie, just the last half of the censored-for-tv version. I immediately went out and rented the movie, and I was NOT dissapointed. Much. I'll explain that in a while.
Of course, watching a nine-year-old tape of the movie about eight times proved to be innadequate still. The color quality wasn't so good, and the tape was just a little bit fuzzy. Soooo, I saved up my extra money, went down to the local SunCoast, and bought the DVD. At last my problems were solved. The color was SUPERB! Not only that, but it was clearer, and I was able to watch a widescreen version of the movie. The DVD also had the original "featurette", An Adventure In Film-making, which few people have seen.
And now, the summary. It might help you understand what I say later on.
--------------
Emmeline 'Em' and Richard Lestrange are cousins, shipwrecked on an island with the cook. The cook educates them on survival, then dies. They row to another part of the island and grow up together, experiencing the changes of adolesence, falling in love, and having a child together. Then, unexpectedly, they are cast out onto the sea again, and have no hope for survival. They eat some poisonous berries and go to sleep. The boat is found by their uncle Arthur, who has been searching for them. They aren't dead, just sleeping. Thus ends the movie. Whoa, that was a quick summary, especially for me! Now, on to the review.
For a longer summary of the movie, click here.
--------------
Let's start with the setting. The year is sometime in the mid-to-late 1890's. The setting is a lush tropical island (The island is actually Nanuya Levu -- nun oo yuh lay voo -- which is Fijian for "Big Turtle" or "Turtle Island" --I'm not sure which-- and which you can actually stay on). The foliage is green, but blanketed with flowers, and there are insects and birds everywhere above ground, and fish, turtles, crabs, and octupi in the sea. Nestor Almendros, the cinematographer, nearly won an award for The Blue Lagoon. That speaks for itself, but I will add that to fully appreciate the beauty, one needs to view a good copy of the movie, such as on DVD. Otherwise the colors and the shapes don't reach their full potential.
Now, the acting. This is the only part of the movie that bugs me. Christopher Atkins was in his late-teens during the filming, and this was his first acting project. It shows! He says corny things and the dialogue leaves something to be desired. Of course, these are essentially two eight-year-olds in teenage bodies. They didn't have much education. But still, an audience expects more than that. His role in this movie is "the sort-of jerk with the nice body and the goofy smile". Now, on to Brooke Shields. She'd done several projects before this, but her acting is still a little silly, and her inflections are better-suited for stage than for screen. But she plays the role of "the pretty, tiny girl with the long hair and perfect teeth and nails" that usually comes in to counter the role that Chris played. It makes a lovely cliche overall, though.
Um, about the script: Uh, no. Everything is either silly, over-the-top, or predictable. That's all I have to say on that subject.
Let's see, what else.... Oh, the love story! Again, it's predictable. As teens they start out fighting and end up making out. But it's well-done. There are catalysts (Em's injury and Richard nursing her back to health) and hinderances (Teasing each-other), and it's pretty obvious that after six years on an island, a boy and a girl would want to do something other than fish and build huts together. Nature takes it's course in a simple, gentle, tender way in this film, and I salute it for that.
Another point I want to bring up is the nudity. As children, both of their bodies are shown completely nude at times. As teenagers, they're almost always "masked" by dark water, plants, or hair. When you see Richard underwater, if you can see his face, it's Chris Atkins. With Brooke, any of her nudity, including while swimming, is a body double. The teenage Richard wears a loincloth and occasionally a vest. Em wears a variety of clothing, like a simple skirt (her hair is glued to her breasts), or a skirt and shirt, or a dress of some kind. Sometimes she and Richard are nude and sit together, and usually they're only partially shown at all in these times. This movie IS rated 'R' for those who don't know. The cut-for-tv version is rated TV-14, which, in this day and age, is a more accurate rating for the original uncut version.
So, my overall grade for the movie is a C+. But personally, I LOVE the movie, and I watch it over and over again.
Check out The Blue Lagoon at the internet movie database! Click here.