The Mosquito Coast (1986)

User Rating:

6.5/10   

Director:

Peter Weir

Writers:

Paul Theroux (novel)
Paul Schrader (screenplay)

Release Date:

26 November 1986 (USA)

Genre:

Adventure | Drama | Thriller

Tagline:

Allie Fox followed his dream to the Mosquito Coast. He planned a paradise. He created a Hell.

Plot:

An eccentric and dogmatic inventor sells his house and takes his family to Central America to build an ice factory in the middle of the jungle...

Plot Keywords:

Central America | Obsession | Inventor | Jungle | Ice Factory

Awards:

Nominated for 2 Golden Globes. Another 1 win & 1 nomination

Cast

Harrison Ford	...	Allie Fox
Helen Mirren	...	Mother Fox
River Phoenix	...	Charlie Fox
Conrad Roberts	...	Mr. Haddy
Andre Gregory	...	Reverend Spellgood
Martha Plimpton	...	Emily Spellgood
Dick O'Neill	...	Mr. Polski
Jadrien Steele	...	Jerry Fox
Michael Rogers	...	Francis Lungley
Hilary Gordon	...	April Fox
Rebecca Gordon	...	Clover Fox
Jason Alexander	...	Hardware Clerk
Alice Heffernan-Sneed	...	Mrs. Polski (as Alice Sneed)
Tiger Haynes	...	Mr. Semper
William Newman	...	Captain Smalls

Runtime:

117 min

Country:

USA

Language:

English | Spanish

Color:

Color (Technicolor)

Aspect Ratio:

1.85 : 1

Sound Mix:

Dolby

Certification:

Iceland:10 | South Korea:All | Netherlands:6 | Australia:PG | Argentina:13 | Finland:K-8 | Norway:12 | Spain:18 | Sweden:11 | UK:PG | USA:PG | West Germany:12 | Singapore:PG

Filming Locations:

Baltimore, Maryland, USA

Company:

The Saul Zaentz Company

Trivia:

During casting River Phoenix was passed on several times for the role of Charlie Fox for being too old (he was 15). When no age-appropriate Charlie could be found Phoenix's tape was brought again to Weir and, impressed by the actor, he decided to put the age issue to the side and give Phoenix the job.

Goofs:

Continuity: While Allie Fox and his family are being lashed by violent winds and near horizontal rain during a hurricane a couple of palm trees in the background are standing perfectly still.

Quotes:

Allie Fox: Ice is civilization!

Movie Connections:

Featured in The 44th Annual Golden Globe Awards (1987) (TV)

Soundtrack:

Chuluya Mama

wandering aimlessly upstream

The Mosquito Coast is an odd film. It attempts to talk about issues which are important and which few films address, fails to communicate them clearly, yet isn't sucked into the maelstrom of moralizing and sententiousness that films like this almost inevitably enter. Instead, it occupies some sort of odd middle ground of ambiguity and murkiness. One gets the feeling that the film is a lot like the Fox family: they know they're going upstream but they have no specific destination, and some of them really aren't sure why they're going there in the first place.

I felt from the very beginning that the film failed to define its ideals or set a sense of clear direction. Harrison Ford, in a performance which I found unconvincing (perhaps because of the inability of the film to articulate what motivated him), rambles on about everything from the Japanese to nuclear war. There's a large difference between subtlety, i.e. not spelling things out for the viewer, and incoherence. This was incoherent. We know that he's unhappy with America, but I don't know what he's really looking for, what motivates him, etc.. Maybe he doesn't know. But if that's the case, it should be made clear.

A good example of how this plays out is his attempt to bring ice to the "noble savages." Why does he do this? Because "ice is civilization." But why does he want to bring them civilization? It seemed to me that civilization was something he was having a lot of problems with. I assume that the novel explained this more clearly and the film failed to translate properly. He of course stated earlier in the film that the savages would probably think ice a sort of jewel. So? Why does this matter? Is he looking for lost innocence?

Then later in the film "Mother" says she wishes to go to Mr. Haddy's place. He responds "And live like savages?" I can only assume that he wishes to establish some sort of elementary civilization where a small community lives in peace and harmony. Or perhaps he's just looking to withdraw from everyone, as his spurning of Mr. Haddy's gifts would show. Also, a possible literary reference is the name of their craft, Victory, which is the name of a very dull Joseph Conrad novel about a man who withdraws from life and goes to live on an island. Extreme misanthropy? Unlikely.

A possible light at the end is his talk about man not being made to walk upright. Is he looking for some sort of return to primal existence? But then why invent air conditioning in Geronimo? It all adds up to a very disorganized mess, both in Mr. Fox's head, and on screen. The Mosquito Coast is like a puzzle that still has all the pieces, but rather than fit them together, Weir just threw them all in the box and let us look at them.