Exit to Eden (1994)

Elliot is going to the island of Eden to live out his submissive fantasies, but inadvertently photographs diamond smugglers at work. Smugglers, and detectives, follow him to the island, ... See full summary »

Director:

Garry Marshall

Writers:

Anne Rice (novel), Deborah Amelon (screenplay),

Stars:

Dana Delany, Paul Mercurio, Rosie O'Donnell

2 wins & 2 nominations.

Cast

Cast overview, first billed only:
Dana Delany	...	Lisa Emerson
Paul Mercurio	...	Elliot Slater
Rosie O'Donnell	...	Sheila Kingston
Dan Aykroyd	...	Fred Lavery
Hector Elizondo	...	Dr. Martin Halifax
Stuart Wilson	...	Omar Tillington
Iman	...	Nina Blackstone
Sean O'Bryan	...	Tommy Miller
Stephanie Niznik	...	Diana
Phil Redrow	...	Richard
Sandra Taylor	...	Riba (as Sandra Korn)
Julie Hughes	...	Julie
Laurelle Mehus	...	Heidi
Tom Hines	...	Nolan
Alison Moir	...	Kitty (as Allison Moir)

Storyline

Elliot is going to the island of Eden to live out his submissive fantasies, but inadvertently photographs diamond smugglers at work. Smugglers, and detectives, follow him to the island, where they try to retrieve the film. Elliot begins falling in love with Lisa, the head mistress of the island, and Lisa must evaluate her feelings about Elliot and her own motivations.

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Plot Keywords:

island | love | smuggler | mistress | bondage | 

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Taglines:

To crack this case, these two cops will have to flash more than their badges.

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Genres:

Comedy | Thriller

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Motion Picture Rating (MPAA)

Rated R for nudity and sex-related scenes

Details

Country:

USA

Language:

English

Release Date:

14 October 1994 (USA)

Also Known As:

Club Eden: L'Île aux fantasmes

Filming Locations:

Los Angeles, California, USA

Box Office

Gross:

$6,841,570 (USA)

Company Credits

Production Co:

Savoy Pictures

Technical Specs

Runtime:

113 min

Sound Mix:

Dolby

Color:

Color (Technicolor)

Aspect Ratio:

1.85 : 1

Did You Know?

Trivia

When the film was originally released on October 14, 1994, in North America, it was banned in the Canadian province of Saskatchewan (the only place it was banned). When asked in an interview about it, Dan Aykroyd quipped; "I guess they just don't have sex in Saskatchewan." It was finally released a mere week after its original release date (October 21, 1994) to Saskatchewan audiences.

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Goofs

After Detective Shelia has asked for Elliot and he comes to her room, Elliot is telling her he wants to leave to go to the race. The leaves hanging behind Shelia appear and disappear with each camera change. As she sits down, you can see it's a vine hanging down to the wardrobe handle but the length changes as the scene plays out.

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Quotes

Sheila Kingston: A guy takes off his pants to *leave* my room. Hm.

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Crazy Credits

Hector Elizondo's title credit is prefixed by 'As Usual', referring to the number of times Elizondo has appeared in films directed by Garry Marshall

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Connections

References Gilligan's Island (1964)

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Soundtracks

"Pumpin' Jumpin'"
Written by Stephen Theard and Derrick Xavier Gumbus (as Derrick Gumbus)
Performed by New World Beat
Courtesy of Windswept Pacific Entertainment Co.

User Reviews

'Wacky' Comedy/Bondage Romance Mix Fails At Both...

One thing can be said about veteran director Garry Marshall; he'll go nearly ANYWHERE for love and laughs.

EXIT TO EDEN may be about as unlikely a mainstream comedy/romance as you'll find, with most of the action occurring at a 'Club Med'-type resort catering to S&M devotees, but someone, somewhere, might have been able to pull it off...but not, unfortunately, the ever-conventional Marshall, who, try as he might, can't make either the comedy (as two cops attempt to infiltrate the club to capture a fugitive 'hiding out' among the 'mistresses' and 'slaves') or the love story (as a somewhat jaded 'mistress' discovers the joys of conventional romance with a mysterious newcomer) more than mildly entertaining.

The main problem is miscasting; while a Dan Aykroyd/Rosie O'Donnell team-up might have looked good on paper, on film the two actors have virtually no chemistry together. Aykroyd is better as a 'straight man' than comic, and, as age has given him a 'cuddly' quality (along with extra pounds), the edginess he displayed in THE BLUES BROTHERS or even DRAGNET is gone. O'Donnell, on the other hand, is TOO edgy, and can become annoying quite easily. Her one-liners seem contrived and often mean-spirited...and Rosie in leather is a sight I've been trying to forget for 10 years! Dana Delany fares somewhat better, as the Number 1 Dominatrix (her voluptuous curves, encased in leather, and brief nude scenes have made EXIT TO EDEN a video store favorite), but her personality, fundamentally sweet-natured (more 'Girl Next Door' than 'Supervixen') plays against her. She is simply too 'nice' for her role! Coming off best is Australian newcomer Paul Mercurio, in his first American film. With a twinkle in his eye, he 'plays' the S&M 'game' as a joke, championing traditional romance, and, ultimately, converts Delany to his point of view. Totally natural, Mercurio 'steals' the film from the veteran cast. He, and Marshall 'regular' Hector Elizondo are both so good, in fact, that they seem to have been 'lifted' from a different film!

EXIT TO EDEN stumbles frequently, in it's attempt to be both mainstream AND daring, and ends up being boring and a bit distasteful.

PRETTY WOMAN, it ain't!