The Beach (2000)

On vacation in Thailand, Richard sets out for an island rumored to be a solitary beach paradise.

Director:

Danny Boyle

Writers:

John Hodge (screenplay), Alex Garland (novel)

Stars:

Leonardo DiCaprio, Daniel York, Patcharawan Patarakijjanon

7 nominations.

Cast

Cast overview, first billed only:
Leonardo DiCaprio	...	Richard
Daniel York	...	Hustler
Patcharawan Patarakijjanon	...	Hotel Receptionist
Virginie Ledoyen	...	Françoise
Guillaume Canet	...	Étienne
Robert Carlyle	...	Daffy
Somboon Phutaroth	...	Cleaning Woman
Weeratham 'Norman' Wichairaksakui	...	Detective
Sahajak Boonthanakit	...	Travel Agent (as Jak Boon)
Peter Youngblood Hills	...	Zeph
Jerry Swindall	...	Sammy
Krongthong Thampradith	...	Woman with Key
Apichart Chusakul	...	Senior Farmer (as Abhijati 'Muek' Jusakul)
Sanya 'Gai' Cheunjit	...	Farmer
Kaneung 'Nueng' Kenia	...	Farmer

Storyline

Garland's novel centers on a young nicotine-addicted traveler named Richard, an avid pop-culture buff with a particular love for video games and Vietnam War movies. While at a hotel in Bangkok, he finds a map left by his strange, whacked-out neighbor, who just committed suicide. The map supposedly leads to a legendary island paradise where some other wayward souls have settled.

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Plot Keywords:

thailand | travel | beach | island | pretentiousness | 

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Taglines:

Somewhere on this planet it must exist.

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Genres:

Adventure | Drama | Romance | Thriller

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Motion Picture Rating (MPAA)

Rated R for violence, some strong sexuality, language and drug content

Did You Know?

Trivia

The map that Daffy gives to Richard was made by the book's author Alex Garland.

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Goofs

The tattoo on Richard's arm disappears in several shots after the tattoo is given. It's there, then gone, then reappears.

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Quotes

[first lines]
Richard: My name is Richard. So what else do you need to know? Stuff about my family, or where I'm from? None of that matters. Not once you cross the ocean and cut yourself loose, looking for something more beautiful, something more exciting and yes, I admit, something more dangerous. So after eighteen hours in the back of an airplane, three dumb movies, two plastic meals, six beers and absolutely no sleep, I finally touch down; in Bangkok.

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Connections

References Cannibal Holocaust (1980)

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Soundtracks

Richard, It's Business As Usual
Written by Barry Adamson
Performed and Produced by Barry Adamson
Courtesy of Mute Records Ltd.

User Reviews

The Beach WILL NOT DIE TODAY

The Beach is interesting in that some people feel that its terrible while there are others who feel that it is an unsung hero of a movie. When I first saw The Beach, back in 2000, I thought it was OK, not as bad as most people said it was. But, just like with A Life Less Ordinary, The Beach grew on me and I had to watch it again. After seeing it a few more times I really started to pick up on what was going on and realized that at the end of the film the viewer has gone through quite an adventure with Dicaprio and co. The acting, cinematography, music, and story are great and hold up after repeat viewings. The Beach is one of those movies that I watch once a year as its enjoyability never decreases. This is a very solid film that will no doubt only increase in its popularity as time goes by as fans of The Beach are quite hardcore. Even though Dany Boyle has said that he is not very proud of The Beach I believe that he's made a gross error and misjudged his work because even after all these years The Beach still has a freshness to it that most films lose while they are still in the theaters. Because of these reasons The Beach will not die today.

Details

Country:

USA UK

Language:

English French Swedish Thai Serbian

Release Date:

11 February 2000 (USA)

Also Known As:

The Beach

Filming Locations:

Thailand

Box Office

Budget:

$50,000,000 (estimated)

Opening Weekend USA:

$15,277,921, 13 February 2000

Gross USA:

$39,785,027

Cumulative Worldwide Gross:

$144,056,873

Company Credits

Production Co:

Figment Films

Technical Specs

Runtime:

119 min

Sound Mix:

Dolby Digital

Color:

Color

Aspect Ratio:

2.35 : 1