In 1980, Randal Kleiser's remake of The Blue Lagoon had its critics well and truly divided. On the one hand adolescent nudity, however tasteful, was enough to give the censors the vapours. On the other, the story--essentially a reworking of Robinson Crusoe based on Stacpoole's Edwardian adventure novel with two young children as the castaways growing up on a desert island--seemed just too removed from reality. Kleiser set out to make "the ultimate South Seas film", and indeed the location shooting is a richly beautiful complement to the intimate tale of two young people... coming to terms with their own adulthood. He teases out touching performances from Brooke Shields (Emmeline) and Christopher Atkins (Richard) as the marooned pair, and a nicely ambivalent cameo from Leo McKern as Paddy, the ship's cook who gets them set up on the island before rum gets the better of him. A stilted script helps none of them. But the moments of awkward self-discovery and dawning sexuality are handled with a tenderness which ultimately triumphs over some of the more implausible elements: Shields' perpetually manicured nails, for example, or the fact that she unexpectedly gives birth without breaking sweat. To say nothing of the pair's extraordinary home-building skills, which would have been beyond the remit of the average Edwardian governess to teach. Today, for all its efforts to be taken seriously as a tale of preserved innocence and discovery, it succeeds best as a good old-fashioned adventure. On the DVD: This widescreen presentation positively bulges with extras. A choice of director's commentaries means that you can hear Randal Kaiser (who had previously directed Grease) reminiscing in fine detail with writer Douglas Day Stewart, and both Brooke Shields and Christopher Atkins. Some might think this overkill for a non-landmark film, but the discussions are genuinely interesting. The film was clearly a formative experience in Shields' adolescent career --she has also provided an album of personal snapshots as another extra--and it is fascinating to hear her talk about it from her current position as a star of sophisticated television sitcom. The crystal-clear digital remastering and anamorphic stereo picture and sound quality of the main film don't extend to this scratchy, sometimes inaudible documentary. --Piers Ford [show more]
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Randal Kleiser directs this adventure drama starring Brooke Shields and Christopher Atkins. Cousins Richard (Atkins) and Emmeline Lestrange (Shields) find themselves shipwrecked on an uninhabited South Pacific island with cook Paddy Button (Leo McKern) who raises and cares for them. As the years pass, they come to accept their new home, living in harmony with nature and enjoying the island's exotic beauty; then, with the onset of adolescence, they experience their sexual awakening unconstrained by the rules of civilisation.
Please note this is a region 2 DVD/ region B Blu-ray and will require a region 2 or region free DVD/Blu-ray player in order to play. The lush beauty and splendour of a South Pacific paradise is vividly captured in this version of Henry De Vere Stacpoole’s 1903 novel.Two small children and a ship’s cook survive a shipwreck and find safety on an idyllic tropical island. Soon, however, the cook dies and the young boy and girl are left on their own. Days become years and Emmeline (Brooke Shields) and Richard (Christopher Atkins) make a home for themselves surrounded by exotic creatures and nature’s beauty.They learn to cope with the bewildering variety of physical and emotional changes that come with adolescence. As they begin to mature, their childhood affections lead to a sensitive and more profound love. But will they ever see civilisation again? Actors: Brooke Shields, Christopher AtkinsDirectors: Randal KleiserFormat: CD+DVDLanguage: EnglishSubtitles For The Hearing Impaired: EnglishRegion: Region B/2 (Read more about DVD/Blu-ray formats.)Aspect Ratio: 16:9 - 1.85:1Number of discs: 2
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