Review of The Island (1980) by Dv8Ntnt A — 07 Aug 2007

I read online, that this film was criticized heavily for being unrealistic, silly and boring. In 1980, fine, but in 2007, when films like Transformers and Die Hard 4.less are making their way onto our screens, I'm not holding it's unrealistic plot against it.

This film would gain a rather large fanbase in the 21st century if it was rereleased, because basically, this is a 120-minute film, which tells us everything that the hit TV series Lost has failed to do in three series. Because this film is Lost. The producers of Lost have seen the marketability of this film in the 21st century, and done very well. They've produced an utterly awful television programme, made bucketloads of money, and The Island is getting none of the credit.

Blair Maynard (Michael Caine) and his son, Justin, go on holiday to the Caribbean, where hundreds of boats have gone missing in the last few years. While out fishing, they are attacked by a hoard of pirates, and taken to their island, where Maynard is kept as a prisoner, and Justin is brainwashed as a pirate.

It features a plane crash, women being kept for breeding purposes due to special circumstances on the island, and a bunch of pirates, ie. The Others. Lost is a complete rip-off of The Island.

It's also quite eye-opening in this day and age, when Justin is brainwashed to think and act like a pirate, just like people are being brainwashed to become terrorists. The change can happen in just a few days. It's a very interesting subplot.

Peter Benchley wrote the original book upon which the film was based. He's the chap that wrote Jaws (Jaws, ah yes, a very realistic plot...doesn't that have 100% on RT?), but otherwise has had little writing success. The Island is directed by Michael Ritchie, and the same production duo of David Brown and Richard Zanuck team-up. They've done an excellent job, yet again.