"Paradise Hills" is a visually arresting film with a great basic plot...that, unfortunately, pretty much falls to pieces by the time the story ends. Sad...as the film initially hooked me and it had the potential for greatness.
Uma's family wants her to marry a man she hates. The marriage will save the bankrupt family...and they are essentially willing to sell Uma to save their fortunes. How do they arrange to have her agree to marry this man who she feels is responsible for her father's death? Well, it all begins with Uma awakening on a strange otherworldly island where lots of uncooperative rich girls have been sent ostensibly for reprogramming.
The notion of 'bad girls' being drugged or mind-altered to make them 'nice' really caught my attention and I loved the film....at least for a while. However, towards the end, the story became sloppy and insane. Insane? Yes, the island turns out to be run by some sort of weird creature. Huh?! Was this necessary? No...in fact it was pretty dumb and annoyed me to death. It's a shame, as up until this goofy ending, it was great....and PARTS of the ending were also great. But the monster bit....UGGH!!! It was as if you were watching "Gone With the Wind" and in the end Rhett Butler boarded a UFO and left planet Earth!!
In addition. the amazing sets and costumes, while initially arresting and amazing, simply DON'T make any sense once you learn the fates of the girls on the island. Imagine spending many many millions to make a cool looking island...only to kill them by the end of their stay. Why are these props even necessary?? I especially say this about the bizarro carousel horse...which you simply must see to believe. All style...but no substance.
Now these are NOT the only problems with the film. My daughter watched the movie with me and she really, really hated it. When she explained why, I was also pretty made. After all, the story is about four girls. The bisexual (or perhaps gay) character, the fat girl and the Asian girl were all killed by the end...and only the super-skinny white straight girl survived. What sort of message is this telling kids who see the film?! You'd think they would have avoided these cheap bits of formula...but they didn't.
Uma's family wants her to marry a man she hates. The marriage will save the bankrupt family...and they are essentially willing to sell Uma to save their fortunes. How do they arrange to have her agree to marry this man who she feels is responsible for her father's death? Well, it all begins with Uma awakening on a strange otherworldly island where lots of uncooperative rich girls have been sent ostensibly for reprogramming.
The notion of 'bad girls' being drugged or mind-altered to make them 'nice' really caught my attention and I loved the film....at least for a while. However, towards the end, the story became sloppy and insane. Insane? Yes, the island turns out to be run by some sort of weird creature. Huh?! Was this necessary? No...in fact it was pretty dumb and annoyed me to death. It's a shame, as up until this goofy ending, it was great....and PARTS of the ending were also great. But the monster bit....UGGH!!! It was as if you were watching "Gone With the Wind" and in the end Rhett Butler boarded a UFO and left planet Earth!!
In addition. the amazing sets and costumes, while initially arresting and amazing, simply DON'T make any sense once you learn the fates of the girls on the island. Imagine spending many many millions to make a cool looking island...only to kill them by the end of their stay. Why are these props even necessary?? I especially say this about the bizarro carousel horse...which you simply must see to believe. All style...but no substance.
Now these are NOT the only problems with the film. My daughter watched the movie with me and she really, really hated it. When she explained why, I was also pretty made. After all, the story is about four girls. The bisexual (or perhaps gay) character, the fat girl and the Asian girl were all killed by the end...and only the super-skinny white straight girl survived. What sort of message is this telling kids who see the film?! You'd think they would have avoided these cheap bits of formula...but they didn't.