Too much of everything

Pretty good movie overall. First half was nothing special but it got better as it went along.

The best films of this genre always show a path and provide a takeaway for being a better person.

The joyful confection is coated in a sparkly gloss, bright enough to gleam from the darkest, most cynical corners.

"Return to Paradise" (1998) is about three Americans in Malaysia. Two of them are friends from New York City (Vincent Vaughn and David Conrad) and the other they meet there, an environmental-hippie type (Joaquin Phoenix). The three have a great time partying together and then the two from New York go back to the grind in the USA. Two years later they find out that their friend in Malaysia has been in prison for having too much hashish, which the three purchased together. Due to the country's severe drug laws, those considered traffickers are put to death and, unfortunately, the hippie possessed beyond the limit. He'll hang in eight days unless the other two go back and they'll all get 3 years in prison; if only one goes back it's 6 years each. Will they go back? That's the set-up of the film and it's not a spoiler since this all unfolds in the first 20 minutes, which means that most of the rest of the movie takes place in New York and focuses on whether or not the other two will go back and save their friend. Keep in mind that this was a dude they met in Malaysia so it's not like they were bosom buddies from their youth or anything.The trailer of "Return to Paradise" miss-advertised the film as a thriller largely taking place in exotic SE Asia, but that's not the case. This is a drama that involves a moral conundrum, a Christ figure and possible redemption. The story concentrates on Vaughn and Anne Heche, the latter as the lawyer of the hippie who tries to convince the other two to go back to save their friend. Complicating the situation even further is the fact that there are no legal documents involved since Malaysia is a third world country and, as such, there's no guarantee that the two will "only" get three years. And what about the other potential negative possibilities, like never making it out of the hellhole alive? This is a top of the line film and the producers went all-out to serve up a quality picture; for instance, the Malaysian prison scenes are very convincing. Also, the actors are great across the board and Vaughn proves that he can nail a dramatic role. Moreover the moral is to die for, no pun intended. Unfortunately the actors are strapped to the contrivances of the plot and I had a hard time seeing them as real people in a real situation. In other words, it seemed like the characters do this-or-that merely because the screenplay says he or she is supposed to do this-or-that at that moment. And so I was never really able to embrace them as real people, but rather as puppets manipulated by the script. Still, it's not bad and it's worth catching if you like the actors and the story trips your trigger.The film runs 111 minutes and was shot in New York City, Thailand, New Jersey, Philadelphia and China.GRADE: C+

This review ,as the summary suggests,might seem like just another review from a Hollywood buff who just fell in love with a movie,every minute of which he is cherishing.. but I hope this review convinces you to see this movie as soon as your done reading it because,trust me,you will rate it as one of your finest.Joseph Ruben has delivered an Oscar-worthy film which is brilliantly made making you empathize with the characters portrayed in the film.The story revolves around 3 men lewis(jaoquim phoenix),tony(David conrad) and sheriff(vince vaughn) holidaying in Panang,Malaysia where it's all fun with drinks,drugs and women after which lewis stays back to fight for animal rights when tony and sheriff call it a day and head back to their lives in new york.Two years later beth eastern(anne heche) shows up at their doors telling them that lewis has been imprisoned for possession of hash and is awaiting death by the noose but can be saved from being hanged if both of them share the responsibility of the crime with him and spend 3 yrs each together or 6 years if only one of them chooses to go back..The rest of the story revolves around how beth tries to convince the two to "return to paradise" to serve their time fighting their own personal barriers,tony:convincing his lovely fiancé played by vira farmiga to let him go and sheriff:the reluctance to loose 3 years of his life in a third-world prison,while trying to fend off a story-hungry reporter played by jada pinkett.The movie is not as simple as the plot suggests and has a lot of twists making it a gripping story.All the main cast members portrayed their roles with elegance,vaughn and heche in particular,and brought a certain empathy to the screen which is the key ingredient in such a film.This movie is certainly one of the best films I have seen and definitely one of the greatest.I would,without doubt,go with a 10/10.Bravo!

First, I'm so sorry! Tried for so long to grab the core , but was mislead by... -cliché. ... At once, the movie hints at "Bangkok Hilton" e.g., as one of three lead characters is imprisoned for drug related offences, but movie soon loses every trace of "depth" being developed of either character or story: You jump from a 'hint'hint'(we don't want to lose anyone of you spectators)wastebasket-drop of a chuck of "weed" on an Asian island, to a limo in New York(thinking': What happens when the "weed" is discovered as it was so obviously dropped, and framed by camera- can we cope?). Then: "You never had a beer with him..", meaning: You don't know a person at all..?? -aaaaaarghh, maaan... how am I able to review anything on a cliché like that?? Who knows; maybe they had a barbecue at sometime??? As pointed, I tried hard to hang on, through juvenile "buddy-rituals" in far Asia, to cliché-modern-America: 'OK, 'I have got myself a job and a wife, so now I have no moral obligations to...' life, myself, friends, or who-ever?? So, again, I'm sorry- it's not fair at all, to write a review on basis of NOT having seen the movie through.. -you have to excuse me, I got the B-movieflu... Form concurred matter! How did it end..? And sorry, again, my friends- bare over with me; I just pre-re-watched "Pulp Fiction" after, say, 12 years.... don't EVER start with supreme and then go(this far)below ;o)

This movie was on my watch list for a long time before I finally got around to it. I'm familiar with Malaysia and its laws so the story intrigued me even more. Overall it was a good story but quite slow moving at times. They could have gotten through some issues much more quickly. Nevertheless, the movie keeps you compelled to know what will happen next so it's never really a bore. The sex scenes are mild and almost unnecessary. Personally, a better, longer sex scene would have been more suitable than the sporadic stuff (bordering on pointless) we find here. The ending sends a very strong message you won't forget any time soon, though. Not a waste of time.