The Island (1980) Universal/Action-Adventure RT: 115 minutes Rated R (language, graphic violence, nudity, sexual content, drunkenness) Director: Michael Ritchie Screenplay: Peter Benchley Music: Ennio Morricone Cinematography: Henri Decae Release date: June 13, 1980 (US) Cast: Michael Caine, David Warner, Jeffery Frank, Angela Punch McGregor, Frank Middlemass, Don Henderson, Dudley Sutton, Colin Jeavons, Zakes Mokae, Brad Sullivan. Box Office: $15.7M (US)
Rating: ***
One of the movie casualties of summer ’80, The Island received almost unanimous negative reviews upon its June ’80 release. It failed commercially too. It actually isn’t all that bad. It’s an interesting idea really, a band of 17th century pirates living on an island in the Caribbean (no, Captain Jack Sparrow isn’t the leader!) completely cut off from the 20th century. On top of that, the plot of the movie offers a possible albeit improbable and implausible explanation to the mystery of the Bermuda Triangle. Why do so many boats disappear in this area? Could it really be pirates looting the boats and killing all of the passengers?
Based on the 1979 best seller from Peter Benchley (Jaws, The Deep), The Island starts with New York journalist Blair Maynard (Caine, The Dark Knight) going to the Caribbean with his 12YO son Justin (Frank) to investigate the situation. They rent a boat and spend the day fishing when a young girl suddenly appears in the water. It looks like she’s drowning. When Justin stretches out his hand to rescue her, she pulls him into the sea. Then a man climbs aboard the fishing boat brandishing a knife. Blair shoots him dead, but other men show up and capture the journalist.
It turns out that a band of 17th century pirates, led by John David Nau (Warner, Time Bandits), occupies the island and still follow the old ways. Even though they regularly attack boats and steal many modern objects, they have absolutely no clue the 1600s have been over for 280 years. They still speak in the old dialect and have no grasp of modern medicine. Many of them are the results of several generations of inbreeding and need fresh blood to offset the results of this practice. Nau forces Blair to become the prisoner of Beth (McGregor, The Chant of Jimmie Blacksmith) because he killed her husband on the fishing boat. Beth forces Blair to impregnate her. Nau tortures and brainwashes Justin into turning against his father and becoming his surrogate son. Blair has to find a way to escape from the island with his son. It’s also a race against time as the pirates might execute the journalist at any time.
The Island‘s unique premise helps elevate the movie to the level of high camp. The filmmakers and audience know it’s schlock, but that’s part of the fun. It’s a good matinee movie that features two highly regarded British actors and some nicely executed action sequences. The violence looks pretty convincing with one man getting his head split open with an axe. There’s an unbelievably cool scene near the end of the movie in which…….well, you’ll know it when you see it.
I found a huge gaping plot hole in The Island. How can somebody be completely brainwashed in a matter of days? That’s how long it seemingly takes for Justin to turn completely against his father. True, there might be some deep-rooted hatred because Blair has never really been there for his son and he constantly breaks promises in favor of his career. But is this really enough to make the kid want to kill his father? I doubt it.
Many will compare The Island to Jaws, but it’s an unfair comparison because they’re two completely different genres. Jaws is most definitely a horror movie; The Island is more of an action-oriented thriller. Sure, Peter Benchley wrote both novels and subsequent screenplays and both stories take place in or around the ocean, but the similarities end there. Sharks and pirates are as different as apples and oranges. Director Michael Ritchie (The Bad News Bears) steps outside his comfort zone and makes a reasonably entertaining matinee flick although I wonder how this movie would have turned out in the hands of Steven Spielberg. It would be a shark of a completely different color (sorry, I couldn’t resist!).
I can easily say that Caine and Warner add a note of respectability to the proceedings. It’s nice to see two respected actors camp it up. It makes the movie even more fun. Caine seems an unlikely choice for the lead role in an action-adventure flick, but he does a pretty good job here. I’m taking a guess here, but it would appear that he had a great time making this movie. Why else would he agree to appear in Jaws: The Revenge, one of the all-time worst movies? Warner makes a decent bad guy. He really chews up the scenery as he leads a band of the sorriest looking inbred pirates that I’ve ever seen.
Overall, The Island is a pretty good adventure flick that requires some major suspension of disbelief. It had the misfortune of being released the same summer as The Empire Strikes Back. Studio executives should have realized which movie would dominate the summer box office and moved its release date. Over the past 31 years, The Island has developed a small cult following, especially among fans of Caine and Benchley. I think it’s an entertaining pirate movie, one I like to pop into the DVD player once in a while. Between giant sharks and bloodthirsty pirates, Peter Benchley must have put a real damper on family vacations to the beach.
