Rent The Mosquito Coast (1986)

Building an improbable utopia in the jungle of Central America - The Mosquito Coast review by Philip in Paradiso

Allie Fox (Harrison Ford) is an eccentric - an inventor who is as brilliant as he is egotistical and stubborn. He is highly critical of the American Dream: in his eyes, the USA is a decaying society that has lost its way to consumerism. He is also convinced that a nuclear war will break out soon, leading to the complete destruction of America. Married to Margot 'Mother' Fox (Helen Mirren), he has 4 children. One day, he decides they should all leave America and start anew, from scratch, in a pristine place, far from the greed, materialism and crime that plague the USA. The family set off for Belize, in Central America. Once there, Allie purchases a small settlement in the jungle, called Jeronimo. To get there, Allie and his wife and children must go upriver on a rickety boat, deep into the rainforest.

Allie wants to build some kind of utopian community, with his family at the heart of it. He will do so with the help of the residents of the village - a mixture of black and Amerindian locals - who are in awe of him and appear only too willing to lend their help to this American pioneer. The story develops from that point onwards. Will Allie succeed in realising his dream, or will it turn sour, for all the reasons that one could imagine - or not, as the case may be?

The focus of the film is Allie and his elder son, Charlie (a teenage River Phoenix); Allie's wife is reduced to a supporting role. The movie is, somehow, a mixture of Robinson Crusoe and Fitzcarraldo, as pointed out by other reviewers. As the story unfolds and darker forces gather on the horizon, we think of the madness of Klaus Kinski. Overall, it is a very good film and Harrison Ford is completely believable in his unlikely role as the eccentric inventor. There are many unexpected twists and turns. However, I felt it was not quite the masterpiece it could have been. I do not want to discuss the reasons why, because I would have to go into details that would spoil the story for those who are going to see the film. I still recommend the movie, which is memorable and could be pondered and interpreted on many levels, the first one being the obvious: When does a powerful, inspiring and beautiful dream develop the potential to turn into a complete, utter bloody nightmare?

Pipe dreams - The Mosquito Coast review by CH

There was a touch of Klaus Kinski and Fitzcarraldo in this film (which I think was made before Harrison Ford starred in Mosquito coast) Trying to build the impossible in the inhospitable was the theme of both films with Harrison Ford’s descent into (and almost matching Kinski’s) terrifying psychotic paranoia in the jungle