The 70s/80s TV show, Fantasy Island gets a 2020 movie makeover, as the Island that makes your dreams and fantasies come true hits cinema screens courtesy of Blumhouse. So I headed over to my local Cineworld to check out this modern-day reworking.
Unlike the classic TV show that I loved as a child, this new take on Fantasy Island takes it down a more darker and sinister storyline as the opening scenes show as a kidnap victim tries to escape from the clutches of Fantasy Island and its “caretaker” Mr Roarke (Michael Peña), from this point onwards you know that this version is certainly going to be a dark!
As a selection of competition winners arrive at the island we are introduced to them briefly and learn of the fantasies that they want, from wanting it all to revenge!
This where the film becomes quite slow and I started thinking, “come on now, get on with what we came for the horror that we have seen in the trailer”. After a while, Fantasy Island starts to move at a slighter faster pace as the guests start to take part in their fantasies, but I do have to say that with a lot of them they are somewhat predictable and I did find myself starting to lose a little interest after a while, up until a point where things started to intertwine!
I’m never sure about reboots/reworkings of classic TV shows and when I first heard that Fantasy Island was getting the movie treatment I was dubious about it, who can forget the great Ricardo Montalban as Mr Roarke and Hervé Villechaize as Tatoo, the show ran from 1977-1984 it had some great stories over the years and fond memories for those that watched it, but I’m not really sure that making the movie into a “horror”, and I say that loosely, works.
I found myself thinking of Scooby-Doo 2: Monsters Unleashed and Hostel several times through this new version of Fantasy Island, strange I know but true, there just seems to bring similarities to mind!
Moving on to the cast, there is a good selection including Maggie Q, Michael Rooker and of course Michael Peña, but for me, I don’t think that Fantasy Island holds out as a “horror movie”, there really aren’t any “jump scares” or those moments in a horror that make the hairs on the back of your neck stand to attention, it’s more of a dark thriller.
One of the things I did like about the movie is the soundtrack, it’s another brilliant piece of work from Bear McCreary, the music suits the scenes and works well throughout the movie, to be honest, it’s the one thing that I enjoyed most about Fantasy Island.
Fantasy Island is watchable, but sadly its predictability really takes a lot away from it, plus did we need a reboot of the TV show anyway!!
The Plane, The Plane!!
Movie title: Fantasy Island (2020)
Movie description: A horror adaptation of the popular '70s TV show about a magical island resort.
Date published: March 6, 2020
Country: UK
Duration: 1h 49m
Director(s): Jeff Wadlow
Actor(s): Michael Peña, Maggie Q, Lucy Hale
Genre: Adventure, Fantasy, Horror
Karen Woodham is the founder and owner of the Blazing Minds. She is also a Cinema reviewer and works with RealD 3D reviewing the latest 3D releases and IMAX, she has also had several articles published in various publications including the first edition of SFW Magazine. In 2015 she became an Award Winning Blogger and also has her website listed as one of the UK’s Top 10 Film Blogs.
