The first must-see film of the year.

The movie runs out of plot and jokes well before the end of a two-hour running time, long for a light comedy.

The tone of this movie is interesting -- the stakes are both dramatic and high, but it's balanced with a lot of fun, tongue and cheek dialogue.

It's a good bad... and worth a popcorn matinée. While it's easy to lament what could have been...

"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+

I found this movie while looking for movies with Joaquin Phoenix in them. At first I thought this could be another made-for-TV movies, but the mention of Malaysia made me look up.The actors are good, with them acting out their roles very well. I thought more exposure should be given to the circumstances of Lewis in prison, the initial trial, and some scenes of him being taken to prison. As the story unfold, I understood that the movie is not so much about Lewis, but more of the inter-play of emotions of Sheriff and Tony, as well as the effort of Beth to convince them to return to Malaysia, to save the life of Lewis.Very straight forward story line, with a little twist towards the end. Overall a good lesson for the young and reckless about the consequence of taking it easy with drugs, especially in a foreign country.No justice done about the conditions in Malaysia, however. The opening scenes are done in Thailand, with bits done with Malaysian actors. The prison looks real shabby, broken down and filthy. The prison guards and the Ministry of Interior would be up for prosecution here in Malaysia if they let the conditions to be that bad.First of all, the guards do speak English, most Malaysians do. The court scene were done in Malay because that's the standard procedure. If the person on trial does not understand Malay, an interpreter would be provided.Secondly, the legal system here would allow appeals and stay of execution if there are new evidence produced. If this is real, Lewis' case would probably be thrown on technical grounds, as there are doubt that the drugs are not entirely his, and not within his control.Treatment of prisoners in Malaysia is far better than that of the common citizen sometimes. A person facing death penalty would be in a special cell, given the best treatment to ensure their calm state of mind. Regular service by the prison priest would be done to help the prisoner come to terms with the inevitable, and to counsel the prisoner. Hanging would NEVER be done in the open, prisoners would be given time to pray, say their goodbyes, meet relatives or friends in a calm manner. Malaysian prison guards are trained to ensure the welfare of the prisoners, prisons well lighted, and clean.I'm sure that if the producers approached the Ministry officials with the proper storyline and intentions, the government would be glad to help get them. For all you know, they may even get some funding for promoting Malaysia from the government.

So I thought that the movie was good. It is incredibly emotional and moving but the reason it is so good is because of the strong performances of the cast. I thought Vince Vaughn was amazing, you usually associate him in comedy roles and I was really impressed with how good he was in this. Anne Heche was also terrific but what gets me is how wonderful Jaoquin Phoenix is! Every movie he has been in he has given a memorable performance and now only after Walk the Line is he getting the credit he deserves. He is by far way under rated and I am pleased that everyone is finally taking notice on what a phenomenal actor he truly is. I would recommend this movie if for nothing else the superb acting from everyone of the cast members, you won't regret seeing it!

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.