Echoes Of Paradise

1989, Movie, R, 89 mins

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An Australian variation on the Hollywood "women's picture." After discovering that her husband has been having an affair, Maria (Wendy Hughes) goes on vacation to Thailand's scenic Phuket Island. There she meets a young Balinese dancer, Raka (John Lone), and is befriended by Terry (Rod Mullinar), a charming gay hotelier with a yen for Raka. Deciding not to return home as planned, Maria embarks on an affair with Raka, who has lost interest in his art (Parisian high life has left him dissipated and uninspired, and he's nursing his wounds in Thailand). There's soon trouble in paradise, however, when Maria's husband flies in to play on Maria' guilt about neglecting her children. As escapist soap opera, ECHOES IN PARADISE fails to provide enough contrast between the Maria's mundane daily existence and her fantasy options. The filmmakers seem to want to delve into a married woman's mid-life angst, but their methods are lifted from old-fashioned Hollywood melodramas, and they don't have the courage to provide the full-throttle romanticism this approach requires. Though the Thai locations are scenic, there's too much travelog and not enough dramatic excitement, and Hughes and Lone are not at their best. leave a comment
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Echoes Of Paradise
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