In all honesty, I couldn't discern a core theme of this movie, and I suspect that I might have missed many points the movie was trying to get across. But regardless, it was a great experience. Paradise was a culmination of many different themes such as distrust, cruelty, racism, escapism, and isolation. Overall, it's less so a mystery and more so a depiction of how low humans can be. It was everything I did not expect from reading the summary, and I was very pleased with that.
A huge portion of the movie is demonstrating how the cycle of cruelty can affect human communities. As you watch these characters sink deeper, it's eerie how relatable they can be despite their actions. Perhaps that was the creators' intent: to put the audience in the shoes of the characters to demonstrate the evil deeds they too are capable of committing.
Personally, the theme of escapism was the most relatable to me. Often I wonder why people are so naturally sadistic. It's left me questioning that maybe it's the environment I'm in, and maybe if I left things wouldn't be so bad. Perhaps there's a paradise waiting for me elsewhere. I was surprised how well the movie presented these questions that I've asked myself for years. Although, I admittedly still don't know the answers to them even after watching.
The Acting: Absolutely phenomenal. Especially the actor who played Takeshi. None of that Hollywood overdramatic bull shite. The actors seriously did an amazing job making these characters feel real.
The Story: Although not entirely a mystery, the question of the real culprit's identity was seriously leaving me on the edge of my seat. The characters were incredibly well written and down to earth. The realistic feel the characters gave off lended immense credibility to the realism of the character's actions.
Overall: I love it to death, but definitely not for everyone. I would say give it a try but the first chunk of the movie isn't gonna be enough to tell whether or not you'll like the whole thing. If any of the themes I mentioned earlier really click with you, I'm guessing you'll enjoy it
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