Swept Away (2002)
Review by Dindrane
Film:
DVD:

Written by Guy Ritchie, based on the screenplay for Travolti da un insolito destino nell'azzurro mare d'agosto by Lina Wertmüller
Directed by Guy Ritchie
Starring Madonna, Adriano Giannini, Bruce Greenwood, Francis Pardeilhan, Jeanne Tripplehorn, Elizabeth Banks, and David Thornton

Features:

• Running audio commentary by writer/director Ritchie and producer Matthew Vaughn
  
• MTV movie special
  
• Sixteen deleted scenes with optional commentary by Ritchie and Vaughn
  
• Filmographies
  

Released by:Columbia TriStar
Region: 1
Rating: R
Anamorphic: Yes

My Advice: Rent it if you need romance without a fairytale ending

In Swept Away, Madonna plays Amber, a terribly rich and equally spoiled woman on a cruise. When Amber and her handsome, communist first mate are marooned on a desert island (you heard me), their passionate fighting becomes, well, something else again. Amber learns that not having to keep up with the Joneses works for her.

While the plot of this remake of a 1974 film ostensibly critiques capitalism and our society’s reliance upon status and prestige as a way to gauge an individual’s worth, the focus of this remake is always squarely upon the romance of Madonna and her boy-toy, even with the “surprise” ending and Amber’s shock. The film reminds me of nothing more than a heaving-bosoms book come to life; one would expect Fabio to come riding down the beach at any moment. There’s no shame in needing love and romance in your life, but it just seems as if there should be more to a film than just lust in the dust...or sand as the case may be.

Madonna pulls off her role with skill and potentially surprising aplomb, but it just isn’t enough to save the cliché script and surface-level commentary. Perhaps the producers soft-pedaled the communist message a bit to avoid aggravating anyone in these troubled times, but isn’t social commentary kind of supposed to aggravate someone?

The film’s somewhat controversial ending could be taken as redeeming or as unnecessarily opaque. Without giving too much away, the ending of this film will disrupt all of your expectations, and that can only be a good thing.

The film commentary is a solid investment of your time, explaining a bit about what the creators were thinking. While the film should do all the explaining necessary and show you want the creators had in mind, with a film of this type, when the critics are both bashing and defending it (but mostly bashing it), it’s good to get some comments from the film studio people themselves. The MTV movie special will delight Madonna fans and pretty much no one else, but it’s solid enough for what it wants to be. There are also a few deleted scenes, also with commentaries, that do little to explain the movie, but are a nice thought.

Basically, if you need a good romance or are just a sucker for gorgeous tropical scenery, then you should give Swept Away a rental. It’s not as bad as you’ve heard, given the attempt, at least, of social commentary. Otherwise, you’re better off with the original version of this tale that, while no less predictable, is a more acute commentary on capitalism. Pay as much attention as you can to the pondering of the ending and see if that can’t make it all up to you.