Movie Review – The Mosquito Coast(1986)

The Mosquito Coast is directed by Peter Weir. Allie Fox (Harrison Ford) is an inventor. He invents the ice machine out of fire. His approach to predicting America's future is unique. He has his thoughts on living in a better environment. Fulfilling daily job duties is not enough for him. He likes to invent something by himself. His family members do not really understand his vision but still follow his decision. Dr Kwong Si-san also invented his type of mask when it was covid in Hong Kong. Some people hold their living philosophy.

Why does he want to leave America? The overdeveloped consumerism in America in the 1980s makes him think that it is impossible to live well in the future of America. They eat oversized meals, buy too much stuff and produce too many products. Eating too much will cause obesity. Excessive purchasing can lead to feelings of emptiness. Overproducing products can generate many wastes and increase the load in the landfill. They celebrate materialism and enjoy purchasing stuff instead of chasing a holistic lifestyle that is healthy through the mind, body and soul. The consumerism in the USA makes many people want to buy things and own a lot of things. They do not require themselves to buy less. There are a lot of advertisements in the street or on television or social media that encourage people to purchase stuff in the commercial society. Living in a metropolis, the desire to purchase stuff is endless. The reason behind this behavior is that they own the stuff to show their wealth and success. According to Marx’s Theory, the shopping process does not require a social connection. They just purchase products, cars, trendier clothes and fancier technology. They can just enjoy themselves in their shopping. People become self-centered and alienate themselves from others. They may not crave human interaction in the long term. He can live a simple life in the jungle. It is too prosperous and abundant in America. It keeps on developing. They keep on chasing new stuff and it is never-ending. Many Americans have a high spending ability and they are easy to lose the balance living in America. He thinks living in nature would be better. However, they also face a lot of challenges when dealing with the indigenous people. For example, he introduces his invention to the native tribe. The indigenous people have never seen ice which is essential in modern society. Even the kids can explain the usage of ice to those who live in the jungle surrounded by trees and rivers. They mainly do the labor work such as collecting food from the farm. They live in a wooden house and wear grass dress. They do not have the fashion sense and just grab the materials in nature to make their clothes. They use leaves as cook utensils. The big difference in the living conditions makes his kids complain. 

When they finally settle down in the forest, three robbers appear to rob Allie, his wife and his kids. They cannot guarantee security when they live in the forest as the wooden house does have anti-theft measures. When they face the robbers with guns, they can just stay calm and leave the dangerous situation strategically. He cannot negotiate with the robbers with a gun in hand. It also shows the uncivilized side of the tribe. As long as the robbers have the gun in hand, they can dominate Allie’s home. There is no police to guard the citizens. In the forest, the stronger animals dominate the land. Moreover, Allie can be attacked by wild animals as well. The sudden robbing he faces is not something he can expect as he lives in a safe city in the USA. They can carry a gun and no one will use the gun inappropriately which shows that they are civilized. He assumes that the robbers in the jungle are as civilized as them. Their savage robbing in the jungle makes him set a fire to kill them to protect his family.

Also, Allie finds it difficult to communicate with the indigenous people. The indigenous people do not welcome the foreigners passionately. They are like two different species on this planet. His kids do not want to continue this adventurous journey anymore. Allie Fox decreases the living quality of his family after they move to South America because of his stubbornness in leaving America. In the end, the home he built is destroyed by the fire. He feels disappointed about his decision but he keeps on moving on. 

Through immigration, Allie and the rest of his family members find out what they truly like. Allie is the main protagonist in this film. His philosophy makes him choose to live his ideal life with his family members and abandon the standard of Americans’ lifestyle. As an inventor, he likes creating new things instead of buying stuff. He designs and builds his home himself. This film brings out the importance of living a balanced life. In Hong Kong, many Hong Kong people store lots of stuff. There are platforms such as Jupyeah to enhance the awareness of Hong Kong people to recycle. Things will develop in the opposite when they become extreme. Therefore, the thought of New Age grew rapidly in the late 1980s which is a way of life and thinking. It suggests living consciously instead of supporting consumerism. For example, people meditate with the crystals do aura reading or study astrology to live spiritually. It is not a new religion that wants people to follow its beliefs. It is more like a saving rope when people live unconsciously in modern society which contains different kinds of information that almost brainwashes people to buy stuff. Some Hong Kong people also live on the island which is away from the city to enjoy tranquility in the metropolis. 

To conclude, Allie Fox has his thoughts about living but the practical situation when executing the plan is unpredictable. Everything has its pros and cons. He cannot consider it completely when he starts the journey as he also finds a group of people who live on an island that has a better living environment and the people hold guns to protect themselves. They also have more entertainment. His belief is not wrong. People should chase for a balanced lifestyle and not do things extremely.