Playa perdida

If you consider its made 1982 its not bad at all... and also nice watching this beauty naked

Bonnie (Sabrina Siani) and Billy (Fabio Meyer) find themselves stranded on a tropical desert island after a plane crash. Together, they will have to overcome their predicaments to survive.

From literary works as Robinson Crusoe by Daniel Defoe from 1719 to movies like The Blue Lagoon from 1949, the idea of being stranded on a desert island, away from civilization, was explored in different mediums with dissimilar approaches. Directed by Luigi Russo and Enzo Doria, Due gocce d'acqua salata is closer to The Blue Lagoon (1980) than it is to the aforementioned. It has many resemblances to Randal Kleiser's feature but many differences as well. It could be said that its simpler approach renders it one without the profundity The Blue Lagoon had and that tension is something in lower doses as well. Considering the proximity of the releases, it would be tempting to see in this movie nothing but an exercise in exploitation. The story progresses as expected, our two young protagonists finding in each other a reason to survive and be joyful while in a situation like this. Although sometimes it is not enough and sentiments of time standing still and missing their loved ones prevail.

What Due gocce d'acqua salata offers, that The Blue Lagoon did not, is more of a sensual approach. By reason of Sabrina Siani often being bare-breasted, evoking in Billy a blooming desire hitherto dormant owing to, according to him, his coach's insistence on being absolutely focused on the game and training, the movie explores coming-of-age in a very sexy fashion. It is full of takes where Bonnie is relaxing on the beach or by a waterfall with the sun kissing every inch of her skin, enhancing the idea of the wilderness from the setting but also offering alluring visuals.

Ultimately, it is a movie very honest in its approach and with an entertaining narrative that blends adventure, sensuality, and humor. The latter is mostly due to Mario Pedone's Shanghai and the uncertainty his inclusion adds to the story.

Obviously, this movie is a blatant rip-off "The Blue Lagoon". Nevertheless, that movie was so bad that even a cheap-jack Italian product like this could have easily improved on it--but no such luck. The original "Blue Lagoon", despite its cinematic pretensions (and PG rating), was little more than an excuse for perverts of all ages to leer at a pubescent Brooke Shields (and/or her pretty-boy co-star, Christopher Atkins), even though the former reportedly used a body double for all her nude scenes. This movie casts a 19-year-old Sabrina Siani, and is thus a little more straight-forward in its sexploitation angle. Unfortunately though, aside from a lot of breast-and-thong nudity and a couple tame sex scenes, this Italian time-waster otherwise apes the boring American movie with a laughably idyllic and sickeningly romantic coming-of-age-on-a-desert-island tale (the fact that these characters are a little long in the tooth to be just discovering the joys of sex is explained by making them Olympic athletes sequestered away in training before being marooned by a plane crash). I was hoping for maybe a sexy version of "Lord of the Flies", but this annoying pair is so nice that they can't even cook up a cute bunny to eat even though they're (presumedly) starving.

There's also a really dumb sub-plot involving a big hairy guy who is also on the island (for reasons never explained by the English soundtrack). He starts out as villain, then becomes a friend, then a villain again, and then he mercifully seems to drown, but then . . . no it's just too stupid. . .

The only, and I do mean only, thing this movie has going for it is Siani's incredible nude body, but it was used to better effect later in Fulci's "Conquest" (where her character wears a mask the whole time which partly conceals her godawful acting). Earlier, I guess, she had also been one of Jesus Franco's underage jungle girls in one his lesser cannibal movies. She is pretty impressive physically, but not even remotely worth enduring THIS movie for.

An unabashed rip off of "Blue Lagoon", updated with a speedier resolution and none of the Victorian charm. The characters are irritating and so poorly conceived that they don't generate any sympathy or interest. Bony Billy has slightly more appeal than the bratty if buxom Bonny and treats her with more generosity than her behavior warrants. The lush photography and outstanding music score of "Lagoon" are missing here, too, and are sorely needed to enhance the minimal action, threadbare plot and inane dialog. Prurient preteens may like it but it is difficult to imagine any other audience. Even Ciani's frequent if not incessant nudity quickly becomes numbing. When this "Island" comes up you'd be well advised to keep sailing by. Rated 3, only for the unrealized potential of "Billy."