Hawaii Archives – CULTURE MIX

Review: ‘Paradise’ (2024), starring Patricia Allison, Tate Donovan, Bashir Salahuddin, Adam Lustick, Arjun Gupta, Myles Evans, CJ Hoff and Tia Carrere

March 21, 2024

by Carla Hay

Patricia Allison in “Paradise” (Photo courtesy of Tubi)

“Paradise” (2024)

Directed by Max Isaacson

Culture Representation: Taking place in the fictional city of Paradise, Hawaii, the action film “Paradise” features a racially diverse cast of characters (white, African American and Asian) representing the working-class, middle-class and wealthy.

Culture Clash: A rebellious misfit goes on a killing spree against the people whom she blames for the murder of her police sheriff father.

Culture Audience: “Paradise” will appeal primarily to people who are fans of the movie’s headliners and action movies that don’t do anything innovative or exciting.

Tate Donovan and CJ Hoff in “Paradise” (Photo courtesy of Tubi)

“Paradise” is trying to be a “Kill Bill” type of action movie, with a female protagonist out for deadly revenge, but the screenplay is so messy and moronic, it just ends up being another forgettable, substandard flick with bloody violence. Patricia Allison has charisma in the starring role, but “Paradise” is a failure of imagination and just drowns in stupid dialogue and a cesspool of clichés.

Directed by Max Isaacson and written by Tony Borden, “Paradise” is their feature-film debut. The movie (which takes place and was filmed in Hawaii) has some eye-catching and somewhat stylish-looking cinematography. However, the movie’s story is so amatuerish, you have to wonder why the fairly well-known actors in the cast agreed to do this movie. Maybe the appeal of filming in Hawaii was too tempting to pass up.

“Paradise” is named for the fictional city in Hawaii where the story takes place. (“Paradise” was actually filmed in Hilo, Hawaii, which is about 13 miles northwest of Hawaiian Paradise Park.) The movie’s central character is Ella Patchet (played by Allison), who is supposed to be about 18 or 19 years old. Ella has a reputation for being a rebellious misfit.

Ella works in a gun shop and is the type of person who gets thrown out of places for getting into physical fights. That’s what happens in the movie’s opening scene that shows Ella racing off on her bicycle after getting into an altercation at a seedy-looking place. The altercation is not shown on camera, but there will be plenty of other scenes in the movie that show how Ella fights.

Why does Ella has a very angry streak to her personality? It has a lot to do with the fact that her mother and brother were shot to death by unnamed drug dealers, who were not brought to justice. To make matters worse, Ella’s father Dan Patchett (played by Bashir Salahuddin) is the sheriff of Paradise, so Ella puts a lot of blame on him for not being able to catch the killers. The movie never explains if Ella was always this violent and angry, or if the bitterness of her family members’ murders caused her to be this violent and angry.

Ella has a sidekick friend named Townes (played by Myles Evans), who apparently has nothing better to do in his life than hang out with Ella and participate in whatever troublemaking she gets involved with or instigates. Ella and Townes both dislike Giles Whitney (played by CJ Hoff), the spoiled and obnoxious teenage son of Paradise’s smarmy mayor Calvin Whitney (played by Tate Donovan), who is the type of phony-acting politician who pretends to be an upstanding citizen in public but is obviously unethical behind the scenes.

Mayor Whitney, who is the wealthy owner of the Whitney Water and Power company, is in the midst of negotiating a lucrative deal to bring a solar farm to Paradise. It doesn’t take a genius to figure out who will personally profit the most from this deal. Much of “Paradise” tries to come across as being a mystery thriller, but everything about this poorly conceived movie treats viewers like idiots. “Paradise” has so many glaringly obvious clues, there is no real mystery to solve.

At a party with other young people, Giles taunts Ella over her father not being able to solve the murders of Ella’s brother and Ella’s mother. Ella’s response is to shoot a gun at Giles. Luckily for Giles, the bullets miss Giles, and there are no injuries to anyone else. Later, Ella goes over to the mayor’s house and demands that more should be done to investigate the murders of her brother and mother. Calvin promises Ella that he will get justice for her murdered family members.

An early scene in the movie shows Calvin visiting the local police station to meet with Dan. Calvin shows Dan a newspaper article reporting that a crime boss named Lee Paige (played by Tia Carrere) and her group of thugs have returned to the area. Calvin asks Dan, “Did you really think that they wouldn’t come back?” Dan replies, “After 10 years? Yeah.”

One of Dan’s subordinates is a police officer named Troy Hobbes (played by Arjun Gupta), who is very eager to please the mayor. “Paradise” makes it too easy to see early on in the movie where loyalties might lie and who is most likely be corrupt. The mayor also has a henchmen/fixer named Sam Mayo (played by Adam Lustick), who is a typically generic lackey enforcer.

It should come as no surprise that Ella doesn’t want to wait for the mayor to get justice. The stakes get even higher for her when her father Dan ends up being murdered. The rest of “Paradise” then just becomes one shooting spree/murder scene after another, often clumsily staged. The people responsible for the murder of Dan are exactly who you think they are. The people who die in the movie are exactly those you expect to die.

The dialogue is bad enough in “Paradise,” but a lot of the acting isn’t much better. Gupta is very over-the-top (and not in a good way) in many of his scenes, while Donovan gives a very lackluster “I’m just here for the salary” type of performance. Carrere (who really has a cameo role, not a starring role) acts like she’s in a campy comedy, not a gritty action flick. Allison as the Ella Patchet character could have been iconic with a clever screenplay and skillful direction. As it stands, “Paradise” can only describe some of the Hawaiian locations in the movie, not the soulless junk that is the actual movie.

Tubi premiered “Paradise” on March 21, 2024.

Review: ‘Diving With Dolphins,’ starring Roger Horrocks, Didier Noirot, Tad Luckey, Joe Mobley, Laura Engelby, Angela Zillener and Paul Atkins

April 3, 2020

by Carla Hay

“Diving With Dolphins”

Directed by Keith Scholey

Culture Representation: This Disneynature documentary is a behind-the-scenes look at the making of the Disneynature documentary “Dolphin Reef,” with an all-white crew of filmmakers who worked in French Polynesia, Hawaii and Florida to make the documentary.

Culture Clash: The film crew sometimes had to battle the weather and unpredictable nature of ocean life.

Culture Audience: “Diving With Dolphins” will appeal mostly to people interested in documentaries about ocean animals, but it’s not essential viewing for people who see the “Dolphin Reef” documentary.

Didier Noirot in “Diving With Dolphins” (Photo courtesy of Disney+)

Disneynature’s “Diving With Dolphins” is a “making of” documentary about the Disneynature documentary “Dolphin Reef.” And just like “Dolphin Reef,” the movie gives almost as much screen time to humpback whales as it does to dolphins. People who’ve seen “Dolphin Reef” don’t really need to see “Diving With Dolphins” because it seems more like a series of outtakes strung together by narration rather than a documentary with a fascinating storyline.

Directed by Keith Scholey (who co-directed “Dolphin Reef”) and narrated by Celine Cousteau (granddaughter of Jacque Cousteau) has a lot of the same gorgeous cinematography that “Dolphin Reef” has, but the movie doesn’t really give much insight into the filmmakers’ personalities. It’s kind of a tedious repeat of “get to a location, set up cameras, shoot some film, and then go to the next location.”

The documentary takes place in three main areas: French Polynesia, Hawaii and Florida. There are also separate shoots for the dolphins and the humpback whales. “Dolphin Reef” focuses on two bottlenose dolphins bottlenose dolphin mother named Kumu her 3-year-old son Echo), as well as two humpback whales (a mother named Moraya and her newborn female calf Fluke.

The people on the film crew include cinematographers Roger Horrocks, Paul Atkins, Didier Noirot and Jamie McPherson. They are accompanied by scientists Angela Zillener, Laura Engelby and Joe Mobley. And there are some skippers shown in the movie, such as Tad Luckey (whose Luckey Strike boat is in a lot of the humpback whale footage), Carl Ellington and Paris Basson, who’s a jet ski skipper.

Horrock has a clear preference for dolphins, which he’s been filming for decades. He says, “Dolphins are the probably most charismatic mammals that you can get in the ocean. They have a mammalian conscious, so we feel a kinship to them.” Horrock believes that dolphins are the “most welcome” animals he’s ever filmed and adds, “filming dolphins is the most physical because they’re constantly on the move.”

Meanwhile, Noirot, who used to be part of Jacque Cousteau’s crew, is described as someone who’s has more than 30 years of experience of ocean filming. He’s shown in the humpback whale film shoots. Noirot comments, “Hawaii is a good location to film humpback whales because of the whale population. You’re sure to see whales [and] crystal-clear water.”

Most of the filming was underwater, and the scenes that were film outside the water was done mainly by bot, by jet ski and by helicopter. Underwater, a scooter was used with a torpedo-like propeller to get some of the fast-moving shots. But there was a lot of down time during the film shoots, since it took several weeks to get close enough to a humpback whale and a calf to film for the movie.

Although scientist Zillener says that the crew got to know amore than 200 dolphins during the film shoot and that “to understand the animals, you have to be one of them,” there’s no effort made to single out any of the other animals (besides the four main stars) by describing their personalities in “Diving With Dolphins.” The movie would have benefited from more anecdotes about some of the animals who had standout personalities. In the movie, all of the animals appear to be generic. In “Dolphin Reef,” the some of animal personalities of the “supporting characters” seem to be crafted through creative editing.

The narration of “Diving With Dolphins” also tends to take on dramatic, hyperbolic tones, such as the description of the humpback whale courtship competition to become a female humpback’s chief protector: “It’s the most spectacular battle in nature.” Given all the wild animals in the world, that statement seems a bit too broad and subjective for a nature documentary.

One of the strengths of “Diving With Dolphins” is that it calls attention to the coral-reef crisis that desperately needs protection from human plundering and pollution that can cause climate change. The ocean is the foundation of almost every animal’s food chain, so it’s alarming that so much of the essential coral reef is disappearing due to climate change. “Diving With Dolphins” mentions that in the three years it took to make this documentary, one-third of the film locations’ coral reef died. (More on this subject can be found in the excellent 2017 Netflix documentary “Chasing Coral.”)

“Diving With Dolphins” places a lot of emphasis on tiger sharks toward the end of the film, by saying tiger sharks are “misunderstood” and have an “overblown reputation as frightening and deadly predators.” One of the reasons why French Polynesia was chosen as a location to film was because it’s one of the few countries that have laws protecting sharks, which are necessary for the food chain.

And cinematographer Atkins, who has more than 30 years of experience filming in the ocean, calls sharks “extraordinarily beautiful and graceful.” Atkins shows through a demonstration while being surrounded by tiger sharks, that giving them a gentle nudge on the face should do the trick in preventing them from attacking you. (It’s a lot easier said than done, and there should’ve been a caveat that only professionals with animal experience should try this tactic.)

Overall, “Diving With Dolphins” is kind of a scattered film that doesn’t reveal anything surprising about the making of “Dolphin Reef.” And the movie is much more than about diving with dolphins, since the filmmakers’ interactions with humpback whales and tiger sharks also take up a great deal of screen time.

Disney+ premiered “Diving With Dolphins” on April 3, 2020.

Review: ‘Dolphin Reef,’ narrated by Natalie Portman

April 3, 2020

by Carla Hay

“Dolphin Reef”

Directed by Keith Scholey and Alastair Fothergill

Culture Representation: This Disneynature documentary chronicles some of the coral-reef life in French Polynesia, Hawaii and Florida, with an emphasis on dolphins and humpback whales.

Culture Clash: The dolphins and humpback whales are in danger of being killed by orcas.

Culture Audience: “Dolphin Reef” will appeal primarily to people who like movies about ocean animals.

Disneynature’s “Dolphin Reef” is a beautifully filmed and unevenly edited documentary about coral-reef life in oceans. Viewers should know in advance that the movie isn’t just about dolphins. Humpback whales get almost as much as screen time in the movie as the dolphins, but since dolphins are “cuter,” that might be why dolphins are made the selling point in the movie’s title. The documentary is a pretty good lesson on the ocean’s ecosystem, but it also serves as a warning that much of the ecosystem is in danger of becoming extinct by the end of the 21stcentury if environmental protections aren’t implemented.

Narrated by Oscar-winning actress Natalie Portman, “Dolphin Reef” focuses on a bottlenose dolphin mother and child, as well as a humpback whale mother and child. (They’re the only animals in the movie that have names.) Kumu is the dolphin mother of 3-year-old son Echo, a mischievous, playful child with a short attention span. Echo has reached a point in his life when he has to learn to be independent from his mother, but he lets other things easily distract him. Echo becomes fascinated with Moraya, a 40-foot humpback whale and her newborn female calf Fluke. The dolphins and the whales sometimes cross paths with each other, as they mingle with other ocean life and try to dodge the deadly jaws of orcas.

Without question, the best thing about “Dolphin Reef” is the gorgeous, immersive cinematography, which is usually the case with Disneynature documentaries. (And the atmosphere of “Dolphin Reef” might look kind of like a real-life version of the Pixar animation classic “Finding Nemo,” but without animals talking like humans, of course.) The vibrancy of the colors and animal life in the documentary’s coral reefs will give viewers the feeling of experiencing the beauty and dangers of the ocean firsthand.

However, unlike Disneynature films, which tends to focus on only one kind of animal, the story in “Dolphin Reef” isn’t as focused and could have benefited from tighter editing. Soon after viewers are introduced to dolphins Kumu and Echo, it veers into an educational narrative about other ocean life. The corals are the foundation, and they are kept from overgrowing by the ocean’s “gardeners”—the animals that feed on the corals. The gardeners are food for meat-eating ocean “predators” (such as dolphins, humpback whales and sharks), who are in turn eaten by “superpredators,” such as orcas.

The movie explains that Moraya the humpback whale has arrived from a cold polar location to give birth in warmer, tropical climate of the Pacific Ocean. A good deal of the documentary then shows how her whale calls attract the attention of male humpback whales, who sing and dance and then compete to become her protector. One only whale can emerge victorious.

There’s also a lot of screen time given to some of the memorable ocean residents who come in contact with the dolphins and whales. Razorfish are popular dining options for dolphins, which look for food by using a highly sophisticated sonar called echo location. It’s a skill that takes dolphins years to develop. Even though razorfish can hide in the sand, they can be detected if a dolphin has a highly attuned echo location.

Other fish who get a spotlight in the movie are humphead parrotfish, which are described as “the single most important protectors of the reef,” since they are essentially the “garbage collectors” of the ocean. In turn, the humphead parrotfish, whose enormous teeth can start to rot if not cleaned enough, are groomed smaller fish and other animals, in a ritual that goes back eons. If you ever wanted to know that humphead parrotfish excrement looks like sand, and they excrete about five tons a year, then you have this documentary to thank.

Cuttlefish are cast as the mysterious “villains” to smaller creatures, since cuttlefish have the ability to disguise themselves by changing the appearance of its scales. Cuttlefish can also transfix its prey by making its scales glow in the dark. It sounds like the kind of villain that you’d see in a Disney cartoon movie.

Also part of this ocean community are peacock mantis shrimp (notable for their obsessive grooming), crabs and sting rays. The editing of “Dolphin Reef” is clearly inspired by “Finding Nemo,” since these different ocean animals are sometimes made to look like they have cartoonish personalities, such as when the camera focuses on a wide-eyed fish that looks around and ducks when predators get into a fight. That footage might not actually be of the fish reacting to the fight, but it’s edited to look that way.

There’s even a “Finding Nemo” moment in the movie when Echo gets separated from his mother, is stuck with a friendly turtle in a very deep crevice. There’s a race against time for the Echo and the turtle to try to find an opening in the crevice, so they can rise to the ocean surface to breathe in much-needed oxygen. Moraya and her daughter Fluke also have a scary moment when they’re surrounded by orcas. Viewers can watch the the movie to find out what happened in both situations.

“Dolphin Reef” (directed by Keith Scholey and Alastair Fothergill) gives the impression that it was filmed mainly in the Pacific Ocean (including French Polynesian islands and in Hawaii), but Disneynature’s behind-the-scenes documentary “Diving With Dolphins” shows that filming of the movie spread all the way to the Atlantic Ocean coast of Florida. Therefore, there’s a lot of editing that looks manipulated to appear that things are happening in the same general location, when in fact they are not.

Portman’s narration is much like a the conversational tone of an elementary school teacher when she has to say lines describing the Polynesian islands’ as providing a “backdrop of an amazing story, with characters as fantastical as a fairy tale, but as real as you and me.” And she has a dramatically ominous tone when she says of the ocean: “This world operates under a different set of rules.”

Because the movie spreads the storyline across two types of ocean mammals—dolphins and humpback whales—as well as various “supporting characters” of ocean life, a more accurate title for the movie would be “Coral Reef,” even though it’s not as eye-catching as “Dolphin Reef.” Although dolphins and humpback whales are very different in many ways, they both have striking similarities, since they are each very intelligent, group-oriented animals that have distinctive languages and show affection through touching.

“Dolphin Reef” is not the best Disneynature documentary, but it can be enjoyed by people looking for a family-friendly film that gives some eye-popping views of ocean life.

Disney+ premiered “Dolphin Reef” on April 3, 2020.

Westin Nanea Ocean Villas in Maui set to open in April 2017

January 25, 2017

The Westin Nanea Ocean Villas, located on 16 oceanfront acres of North Kā’anapali Beach in Maui, Hawaii, will open on April 15, 2017, and is currently confirming reservations for stays that begin on May 1, 2017. The resort, whose name “nanea” means relaxation in Hawaiian, will reach this milestone two-and-a-half months ahead of schedule.

The Westin Nanea Ocean Villas have villas with one, two or three bedrooms. The master bedrooms will include king-size signature Westin Heavenly Beds and Westin Heavenly Baths with showers, bathtubs and vanities. The living areas will offer armoires, queen-size sofa sleepers and private furnished lanais. Villas will also come with fully equipped kitchens and washers and dryers.

The Pu’uhonua o Nanea Cultural Center at the heart of the resort has educational cultural offerings that will honor local history, language, art, crafts, music and dance. The resort also has a lagoon-style swimming pool, children’s beach pool and play area, oceanfront cabanas and a WestinWorkout Fitness Studio.

Mauka Makai Restaurant (mauka: toward the mountains; makai: toward the ocean), the resort’s full-service restaurant, will pay tribute to the farming and fishing cultures of ancient Hawaii. With an emphasis on farm-to-table, Mauka Makai will utilize indigenous plants and vegetables grown on-site and from local farms to complement popular local dishes. It will also feature the Westin® brand’s signature SuperFoodsRX menu with nutrient-rich and delicious options to tempt every palate.

Additionally, the Inu (Drink) Pool Bar will provide a relaxing setting to enjoy oceanfront views, cocktails and lighter fare. Guests will also enjoy access to resort amenities at the Westin Kā’anapali Ocean Resort Villas located next door, including Spa Helani, a Heavenly Spa by Westin.

UPDATE: The Westin Nanea Ocean Villas Kaanapali is now part of Marriott International. More information can be found at the resort’s current website.

Wailea Beach Resort – Marriott, Maui unveils $100 million transformation

December 6, 2016

Wailea Beach Resort – Marriott, Maui has revealed its $100 transformation. The changes to the Hawaii resort include a re-imagined arrival experience; six new dining options, including Humble Market Kitchin by Roy Yamaguchi; three new distinct pool environments; and 547 redesigned rooms and suites; and the modernization of all indoor/outdoor meeting and event spaces, fitness center and spa.

Here are details about the changes at the resort:

Redesigned Rooms

Each room now has new furnishings and enhanced in-room technology, including personal device mirror-casting, custom music streaming, and personalized Netflix and Hulu content. Every room has an outdoor lanai (balcony), while 62 ground floor rooms feature extended lanais, offering guests a seamless indoor/outdoor living experience.

Dining Destinations

Humble Market Kitchin by Roy Yamaguchi has an internationally influenced, Hawaiian-inspired menu. Perched on one of the highest points at the property, the resort’s signature restaurant offers indoor/outdoor dining, panoramic ocean views and a design influenced by the surrounding mountains and enchanting sea.

Kapa Bar & Grill is for guests who want to gather poolside with captivating views of the ocean. The menu, is inspired by Hawaii’s natural and sustainable resource. The vibrant bar and lounge features entertainment amenities such as billiards, shuffleboard, gaming stations and large screen TVs.

Whale’s Tale is a casual beach bar that offers morning and afternoon refreshments and evening craft cocktails.

Mo Bettah Food Truck and Nalu Pool Bar have grab-and-go options, kid-friendly favorites and local treats, such shaved ice and poke.

Pool Amenities

Nalu Adventure Pool is a new, two-acre pool complex offers a fun-filled experience for families and kids of all ages. This pool area has four water slides, two of which measure 240 feet and 325 feet respectively, with the latter dropping five-and-half stories and measuring as the longest water slide of any resort in Hawaii. There is also new interactive splash zone, with water guns, spraying sea mammal sculptures and bubblers. Nalu Adventure Pool has Dive Pool, a distinct space for scuba certification, diving, snorkeling and other water-sports instruction.

Maluhia Serenity Pool, for adults only, has over-water private cabanas, casabellas for two and luxury chaise lounges. The iconic space holds multi-level pool decks and presents unobstructed panoramic views of the Pacific Ocean.

‘Ohi Pools: The resort’s two new oceanfront pools have two whirlpool spas and numerous ocean-view cabanas surround the pools and present an ideal way to reconnect with the water.

Meeting and Event Space

New and modern event spaces offer 30,000 square feet of indoor meeting and function space, along with 72,000 square feet of outdoor event space, including the Makai Oceanview Ballroom. Each event space has enhanced Wi-Fi and a dedicated team that can customize audiovisual needs for each event.