Danger Island

When this TV movie made its debut, the trailer (and the montage behind the end credits) made a lot of Kathy Ireland's appearance in a swimsuit. Enough said. (That, and the fact that early on she can't believe someone tells her and other models to "Make those bikinis sing!" If even the characters in the film can't believe their dialogue...)

The movie was cute. I caught it on the Family Channel at the end of July. Most of the actors were familiar. I like Sci-Fi and I always enjoy watching a Joe Lara show or movie. Check this one out.

Whenever you rent or buy what you know to be a low-budget sci-fi movie, which you've never heard of, you always expect to get a little ripped off. Surprisingly, and gladly, that did not happen in this case.

The acting was good, the location was well chosen, it was well filmed, a decent amount of action, the plot was stretchy but feasible, tension was maintained, and it was nice to see June Lockhart doing what she does best, being a mom.

It would have made a good TV series.

My only question is: Where was the electricity coming from?

5 out of 10 stars.

I first watched this movie back in 1998, in a late night slot on the UK's Channel 5. I had never heard of the movie or read about it and just happened to start watching it. In the first few minutes, I assumed it would be a romantic drama on a tropical island. Swiss Family Robinson meets Blue Lagoon, maybe? Oh, how I was wrong.

After they arrive safely upon the island we get the view from under the water and the eerie music comes on. So its not a modern day Swiss Family Robinson after all. More like Demon Seed. I become even more intrigued in to what mysteries the island possesses, with references to the mutated fruit, 'fish like people' and hallucinations that Vic (Graham) has. I had to keep watching this movie, even though some of the acting was cringe worthy.

In to the latter part of the movie when they move in to the ''Habitat'', the group start to discover what truths there are behind the islands military past. A lot of the action takes place around this part of the movie, some it quite entertaining and exiting. When it came to an end I was shocked, I wanted more. Looking back though, there are painful reminders that Danger Island was not meant to end like this, but made to pave the way for a TV series, which never took off unfortunately (unless you can count Lost).

A good and entertaining film, with a relatively unknown cast and poor scripting, but good acting from Gary Graham and June Lockhart. In all though very intriguing characters and all work well together as a group. Would have been great to found out the answers that were never given especially if they were ever rescued. Oh well, a worthy 7/10

When I watched the NBC airing of DANGER ISLAND, I was fascinated by what a well-stocked premise the show had. First, a well-hidden lush jungle island. Add a local mysterious (but not evil, no matter what the earlier poster thought) tribe. And finally, the mysterious government black op, "Project Naomi", a well-stocked laboratory apparently handling a disturbingly wide variety of experiments. Which caused any number of mutants and mutagens to be released to roam the island.

Heck, as a former role playing game designer, I was envious I had not come up with such a setting. It would make a heck of an RPG!

The characters covered a wide variety of types, including apparently an ex-CIA type who knew about Project Naomi.... And a hero who, upon being exposed to a mysterious mutagen, is starting to become something other than human....

Man, I would love to see the writers' guidelines for this series!

The basic format of DANGER ISLAND has been revisited by two other TV series.

The mid-90s syndicated series PETER BENCHLEY'S AMAZON had an airliner crash in the remote jungle, stranding a few dozen passengers in an unexplored valley filled with mysterious threats..... And in fall 2004, ABC brings us LOST. An airline crash on a mysterious uncharted island filled with mysterious threats......

Postscript, January 2005-- It's funny watching LOST and DANGER ISLAND and seeing some of the same photogenic areas being used by the two similar shows a decade apart. LOST is definitely the better written show but still, it would have been nice for DANGER ISLAND to have had a better chance!

POST-postscript, January 2006-- A year later and it looks even more like DANGER ISLAND was a parallel world counterpart to LOST. Especially now that we know DI's "Project Naomi" has a counterpart in LOST's "Dharma Institute."