Paraíso Maldito

I loved that show! I used to watch it every wednesday with my parents when i was twelve. Too bad it is not available on video as far as i know. Although i think they overdid when they made Stephanie Harper die twice and had her disguised as Tara Welles and then as Princess Talita.

Return to Eden is a film of rubber and wood. Rubber faces and crocodiles and wooden acting. It is hilarious. The story is as follows: Rich lonley heiress Stephanie Harper (Rebecca Gilling)falls in love with a gold digging tennis star Greg Marsden (James Reyne). They marry, and not long after this he attempts to kill her by pushing her into crocodile infested waters where she is mauled. She is rescued by a kindly hermit (isn't this always the case) who nurses her back to health and gives her his life savings, consisting of a bag of opals which she sells for $2000. Stephanie then goes to a plasic surgeon who falls in love with herand has her appearance changed, no mean feat for that sort of money. After this she changes her name to Tara wells, becomes a 'Supermodel',and seeks her revenge. The funniest thing about this is that nobody recognises her. As stephanie, she wears a grey Putty nose and jowls, which makes her look as though she has done 2 rounds with mike tyson. As Tara she is the most graceless, unattractive 'Supermodel' i have ever set eyes upon. (the 80s' fashions are hilarious). James Reyne, as Marsden, said in an interview on a DVD i purchased that he wanted to make his character look and act as though he has a rod up his arse. He was succesfull. Although he looked like a man with terminal piles, with a rod up his arse. I was expecting the revelation the he was an android, alas this never came. The plastic surgeon, Dan Marshall, is an actor of fine quality, or would be if this were dinner theater. From the sound of his voice he acts by day and does the top 40 on the radio by night. This mini series is absolutley hilarious try to get a copy, but have a box of tissues with you!

I have very fond memories of watching this film every year during my childhood. This film has EVERYTHING! A frumpy, 40-something millionairess gets eaten by a crocodile, survives, pays for a very extensive plastic surgery & rehabilitation program with the money she gets from cashing in some opals at a pawn shop, and then become an international model. Choice scenes of edge-of-your-seat intrigue include her lunch date with Wendy Hughes, the woman who helped feed her to a crocodile. Fifteen pounds thinner with a Pat Benatar haircut, she is completely unrecognizable to her former best friend. Although Ms. Hughes does remark, "Hmm, Stephanie was a beer drinker...." Oh no! Two beer-drinking women in Australia! Do you think she knows?? Intrigue ensues.

Norman Rosemont specialises in extremely classy television productions; Aaron Spelling... doesn't. But "Return To Eden," a daft but successful bid to show Australian TV could produce glossy trash just as well as its US counterpart, makes everything he's ever done seem like a gem in comparison (with the exception of "Charmed," which is quite good in its own right).

The three-part miniseries ended with the now transformed Tara triumphant alongside the plastic surgeon who became her lover, and her villainous ex dead and gone; the subsequent and sub-standard series saw most of the cast return, with Peta Toppano replacing Wendy Hughes as the scheming Jilly. Cue riches, boardroom backstabbing, fantastic scenery, beautiful people (well, sort of...), and jaw-droppingly bad writing and acting. And crocodiles in the pool(!).

The miniseries, by the way, was produced by Hanna Barbera Australia. That explains a lot.

I only came across this classic about a month ago on some obscure satellite channel in the early hours of the morning. Within two minutes I was hooked.

Return to Eden has it all - attempted murder, suspense, a gold-digging husband, the backstabbing best friend, a miraculous makeover and some of the best 80s fashions ever seen on film. Follow the amazing adventures of Stephanie Harper from the beginning as she goes from frumpy, middle aged heiress to Tara Welles - toast of the Sydney fashion scene but carrying a secret and plans to get revenge on those who wronged her! This mini series was so successful worldwide that it spawned a weekly serial a few years later.

For fans of glossy 80s soaps Return to Eden is essential viewing from start to finish. The costumes are amazing,the scenery beautiful, the acting is lets say, variable, and the script veers from the sublime to the ridiculous but you will be on the edge of your seat waiting for the next instalment!