If the last decade featuring the rise of streaming services have indicated anything, it’s that there’s no longer a difference between being a “movie star” and a “television actor.” While these used to be very different professions that courted different circles of actors, we’ve now seen major movie stars like Anthony Hopkins, Matthew McConaughey, Sylvester Stallone, Kate Winslet, Jeff Bridges, Mahershala Ali,and countless others return to the small screen for intimate prestige projects. So it's not surprising when an older veteran of the industry chooses to take a chance on an extended series, but Taylor Sheridan's new Yellowstone prequel series, 1923, has reunited two of the most influential icons of New Hollywood: Harrison Fordand Helen Mirren.
Both Mirren and Ford are responsible for changing our conception of what a modern actor would be. Ford is certainly best known for his roles in the Star Wars and Indiana Jones franchises, but he continued to pursue edgier work with projects like Witness,Presumed Innocent, Frantic,and What Lies Beneath.Similarly, Mirren may have first gained acclaim for her work in period costume dramas and stage adaptations, but she would often take chances on bizarre comedy roles and challenging genre vehicles. These are two versatile, highly accomplished legends of the screen, and so it only makes sense that their first movie together, 1986’s The Mosquito Coast, would allow them to completely eradicate any popular image their respective fans may have had of them. The Mosquito Coast stands in such stark contrast to anything else that Ford and Mirren have done that it’s not surprising that it’s often overlooked when reflecting upon their greatest achievements.
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Based on the 1981 novel of the same name by Paul Theroux, The Mosquito Coast follows the dogmatic inventor Allie Fox (Ford) as he brings his wife, Margot (Mirren), and their two sons, Charlie (River Phoenix) and Jerry (Jadrien Steele), to a South American jungle where they can escape the perils of American consumerism. Fox has become irritated by his lack of success in America and believes that his inventions will be praised as brilliant if he takes them to an underdeveloped country. The generally charismatic Ford had to do something he’d never done before in this film -- be completely obnoxious, unlikeable, and pathetic. Similarly, the confidence Mirren usually brings to her roles is completely absent in her performance as a hapless housewife who is forced to seek help from her own children. The Mosquito Coast is a grim moral fable that has grown even more relevant in recent years, and it's the excellent and brave work from Ford and Mirren that elevates the already excellent material.
Disaster and Satire in 'The Mosquito Coast'
The Mosquito Coast came out at an odd time in the history of mid-budget Hollywood movies. While the dreams of “New Hollywood” were beginning to disappear as the industry turned its eyes on potential blockbuster titles, the 1980s were also a decade in which auteur filmmakers were able to use recent works of fiction to attack the political discourse. Director Peter Weir examined the fallacies behind the seemingly “ideal nuclear family” by showing how truly miserable the Foxes are in their community. Allie is not content with having to wait for his inventions to be appreciated, and he turns his rage on the “lazy” workers who waste his time. It’s interesting to see the sort of “guidance” that he passes on to his children during the scenes before they venture into the jungle. Charlie learns that he can gain his father’s respect by mocking and criticizing others.
While this would have been an opportunity for Margot to stand up against her husband’s spiral into madness, she’s so removed from responsibility that she pays very little attention to the extent of the issue. Margot has learned to coast off of what has been given to her, and she doesn’t realize that her husband’s vague dreams about traveling to the jungle are quickly going to become their reality. It’s fascinating to see someone who is as well-spoken as Mirren play a character that is so detached. Her ignorance makes the situation even more terrifying for Charlie and Jerry, as they realize that both of their parents are past the point of reason.
Once the family gets into the heart of the jungle and begins facing difficulties launching Allie’s “Fat Boy” ice-making device, The Mosquito Coast inserts elements of dark comedy, courtesy of the brilliant screenwriter Paul Schrader. Allie is a showman more than anything, but it's his inability to communicate his ideas that ultimately dooms any of his potential projects. This is exacerbated when he tries to break language barriers and present himself as some sort of messianic figure who is there to generously give away his gifts. This is also where we see Mirren shift into a more dynamic role as she begins to feel guilty for being such an ignorant American, putting her children’s lives in danger, and marrying someone as irritable as Allie in the first place. While Mirren doesn’t try to evoke our sympathies through a teary monologue, she does succeed in making us understand her point-of-view.
The Mosquito Coast makes the shift between being a societal satire to an edge-of-your-seat thriller in its third act, where it becomes clear that neither Ford nor Mirren are going to suddenly transform into the type of characters that audiences would have expected them to play. Ford doesn’t immediately show an Indiana Jones-esque intelligence that gets the family out alive, and Mirren doesn’t gain the empowering rage that made The Cook, The Thief, The Wife and Her Lover or Red so inspiring. Watching both actors and their characters crumple allows the audience to put their investment in the true hero of the story: Charlie. Charlie realizes that his parents’ generation is promising a future that they’re not truly prepared for, and that it’s up to him and his brother to be the “responsible” ones that can get them all out safely.
The Mosquito Coast is so cynical, challenging, and gleefully nihilistic that it was a hard film to market in 1986. Even with the backing of Ford and Mirren, the anti-capitalistic commentary and bleak depiction of the American dream may have turned off casual moviegoers. Apple TV+’s recent attempt to revamp the original source material took a decidedly more action-centric approach akin to Ozark or Breaking Bad. It’s a testament to Ford and Mirren's talents that they were able to bring such an odd film to life, and it’s nice to know that decades later, they’re teaming up again to silence any doubters who still remain.
