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One of the definitive TV shows of the 1970s that originally aspired to the dark moral complexity of anthology shows like The Twilight Zone. Even die hard fans will have to admit Fantasy Island fell short of its goal--but that didn't stop it from becoming hugely popular, lasting for seven powerhouse seasons. All the most iconic elements were present from the beginning: Diminutive Tattoo (Herve Villechaize, The Man with the Golden Gun) shouting "De plane! De plane!"; infinitely gracious Mr. Roarke (Ricardo Montalban, Star Trek II: The Wrath of Khan) commanding "Smiles, everyone, smiles," before delivering pages of exposition with his implacable Latin gravitas; the white suits; the tropical island that somehow has all the vegetation and weather patterns in the world; the pageant of celebrities from Jim Backus to Karen Valentine, Barbi Benton to Don Knotts--it all added up to sneakily addictive television.
After all, wish-fulfillment--be it a schlub who wants to be irresistible to chicks or kids who want their separated parents to reconcile or a former cheerleading team who want to relive their high school glory days--had a built-in narrative hook, even though the resolution (various versions of "be careful what you wish for") was never in doubt. Almost every episode bubbled over with sex, revenge, ambition, and regret, delivered with a shameless lack of subtlety. Over the course of the first season, the interplay between Montalban and Villechaize--each armed with an intriguing exotic accent--became more and more prominent, with Mr. Roarke becoming increasingly supernatural while Tattoo oozed the mortal sins of greed and lechery. Turn on any episode; you'll find it hard to stop watching, no matter how cheesy or ludicrous the storyline. --Bret Fetzer
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Most Helpful Customer Reviews
6 of 6 people found the following review helpful
Format:DVD
How fantastic that this is available on DVD now. I LOVED the series when I was little and bought it for nostalgic reasons, and it is even better then I remembered, the fab 70s brought to life!
Buy it, you will not regret it.
(And if you are a fan you might want to look into 'The Love Boat' also quite brilliant.
Buy it, you will not regret it.
(And if you are a fan you might want to look into 'The Love Boat' also quite brilliant.
10 of 11 people found the following review helpful
Format:DVD
Before it became a long-running original television show, Fantasy Island was introduced to viewers in 1977 through two highly-rated made-for-television films in which Mr. Roarke and Tattoo played relatively minor roles. Airing from 1978 to 1984, the original series starred Ricardo Montalban as Mr. Roarke, the enigmatic overseer of a mysterious island somewhere in the Pacific Ocean, where people from all walks of life could come and live out their fantasies, albeit for a price.
Roarke was known for his white suit and cultured demeanor, and was initially accompanied by an energetic sidekick, Tattoo, played by the diminutive Hervé Villechaize. Tattoo would run up the main bell tower to ring the bell and shout "The plane! The plane!" to announce the arrival of a new set of guests at the beginning of each episode. This line, shown at the beginning of the show's credits, became an unlikely catchphrase because of Villechaize's spirited delivery and French accent (he actually pronounced it, "De plane! De plane!"). In later seasons, he would arrive in his personal go-cart, sized for him, and recklessly drive to join Roarke for the visitor reception while staff scrambled to get out of his way. From 1980 to 1982, Wendy Schaal joined the cast as another assistant named Julie. In an highly unpopular move with fans, the producers fired Villechaize from the series before the 1983-1984 season (which ended up being its last) and Tattoo was replaced by a more sedate butler type named Lawrence, played by Christopher Hewett. Lawrence's personality was exactly the opposite of Tattoo's in many ways. For instance, Lawrence was also responsible for the bell ringing, but instead of climbing to the tower he simply pushed a button outside to have the bell ring automatically.
Roarke would then welcome his guests by lifting his glass and saying: "My dear guests, I am Mr. Roarke, your host. Welcome to Fantasy Island.".
The usual format of each episode consisted of an introduction in which Roarke would describe to Tattoo (or another assistant) the nature of each person's fantasy, usually with a cryptic comment suggesting the person's fantasy will not turn out as they expected. The episode would then alternate between two or three independent storylines as the guests experienced their fantasies and interacted with Roarke. Often, the fantasies would turn out to be morality lessons for the guests, sometimes to the point of putting their lives at risk, only to have Roarke step in at the last minute and reveal the deception. It is mentioned a few times that a condition of visiting Fantasy Island is that guests never reveal what goes on there. A small number of guests decided to make the irrevocable choice to stay permanently, living out their fantasy until death; one such person was an actor who'd been in a Tarzan-type TV series in the 1960s.
Complete 1st season here. I hope they release all the others soon.
Roarke was known for his white suit and cultured demeanor, and was initially accompanied by an energetic sidekick, Tattoo, played by the diminutive Hervé Villechaize. Tattoo would run up the main bell tower to ring the bell and shout "The plane! The plane!" to announce the arrival of a new set of guests at the beginning of each episode. This line, shown at the beginning of the show's credits, became an unlikely catchphrase because of Villechaize's spirited delivery and French accent (he actually pronounced it, "De plane! De plane!"). In later seasons, he would arrive in his personal go-cart, sized for him, and recklessly drive to join Roarke for the visitor reception while staff scrambled to get out of his way. From 1980 to 1982, Wendy Schaal joined the cast as another assistant named Julie. In an highly unpopular move with fans, the producers fired Villechaize from the series before the 1983-1984 season (which ended up being its last) and Tattoo was replaced by a more sedate butler type named Lawrence, played by Christopher Hewett. Lawrence's personality was exactly the opposite of Tattoo's in many ways. For instance, Lawrence was also responsible for the bell ringing, but instead of climbing to the tower he simply pushed a button outside to have the bell ring automatically.
Roarke would then welcome his guests by lifting his glass and saying: "My dear guests, I am Mr. Roarke, your host. Welcome to Fantasy Island.".
The usual format of each episode consisted of an introduction in which Roarke would describe to Tattoo (or another assistant) the nature of each person's fantasy, usually with a cryptic comment suggesting the person's fantasy will not turn out as they expected. The episode would then alternate between two or three independent storylines as the guests experienced their fantasies and interacted with Roarke. Often, the fantasies would turn out to be morality lessons for the guests, sometimes to the point of putting their lives at risk, only to have Roarke step in at the last minute and reveal the deception. It is mentioned a few times that a condition of visiting Fantasy Island is that guests never reveal what goes on there. A small number of guests decided to make the irrevocable choice to stay permanently, living out their fantasy until death; one such person was an actor who'd been in a Tarzan-type TV series in the 1960s.
Complete 1st season here. I hope they release all the others soon.
2 of 2 people found the following review helpful
Format:DVD
This programme brings back happy memories as im sure it will for many. When i was young watching this i remember i would have liked to live on that magical island. 'The plane, The plane' stuck in my head all thease years. Wonder if it will ever be released on region 2 in an English format
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Most Recent Customer Reviews
Dreams, can come true...
Redolent of those Roger Moore James Bond movies (probably because both the stars featured in that series too), this series is utterly cheesy and very odd but also (and perhaps... Read more
Published 23 days ago by Scaroth, Last of the Jagaroth
Fantasy Island revisited
A wonderful trip down memory lane a series with all elements you could want from a classic tv series. Action , Romance, Intrigue , Comedy and even a touch of the Supernatural. Read more
Published 3 months ago by winged avenger
Superb entertainment, fantastic nostalgia, great value
I purchased this DVD as I loved Fantasy Island when I was a nipper.What a buy it has turned out to be. Read more
Published 5 months ago by DavyA
SUBTITLES INCLUDED !!!!
Great series,region 2 pal UK,extras include:
1 Creating the fantasy.
2 Spending the day at fantasy island.
3 Original promotional teasers. Read more
1 Creating the fantasy.
2 Spending the day at fantasy island.
3 Original promotional teasers. Read more
Published 12 months ago by Seven,seven,seven.
Pure TV Gold
I was more than happy to add Fantasy Island to my dvd collection. The quality of all the actual episodes were crystal-clear in picture, and the series has held up incredibly well... Read more
Published 18 months ago by M. Wilson
IS THERE A SECOND SEASON
A STEP BACK IN TIME ABSOLUTLY GREAT AND SO CHEAP ( WELL DONE AMAZON )FAST SERVICE KWIK DELIVERY JUST NEED AMAZON TO FIND THE NEXT SEASON IF THERE IS ONE
HIGHLY RECOMENDED IF... Read more
HIGHLY RECOMENDED IF... Read more
Published on 15 Oct 2009 by P. THURLING
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