Parallel Universe… Paradise Found… Innocence Lost Danny Boyle’s The Beach is a story of adventure, youth, and escapism – all wrapped in shimmering turquoise and existential dread. Based on Alex Garland’s novel, the film follows Richard, a disillusioned backpacker who stumbles upon a secret island utopia in Thailand. But utopias, as we learn, have a dark underside. What gives The Beach its pulse isn’t just the haunting cinematography or Leonardo DiCaprio’s sun-dazed performance. As so often in the films of Danny Boyle, the king of needle-dropping(!), it is once again the music that turns the experience from an adventurous popcorn…