Paradise Hills
A rebellious heiress and her fellow prisoners uncover a luxurious island institution designed to preserve a ruling class through the controlled replacement of women.
Ember's analysis
- Pacing
- Brisk
- Intensity
- Strong
- Complexity
- Layered
- Violence
- Moderate
- eerie
- oppressive
- surreal
- dark sci fi night
- visual spectacle viewing
What critics said
Critics broadly praised the film's lavish visual design and timely class and feminist themes while finding its dialogue, plot logic, and conclusion uneven.
What sets it apart
May contain story progression spoilers
Paradise Hills presents an elegant island school whose elaborate sets, costumes, grooming rituals, and luxurious surfaces mask its brutal function.
The Uppers use the facility to analyze and replicate privileged women through Lower women, making class hierarchy a literal biological system.
Uma, Amarna, Chloe, and Yu are sent to Paradise Hills to be disciplined into compliant appearances, manners, relationships, and life paths.
The island's meals, therapy, beauty sessions, and privileged amenities become clues to a hidden control system rather than signs of safety.
Films like Paradise Hills, and why
The Handmaid's Tale
shared dystopian science fiction, social stratification, bodily control, and rebellion against an oppressive system
The Hunger Games
shared visually extravagant fantasy science fiction, female-centered resistance, and oppressive institutional power
The Island
shared isolated futuristic facility, human replication, conspiracy, and identity anxiety
The Neon Demon
shared surreal production design, female agency, social conformity, and dark fairy-tale atmosphere
Movie Details
- Director
- Alice Waddington
- Release Date
- 2019-08-29
- Runtime
- 95 min
- Rating
- 5.9 / 10 (609)
Cast
- Emma Roberts
- Eiza González
- Milla Jovovich
- Danielle Macdonald
- Awkwafina
- Jeremy Irvine
- Arnaud Valois
- Hunter Tremayne
- Johnny Melville
- Liliana Cabal
Where to watch in United States
- Streaming
- Amazon Prime Video, Amazon Prime Video with Ads
- Rent
- Amazon Video, Apple TV Store, Google Play Movies, YouTube, Fandango At Home
- Buy
- Amazon Video, Apple TV Store, Google Play Movies, YouTube, Fandango At Home
Streaming options come from TMDB and change over time.
Common questions
- What is Paradise Hills about?
- A rebellious heiress and her fellow prisoners uncover a luxurious island institution designed to preserve a ruling class through the controlled replacement of women.
- What is Paradise Hills like to watch?
- Ember's analysis rates the pacing of Paradise Hills as brisk, its intensity as strong and its storytelling as layered.
- Is Paradise Hills violent?
- Somewhat. Ember rates the violence in Paradise Hills as moderate.
- What did critics think of Paradise Hills?
- Critics broadly praised the film's lavish visual design and timely class and feminist themes while finding its dialogue, plot logic, and conclusion uneven.
- Which films are like Paradise Hills?
- Films with a similar feel include The Handmaid's Tale, The Hunger Games, The Island, and The Neon Demon.
- How long is Paradise Hills?
- Paradise Hills runs 95 minutes.
- Where can I watch Paradise Hills?
- In United States, Paradise Hills streams on Amazon Prime Video, Amazon Prime Video with Ads.
