RyothChatty
ridiculous rating
Organnall
Too much about the plot just didn't add up, the writing was bad, some of the scenes were cringey and awkward,
Brendon Jones
It’s fine. It's literally the definition of a fine movie. You’ve seen it before, you know every beat and outcome before the characters even do. Only question is how much escapism you’re looking for.
classicsoncall
Watching movies like this today makes me realize I didn't miss anything by not catching them back in the day. I wouldn't have quite been a teenager yet when this film originally came out, but I would have considered it Harvey Lembeck stupid just the same.Interestingly, this is the second movie in a row I've watched in which Kirk Douglas's dimple was brought up as a topic of conversation. The other one was "The War Wagon" in which Douglas appeared, explaining facetiously how he got it - he slept with his chin resting on a ring. So if it ever comes up in a trivia contest, now you know.Prior to this film's showing on it's latest Turner Classic broadcast, Roger Corman offered his theory on why these beach movies were so popular in the Sixties - to please the kids, you had to infuriate the adults. With the hindsight of half a century, it doesn't seem to me that the teens in the film were all that rebellious; they were just out to have some fun. Although Professor Sutwell (Bob Cummings) had his own theory as well - the antics of the young men and women dancing on the beach were a 'definite jungle perversion'! Good grief.Well I've seen a few of these beach films now, 1964's "Muscle Beach Party" and 1965's "Beach Blanket Bingo", and for me, picking a favorite would be a moot point. This one though, which jump started the genre is the one I think that has cured me from tuning into any more. I know I'm in the minority here, but hey, to each his own. My quest for nostalgia goes only so far.
zetes
I watched this first of AIP's Beach Party movies in tribute to Annette Funicello. I forget just how painfully dopey these teen comedies from the era can be. No offense meant to Funicello - she's pretty charming here. She's almost an afterthought, though. Robert Cummings, playing an anthropologist studying surfing culture, is the film's star. He's pretty much the only one who lands any of his jokes - he comes off as a pretty talented comedian surrounded by hackiness. Frankie's here, too, of course, and also doesn't have too much to do. Dorothy Malone, as Cummings assistant and the gal who he'll end up with (he has a phony romance with Funicello which we know from the start won't go anywhere), also has nothing to do. And, poor girl, she looks hopelessly ancient next to Funicello, Eva Six and the rest of the young women. There are several good songs. Whenever they're singing, the film's worthwhile.
TheLittleSongbird
I find it very difficult not to like Beach Party. While it may seem dated by today's standards, it is interesting to see surfing done this way and how people acted and I thought it added to its charm. My only real problem with Beach Party actually is the banal subplot between Sutwell and Marianne that seemed to come from a completely different movie altogether. Bob Cummings however is very likable, and Dorothy Malone is resourceful with some nice lines. Her character may seem somewhat worthless compared to this subplot, but not because of her performance. The rest of the performances are also fine, Harvey Lembeck seems to be enjoying himself, and the leads Frankie Avalon and Annette Funicello(it's easy why anybody would have a crush on her) are really charming and sweet. Vincent Price also has a nice if brief cameo. The film looks colourful, and the soundtrack is very catchy and drives it wonderfully. The pacing is zippy, the characters are appealing and the story is rarely dull. The dialogue has its wit and fun too, if perhaps very of the time. All in all, charming, likable and fun, very difficult not to enjoy regardless of whether it's perfect or not. 8/10 Bethany Cox
TxMike
This 1963 movie was a prequel of sorts to the 1964 "Bikini Beach", using many of the same characters and some continuation of story lines, like Eric Von Zipper and his RATZ motorcycle gang. But Avalon and Funicello, even though experienced actors, had not become the the "beach lovers" yet, and this is the movie that made them that. It brings back good memories for me in particular, 1963 was the year I graduated from high school and turned 18. I didn't see this movie back then, but seeing it now is a certain type of fun that can't be explained unless you too were a teenager back then.This movie really focuses on established star Robert Cummings, who was in his early 50s, as Professor Sutwell. He landed his small high-wing plane on the beach and stuck around to study this strange species, the teenage surfer crowd. His able assistant and eventual love interest is Dorothy Malone as Marianne .Frankie Avalon is Frankie and Annette Funicello is Dolores (called 'Dee-Dee' in the next movie). They are boyfriend and girlfriend, but as was custom back in the 1960s, she wanted him to ask her to get married. She was graduating from high school and wanted to be a wife. (It really was that way back then, all the girls from my 1963 graduating class that didn't go to college got married pretty quickly, and many of them have lasted through the years. It was a different time.)So most of the story is Dolores trying to make Frankie jealous so that he will ask her to marry him. She does that by taking an interest in Professor Suttwell, even with the age difference. She misinterprets his interest as a romantic interest.Another really fun blast from the past is Morey Amsterdam as Cappy who ran the local hangout. Harvey Lembeck is Eric Von Zipper and we see how Professor Suttwell first paralyzes him with "the finger" to his temple. Soon after to become obscure was Eva Six as Ava , who some described as 'a face like Marilyn Monroe's and a body like Jayne Mansfield's, which she did but I suppose she wasn't much of an actress.The movie is mostly ridiculous and slapstick, it never was intended to be high art, just fluff of entertainment for the times. And for that it hits that mark quite well.
