Starring Frankie Avalon, Annette Funicello, Bob Cummings, and Dorothy Malone
Directed by William Asher
Music and Lyrics by various
This week, we're gonna hang out with Frankie, Annette, and some of the wildest teens to ever to do the Watusi on a California beach. American International Pictures was originally a low-budget independent company that specialized in movies about teens clashing with their parents and communities. Director Asher wanted something lighter and requested that it become a musical about kids having a good time on the beach. It did so well, and they had so much fun, it turned into a series of five low-budget films made from 1963 to 1965 that revolved around teen party antics of one kind or another. How does the movie that started them all look today? Let's begin with Dolores (Funicello) and Frankie (Avalon) arriving at their beach house and find out...
The Story: Frankie is not happy when it turns out Dolores got cold feet and invited all their friends to their beach house to spend the summer with them. He flirts with Ava (Eva Six) to make her jealous. Dolores in turn falls for Professor Orville Sutwell (Cummings), an anthropologist studying modern teen behaviors at the beach house next door. Sutwell thinks Dolores as just a test subject, but she thinks he's really in love with her. Meanwhile, Sutwell's assistant Marianne (Malone) is in love with him, and their favorite cafe keeps getting invaded by Erik Von Zipper (Harvey Lembeck) and his biker gang the Ratz.
The Song and Dance: The simple and very silly story is anchored by a good cast and some surprisingly decent performances. Funicello in particular is adorable as the girl who thinks she's in love with her first older man. TV star Cummings is hilarious as the dorky professor who learns that California surfing culture is a heck of a lot more complicated than anything he encountered in the jungle. (Look for Morey Amsterdam as Cappy, the manager of Big Daddy's, and Vincent Price as Big Daddy himself.) I'm also surprised and impressed with how much of a musical this is. Most of the songs actually tie into the story or move it along, and even the random numbers at the coffee shop at least work with the tone.
Favorite Number: Frankie and Annette begin and end the movie with "Beach Party Tonight" over the credits sequences. Real-life surf rock group Dick Dale and the Del Tones gets two big chorus routines that end with Candy Johnson's fringe shaking wildly and everyone gyrating, "Secret Surfin' Spot" at the beach and "Swingin' and Surfin'" at Big Daddy's. Avalon's solo is "Don't Stop Now" as he reveals to Ava that there's nothing going on between them. Dolores' tearful solo is "Treat Him Nicely" as she tells her reflection she intends to get Frankie back.
What I Don't Like: Uh...did I mention this is a low-budget teen flick from the early 60's? This is about as silly as you can get. It's cheap, it's campy (though not to the degree of some later films in the series), and it makes about as much sense as Cummings hanging ten. Avalon's buddies are pretty much interchangeable except Jody McCrea as huge hungry Deadhead, and Funicello is the only woman besides Malone and Eva Six as the voluptuous Hungarian waitress Ava who even remotely registers. Some of the boys' attitudes towards the girls and vice versa are a little dated nowadays, and their surfer argot will likely need as much explanation for current audiences as it did for Sutwell.
The Big Finale: I think you know what to expect here. If you're looking for a fluffy good time and don't mind the dated attitudes, catch a wave down to the beach with Frankie, Annette, and the rest of those dance-crazy kids.
Home Media: Its solo DVD and a double-feature set with Bikini Beach are in print, but fairly expensive and hard to find. You're better off streaming this one. Pluto TV and YouTube currently have it for free with ads.
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