Starring Bobby Vee, Jackie DeShannon, Eddie Hodges, and John Ireland
Directed by David Butler
Music and Lyrics by Don Crawford
Paramount made one last stab at beach parties in 1967, just as the surf music wave was cresting. That could be why this one has a topical angle that mostly took it off the beaches and onto a college campus. Colleges across the US were rife with protests as students rallied for civil rights, women's rights, and their own right to speak freely and against the war in Vietnam. It's also a little bit more action-packed than most of these films, with car wrecks and brawls in and out of school. How does all this look now, as more college students one again stage protests and question the rules of society? Let's begin with tough little cookie Judy Grant (DeShannon) who ends up in that car wreck and find out...
The Story: Arkansas hillbilly singer Jesse Crawford (Vee) rescues Judy from the burning car. Her father (Russ Conway) is the dean of students at a local college. He's so grateful, he lets Jesse go to school for free. Jesse befriends nerdy inventor Eddie Stewart (Eddie Hodges), who introduces him to his singing group. Eddie's hoping to beat school intellectual Rego (Ireland) for school president, but Rego has his own ideas of who should be in charge. He holds a rally against the dean, convincing Jesse and Eddie's group to sing for the show. Judy's horrified, until Jesse finally explains that he had no idea what the rally was about, and Judy reminds Rego that there's more to life and love than revolution.
The Song and Dance: I give them a little credit on this one. This is the only Beach Party imitation that got anywhere near the campus radicalism that was much-discussed at the time. It does give you the idea of how scared many adults were of the revolutions happening on colleges around the country in the late 60's and makes for a fairly original twist. At the very least, it makes a bit more sense than teens gyrating on a beach.
Favorite Number: Our first number is Vee's lovely "What Fools This Mortal Be" with Eddie's group, though most of the second half is drowned out by Rego and Judy's brother Tim (Mark Evans) deciding to add him to their big protest rally. Giggly Bee Bee Vendermeer (Suzie Kaye), Tim's girlfriend who flirts with every guy around, performs the title number with a male combo at a local club. Vee is encouraged to join Kaye and slinky dancers for the swinging "Instant Girl."
Jesse's hillbilly relatives drive to college singing "Way Back Home" as they wonder about all the differences between their farm and the campus. Jesse sings "Over and Over" while he and Judy discuss their relationship. Eddie and his band rehearse the dance song "Let's Go-Go" at their dorm rooms before the rally. Jesse and Judy really get into their catchy duet "Back-Talk" at the rally, before Rego comes out with his big speeches and annoys the dean and the students alike. We end with black duet The Pair jamming with "Tonight's the Night" at the end of the rally.
Trivia: Last movie for director David Butler, who had been doing fluffy musicals and romantic comedies like this one since 1927.
Look for future rock star Kim Carnes as one of Judy's friends on campus.
What I Don't Like: Even in the truncated version I saw on YouTube, it's still clear that this hasn't dated well at all. In 1967, most college students would have been far more likely to take those protests seriously, and they sure as heck would today. DeShannon comes off a little bit better than in Surf Party three years earlier, but Vee has no chemistry with her and can't act worth a darn and everyone else is either annoying or too goofy. Even Patsy Kelly as Dean Grant's housekeeper can't do much with the witless material she has to work with. The sets and costumes look as cheap as they likely are. We barely even get on the beach, much less have parties.
The Big Finale: Paramount seems to have wiped out with their attempts to ape AIP. Only for the most ardent fans of Vee or DeShannon, or those who remember seeing these movies at the drive-in or late-night cable.
Home Media: Currently only available in truncated copies from those late-night cable showings on YouTube and the Internet Archive that are missing two of DeShannon's numbers.
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