Sucedió en la playa

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

Before there was Baywatch we had the Beach Party movies and this one was the one that started it all.

Robert Cummings must have seen Lover Come Back where Rock Hudson had a full growth of beard and Doris Day mistook for a scientist. Cummings must have liked the look as a scientist because he uses it here in portraying an anthropologist studying teenage mating habits.

Where better than Malibu and who better for study than Frankie Avalon, Annette Funicello and their friends?

The same innocence of the years before November of 1963 is there, this film's not quite as surreal as the later successors. It's like The Road to Singapore which established the formula for those Crosby/Hope films, but hadn't descended yet into the zaniness that characterized the later ones.

It all works out quite nicely and it was nice Dorothy Malone was around for Bob Cummings although the poor woman had very little to do in this film. My favorite in these film is Harvey Lembeck as Erich Von Zipper, the motorcycle gang leader. He's a Marlon Brando wannabe.

Beach Party does kind of take me back to my teen years.

Bob Cummings (offensive in nearly every movie I've seen him in) acquits himself quite nicely here as nerdy professor studying the mating habits of today's teenagers, eventually finding himself sort-of attracted to busty-but-innocent Annette Funicello. Frankie Avalon and Annette get co-starring parts here, later carrying the torch onward to many other beach sequels; they fight a lot (as usual) and try to make each other jealous. The only thing that really separates this initial sand-&-sex romp from the others is a bit more attention to plot and dialogue, less silliness (it's surprisingly low-keyed). Annette, her hair tinted a pretty cinnamon-brown, sings a great solo number, "Treat Him Nicely"--actually, it's her mirrored reflection who gives the advice. A pleasant, colorful outing, with Harvey Lembeck very funny as Eric Von Zipper, who gets "the finger" from Cummings ("You stupids!"). A little singing, a little loving, lots of arguing, and a pie fight finale. **1/2 from ****

This is the first and some would say best(other than Beach Blanket Bingo) of the series.Annette and Frankie are on their way to a cozy weekend beach vacation,but Annette has invited the whole gang!!!Frankie is mad at her rejection of him,and they have a childish fight.Meanwhile,a professor is studying the teens and Annette uses him to get back at Frankie,while Frankie uses an over-endowed girl.Annette sings "Treat Him Nicely" and "Promise Me Anything" as well as the title song with Frankie.Fun pie-throwing things.

"Frankie" (Frankie Avalon) and his girlfriend "Dolores" (Annette Funicello) are on their way to the beach for what Frankie hopes will be a weekend alone with Dolores. Unfortunately for Frankie, Dolores is slightly more conventional and has invited the rest of their surf gang to meet them there. This results in a spat between Frankie and Dolores. Meanwhile, a professor named "Robert Sutwell" (Bob Cummings) just happens to have rented a beach house right next to where Frankie and the gang are staying so that he can study the primitive mating rituals of American surfers. For his research, he needs to make the acquaintance of one of the surfers, and Dolores is more than happy to spend time with the professor because she wants to make Frankie jealous. In return, Frankie decides to make Dolores jealous by showering his affection on a beautiful foreign barmaid named "Ava" (Eva Six). Add in some bikers, beatniks, and beach music along with scantily clad men and women in a sexually charged atmosphere, and the end result is a fun movie that stretches the boundaries but doesn't quite break them. Now, although this is not the first "beach movie" ever made, this particular picture-along with its predecessor "Gidget" a few years earlier-was largely responsible for the introduction of a brand-new sub-genre of film. Although it is certainly dated, and some people may not fully understand all the nuances, it's still worth a watch for those who enjoy movies of this type.