Maslin Beach

Maslin Beach, as we're all aware by now, takes place on a nudist beach in S.A.

if there's one thing that set's Aussie films apart from the rest of the worlds movies is that our films are unique to our country and our laid back appeal. Maslin Beach is certainly no exception to this.

The nudity of this film doesn't come of un-noticeable, but having said that it is the plot that normal everyday australians can relate too, and if this movie was made on a regular beach with clothed 'beautiful people' would it really be the same? I doubt it, with the dialogue consisting of farting and sex and adultery, real things people talk about and real emotions (not lovey dovey crap from Hollywood) and the whole natural conversation of the film that links it with the nudity. and boy would it have saved on costume budget!

i'm not gunna dribble on about the plot. cause that'll just be repeating, but i will say that compare this film to something like Sirens or (think hollywood movie about the same topics...umm...) and you won't find a film about regular people, peole who are beautiful on the inside, as well as out, no matter how 'unattractive they might be'. it's a struggle we are faced with to be about to witness on the screen people who aren't oh so gorgeous, and who don't meet someone, and fall in love, and end up happily eve after, life, like maslin beach aint no fairy tale so what is hollywood's attraction to fairytale endings. it's not realistic and quite frankly (matter of opinion) it makes me sick to think everything in hollywood has to be happy endings, big action movies, so called "comedies" such as meet the parents or american pie, in order for a film to be considered worth while or appealing to people, it's a money, and it sucks. Maslin Beach is obviously cheaply done, but it's the finer more tender moments of life that are portrayed in 90 minutes of film making that make this movie worth while and a great non satrical look of humanity and how we are as people.

just my opinion, take it easy!

I caught this movie the other night on free-to-air TV (that'll never happen in the USA!). I was absolutely enchanted by it, yet find it difficult to say quite why!

It wasn't the nudity (yes, I DID notice it) - or perhaps it was the nudity, plus the fact that the actors weren't all "models". The cast pretty much covered the full spectrum of body shapes (and some other shapes!) and the appearance of naked-but-not-so-gorgeous people made the nudity ... unimportant, but unavoidable.

This movie evoked memories of Armistead Maupin's "Tales of the City", not by its content but rather by its context. It just gets on with the job of telling stories. These aren't great stories; some aren't even interesting. They are all stories of sex and love, but "little" stories, like those that affect you and me. They are stories worthy of the telling and the audience is possibly richer - certainly no poorer - for having heard them.

It's a charming movie, and yes - they are nearly all starkers!

Maslin Beach is a charming stretch of sand below cliffs of ochre and limestone. Gentle waves lap the shore and the sky above a blue-domed ceiling. This is one of South Australia's nudist beaches set apart for those who like to swim and frolic in the raw. As expected there is full frontal nudity of both sexes which comes as a bit of a shock at first because we rarely see such candid photography on our evening TV screens. We quickly adjust however because we soon realise the characters on the screen are just ordinary people like ourselves, some fat, some skinny and not at all like the athletic types portrayed in "Bay Watch" which give one such an inferiority complex. Consequently we feel comfortable about ourselves. If there is anything objectionable about the film, it is probably some of the language and crude expressions, but this is a public beach and all manner of people gather there seeking the freedom of sun and sea.

The film represents one day at the beach but the scenes are obviously shot over a period because the lighting changes in a manner that does not make sense. Despite this the cameraman captures much of the beauty of the cove. Perhaps the cliffs could have been explored a little more. And I would like to have seen even more shots of people diving and frolicking in the clear blue water. As for the red sunset, you can take it from me, a South Australian, they can be truly magic.

The acting was uneven among the supporting cast, but the leads particularly Simon and Marcie held the events of the day together. Simon and the ice-cream vendor were two good Aussie blokes with all the worries of the world on their shoulders. Gail, the girl who lost her grandmother's locket had a quiet charm about her which Simon appreciated.

Summing up I think the producer took a great risk in choosing this particular subject with no guarantee that it would be accepted for public viewing on TV. When Maslin Beach was designated as a nudist beach, the idea was not popular with everybody and the idea became controversial. However, Maslin Beach has remained and on sunny days of which there are many, boys and girls come out to play.

Various people descend on the nude Maslin Beach. Simon and Marcie are a young bumbling couple on the verge of marriage despite reservations. Gail, Paula, and Jenny are young women looking for love. Gail befriends a little kid named Daniel and gets hit on by creepy old guy. Jill and Justin split with the introduction of a mysteriously silent guy. There's a guy looking for the meaning of life in some interesting places. There's Ben who drives crazily his smoke-spewing ice cream van and pontificates about love with Simon.

There are so many more characters in this movie. Some of them are less interesting. Some of them are downright annoying to watch. The couple, who tries to cheat on each other but ends up put together by a matchmaker, is horrible to endure. That's the main problem with this movie. It wants to be funny. It's plenty quirky but many times, it ends up being annoying. The best bit has an overweight woman telling another woman about her bad boyfriend who crazy-glued his penis to her. It's very usual and fun but it's the exception. It's most notable for a lot of naked people. The acting is amateurish. It's different but not necessarily good.

Just so you know, Maslin beach is a real nudist beach in Australia. In this movie, people with different background come to the beach to enjoy their nudist lives, talking about different things (love, friendships, philosophy and some) and dealing with different incidents happening on the beach. It was a real "nudist drama movie", which is very rare in today. It was fun to watch it, as some stories were humorous. Sexual harassment is very common in some nudist areas, and the movie surprisingly talked about that problem. I don't know why the rating is so bad. It wasn't a bad movie to me. To sum up, entertaining to watch.