Private Resort

Private Resort (1985)

*** (out of 4)

Incredibly stupid but funny teenage sex romp has two teens (Rob Morrow, Johnny Depp) staying at a rich Florida resort where there's plenty of beautiful women to try and get in bed. Also on hand is a jewel thief (Hector Elizondo), a muscle bound ladies man (Andrew Dice Clay) and various other nuts. If you want high level comedy of Billy Wilder then you best stay away from this film but if you want juvenile humor mixed in with beautiful women getting naked then this film is just for you. This is clearly a rip of Porky's and all the comedy is incredibly dumb but it's still funny. Elizondo steals the show as the wannabe Mafia guy but Morrow and Depp are also fun to watch. Leslie Easterbrook from the Police Academy films also stars (and yes, she's naked).

I watched this in 2022 as one of the last films to complete my attempt to watch all Johnny Depp's films, something I started about 20 years ago when i was a kid, but at the time these old low grade films were impossible to find, it was probably only available on VHS and too expensive to be worth my buying at the time. Now, we have access to everything with the internet, which is a blessing as well as a curse. Anyway this film was so bad it was actually good. They don't make films like this anymore. Films that are really trying to be good but actually are really bad. The only films you will watch that have this energy now are films that are intentional pastiches like the Scary Movie films and that sort of stuff. Films that are aware that they are using all the stereotypes and having fun with it. This film uses all these cheesy stereotypes but legitimately tries to be a good film, which is hilarious. Kind of like Birdemic. So for this awesome nostalgia from a time when some innocent people were still able to buy into this kind of stereotypical filmmaking, you can watch this. There are some legitimately funny set pieces with Johnny and Hector Elizondo too. Its like the type of movie I would expect to get from Poundland in a 2-in-1 DVD special buy.

"Private Resort" is another fun little teen sex comedies that only the 80's could make. Its got the instantly watchable Johnny Depp and Rob Morrow in early roles, and they both have a good time with the slapstick of this film. This movie is almost entirely composed of physical gags, but it does deliver the laughs. The punchlines to every seen are blatantly obvious and easily predictable, but for some reason "Resort" has enough charm to subvert its cliches. Although not nearly as good as the teen comedy classic, "Spring Break", this is still a worthwhile 82 minutes for fans of the 80's teen comedy.

Take a typical 80's B-comedy, and give the two male leads to two actors who would go on to awards and world fame.

Believe me or not, Depp and Morrow take two stock characters and make the material seem that much better; suddenly Jack and Ben hold the film together, rather than just reacting to everything within a narrow character description. Okay, so it's not art, but it's interesting from a film education perspective, if nothing else.

The script and direction aren't bad either, for a 1980's sex romp. Would have liked to see the director go on to better material. Ah, well.

7/10, for effort and sheer amusement value.

Private Resort is a wildly hilarious romp through the world of the vacation resort industry.

Johnny Depp shines in one of his earlier acting roles as Jack, a horndog who is out for tail at any price.

(It should be noted to any fan of the Depp that he shows his naked backside in this movie. Not that I enjoyed it or anything...)

This is a must see. Watch for the Jeff Spicolli-like character Mike. He has maybe 3 lines in the movie, but they have stuck with me since I first saw this movie in the seventh grade.