Piano, piano non t'agitare!

This is one of a multitude of sex comedies Tony Curtis starred in around this time in his career; incidentally, I had seen about half of it some years back (also on Italian TV) but had to abort the viewing due to a bad reception!

Anyway, if the film is at all remembered today, it is primarily for two reasons: it not only marked the cinematic swan song of a great director, but was also the official Hollywood introduction of the beguiling but ill-fated Sharon Tate. Two more (if lesser) claims to fame should be the undeniably funny Chaplinesque ‘house-teetering-on-the-edge-of-a-cliff’ climax and the fact that leading rock band The Byrds perform the film’s rather charmingly light title tune.

Patchy and somewhat hesitant overall, it is nonetheless engaging and occasionally delightful; the satirical barbs aimed at L.A.’s muscle beach mentality (especially David Draper, the amiably moronic blonde hulk who is Tate’s boyfriend), the then-current astrological fad and businessmen indulging in extramarital activities often hit the target – even if with a much blunter edge than in Mackendrick’s previous film with Curtis, SWEET SMELL OF SUCCESS (1957). Two other lively highlights of the film are the initial ‘meeting cute’ between Curtis and leading lady Claudia Cardinale (in which, as he tells her himself, she inadvertently manages to ruin his whole life in 30 seconds flat!) and the potentially disastrous sky-diving stunt performed by Tate and (unexpectedly) Curtis, which ends with both of them landing in his newly-inaugurated pool.

The film does benefit from a workmanlike cast: Curtis is in good form as an opportunistic young man who, while being compulsively pursued by the accident-prone Cardinale, becomes hopelessly infatuated with luscious, free-spirited beach girl Sharon Tate (her effortlessly sensual slow-motion exercises on the beach early in the film are quite disturbing to watch now when one realizes that she would die so horribly in less than two years’ time); Robert Webber is a swimming pool company executive driven to his wits’ end by lover Cardinale and the blackmailing schemes of Curtis, who soon shows his salesmanship skills by selling a pool to Jim “Mr. Magoo” Backus (playing himself) and a celebrity fortune-teller with the unlikely name of Madame Lavinia (played by famed ventriloquist Edgar Bergen).

While it is undoubtedly Mackendrick’s least (i.e. most inconsequential) film – and could well have been the reason why he left the profession and went into teaching – it’s a tribute to his mostly unsung genius that the film is as enjoyable as it is despite the evident flaws.

"Don't Make Waves" -- is it an attempt at an mature beach movie? A spoof of beach movies? A midlife crisis movie? A Tony Curtis-as-middle-aged-hustler movie?

Tony Curtis plays a not-so-young man whose life is ruined and all his earthly belongings destroyed by an accident prone mistress (Cardinale) of an obnoxious pool magnate (Webber). Curtis worms his way into the pool company -- apparently not to wreak revenge (or is it) but just to get ahead. On the way he picks up a cute sky-diving obsessed young woman (Tate -- who unfortunately has become a curiosity piece in the few movies she lived to make) who was also being sought out by a good-hearted and dull-witted Muscle Beach type (Drake).

The characters wind confusingly through each others lives until they come to a climax that needs better special effects than they had in 1967, and then the movie ends abruptly.

The movie shows lots of potential trying to get out. There are many good ideas thrown out. Some lie flaccid after being thrown out, others are merely thrown out and left to die.

The cast is full of surprises: Mort Sal as a wry house salesman, Edgar Bergen as a fortune teller, Jim Backus (as wife) as themselves, being hustled by Curtis into buying a pool! And this also proves how the movie went wrong. Edgar Bergen had a charming persona in his act, which (for those of you who don't remember) as a ventriloquist -- on the radio, no less. Instead of playing to his charming persona, they cast him as a waspish old man; and instead of playing on his ventriloquism to make the character wacky, they ignore it completely. They shoehorned a man with special talents into a part that could have been played by any competent actor, and which should have been played as a gift cameo part for someone who would pull out all the comedic stops (say,Paul Lynde?)

Pluses include the Vic Mizzy sound, and the fact that, and the obvious fact that none of the actors take the material seriously, except for Robert Webber, whom no one seems to have told was in a comedy. It's a movie that one watches the way one eats sour cream and onion potato chips if one doesn't like sour cream. The taste both repels and attracts. It's movies like this that ensured the decline of Tony Curtis' career.

Perfect posture and great bodies dominate in this oddball Tony Curtis comedy. Just about everyone in these reels of celluloid has a superb physique: Claudia Cardinale, Sharon Tate, and even the muscle men pumping iron on the beach. Hard to believe fact: this movie was based on a novel! Some of the bloated beach bums must have stumbled in from a "method" acting class. The leader savors every line of dialog as if it was Milton or Shakespeare. Weird. The setting is radiant to the eye. The special effects people deserve a gold metal for delivering some of the most realistic shots, up to that time, of the ground cracking open and an upscale villa sliding and tumbling down a steep embankment and into the surf. Impressive. It's sad to see Sharon Tate--so young and pretty--just three years before the Manson Gang got their hands on her. Miss Tate's character is skilled in many physical pursuits: trampoline and skydiving included. In one improbable scene, she saves Tony Curtis, James Bond-like, by strapping herself to the free-falling con-man. Miss Cardinale has the curves to match her rival, but she is straddled with shrill dialog and a cranky demeanor. Jim Backus plays himself and performs his "Mister Magoo" routine. I think the movie works so well because it perfectly captures the Southern California scene at a time when many things were changing--and not always for the best. The mid-sixties was the last gasp of a more innocent time and cinema. View after midnight--it rocks.

'Don't Make Waves' was hardly one of those films that was doomed from the outset. Tony Curtis' film career was spotty but he was always appealing enough, and the same can be said for Claudia Cardinale. Sharon Tate in my predictions would have become a bigger star if she hadn't been so brutally murdered in one of the most shocking mass murder sprees in history. Also like to love Alexander Mackendrick's previous work, especially 'Sweet Smell of Success' and 'The Ladykillers'.

While it is watchable enough and has some good things, 'Don't Make Waves' didn't really do much for me regrettably. Curtis' career was, or at least his film choices were, particularly hit and miss at this time of which this was a middling project for him, and as far as Mackendrick's films go 'Don't Make Waves' is a lesser effort of his and not a particular fair representation of him. Actually find it a little sad that a promising director ended his film directing career on what is actually a contender for his worst film.

There are certainly good things here. The film looks great (excepting the more stock moments not always being seamlessly incorporated), very artfully shot without trying to be overly clever and quite vibrant. The music is quite infectious, easy on the ears and doesn't feel tacky or like it belong, while the title song epitomises charm. 'Don't Make Waves' starts off very promisingly, very good-natured and amusing.

It also finishes great, the climactic sliding house sequence is quite thrilling and holds up impressively. The cast do more than gamely, while Curtis is very likeable and Cardinale likewise the one that makes the biggest impression is Tate, who is both sensual and witty.

However, 'Don't Make Waves' is pretty all over the place when it comes to the story. The mishmash of genres, some meandering aimlessness and quite muddled structure gave off a weirdly wacky feel and rather suggestive of the film never being sure what it wanted to be. The pace can suffer too, it starts off great and it picks up in the climactic moments but in between the energy sags. Some of the pace is fine, some of it is dull, while there are still amusing moments between the start and climax in some places the strangeness gets a bit over the top.

Also felt that Mackendrick's direction was disappointing pedestrian and only workmanlike in its best moments. There are some good-natured and witty moments in the script, but too much of it falls on the wrong side of cheesy. The rest of the cast other than the mentioned three never rise above just getting the job done level.

Summing up, not bad but not particularly good. 5/10

Tony Curtis made alot of bad movies around this time, but DON'T MAKE WAVES is one of his better films. Here Curtis, as Carlo, is a southern Californian who's life is turned upside down when his car with all of his worldly possessions is accidentally destroyed by the beautiful Claudia Cardinale. Taking pity on Carlo, she takes him to her apartment. Sugar daddy (Robert Webber) soon shows up and promptly throws Carlo out. Having had enough, Carlo takes his circumstances and newfound information and turns them into a grand lifestyle. The usually funny Joanna Barnes turns in a sobering performance as Webber's neglected wife. Bodybuilding title holder Dave Draper is very good as not too bright musclebound Harry. It is the late Sharon Tate's performance as Malibu, Harry's on again off again sky diving girlfriend that is the real find in this movie. She's gorgeous, sexy, and about as swift as Harry. Feeling overlooked by Harry and his muscle buddies, she deadpans to Curtis, "If you were a man, would you find me attractive?" Title song performed by THE BYRDS. The rest of the score was done by Vic Mizzy, who also did the music to GREEN ACRES. In case you wondered why the music had a familiar ring to it, that's the reason. Fair amount of cameos by movie & TV stars. Look for Edgar Bergen, Jim Backus......and others.