The Girls on the Beach

Forget those AIP Hollywood Beach movies with Annette and her girl friends wearing those Mother Hubbard swimsuits along with Frankie Avalon who somehow never came across as a true hodad, try as he might.

Trust a major studio like Paramount Pictures (yeah, go figure) to deliver a teen beach movie that rocks. Not only does this movie deliver less swimsuit per girl per frame, but the music scores as well.

Featuring The Beach Boys during their initial crest atop the surf/custom car sound (complete with a handsome,tanned and confident Brian Wilson at the helm), they provide the theme song as well as a casual lip-sync to their breezy 'Little Honda' lifting this movie genre beyond the usual Hollywood Tin Pan Alley vs.America's teenagers.

Lesley Gore(the perfect singing role model in handling teen angst) captures the mood of this movie which clearly represents the feminine point of view through a group of bubbly, buxom girls who need to raise money for their sorority. Sure, familiar plot but it glides past the viewer like the swirl on Noreen Corcoran's bottled blond bouffant styled hair. No longer John Forsythe's niece to his 'Uncle Bentley', Noreen fills her role as a California college cutie in this flick as well as she fills her bikini. Not to be outdone, Lori Saunders(credited as Linda Saunders,soon to be the prim and proper Bobbie Jo Bradly on 'Petticoat Junction')delivers a bumpin' bikini belly dance in a beauty contest judged by a group of hot and bothered middle-aged men. Well, no wonder those poor judges are working up a sweat, wearing dark suits and ties on the beach. Anyway, that scene is worth its weight in woodies.

Add the constantly peeved Dick Miller performing yeoman duty as a bartender at the beach hangout and Sonny Curtis revving up the house band(the original 'Crickets'no less),well, you won't find any gremmies on this stretch of sand.

Surf's Up!

This movie is a must-see for the Beach Boys at the top of their early form and for Lesley Gore. It doesn't have the fantasy elements of the Eric Von Zipper movies, but being from a female point of view wins points. Especially lovely are the beach beauties, and watch for the sister of Natalie Wood, Lana. They don't come sweeter!

Girls on the Beach is one of the most satisfying films of its genre. A beautifully realized screenplay of straight-to-the-point dialogue and acting that borders on Kabuki theatre. And of course there's the great songs of Leslie Gore and The Beach Boys. The ending is pure magic realism.

American International Pictures wasn't the only studio that tried to cash in on the short-lived "beach movie" semi-craze. To this film's credit it does not exactly follow the formula of AIP's pictures. But the result isn't much different--or much better.

It's ironic that the plot revolves around the (completely absent) Beatles, since that group and the others in the "British invasion" of 1964 pretty much killed off the scene depicted in this movie. Practically before it got rolling the beach movie was old hat and dead as a genre.

This may be the only beach movie to actually feature the Beach Boys, whose musical influence permeates all of the films of this type. The title song is not one of their better numbers but it does reflect their sound at a time when Brian Wilson was in complete creative control. More effective are Wilson's ballad "The Lonely Sea" and "Little Honda." During the latter song's performance it's amusing to watch Dennis Wilson, the noted hedonist, who is mightily distracted by the nearby dancing girls. As far as the other musical names in the film go, I never much cared for Lesley Gore and the Crickets without Buddy Holly are just...the Crickets.

Sorority beach babes in Balboa, CA have to raise $10,000 to save their order, eventually resorting to desperate measures such as entering a cooking contest, a beauty contest and trying to get The Beatles to perform at the local hot spot. Charmingly dim-witted surf-sand-&-sexy girls opus, obviously a knock-off of the "Beach Party" cycle--and better produced--but not as charismatic. The flick spotlights a bevy of energetic ladies, guest stars The Beach Boys and also Lesley Gore (it's unclear if Gore is visiting royalty or if she's just one of the gals). Though it isn't fresh, it is noodle-headed fun given a fast pace and a good soundtrack. ** from ****