Wild on the Beach

Yes, Sonny and Cher are in it. They perform one number, but do not engage in any comedy. Speaking of comedy, what passes as humor in this film is unfunny and depressing. Justin Smith, a character actor who mostly worked in TV, gets saddled with unfunny comedy material. Making it even more horrible is the worst background music ever used for a film. It is absolutely unlistenable. The credit (?) for the score goes to Jimmie Haskell, who wrote and orchestrated for movies, TV, and albums. I hope for Mr. Haskell's sake that this job was farmed out to a ghost writer. And then there's Frankie Randall. Randall is a fine jazz pianist who made a few albums in the 1960s and was championed by Frank Sinatra. Later he became a regular attraction and entertainment director in Las Vegas and Atlantic City. He still performs and records today. As tasty as his piano and vocal stylings are, he always seems to be a bit under pitch. This problem is evident in this film and is accentuated by pop musical material which is foreign to Randall's style. He also seems a bit uncomfortable as an actor. I guess Lippert saw him as an alternative to Frankie Avalon, but Avalon is adept at comedy and can make poor pop songs sound like Cole Porter. Randall is only effective when interpreting the REAL Cole Porter songs.

OMG! haha. There are no words to adequately describe how really bad this movie is. I gave it a 3 rating only because it's so much darned fun to goof on. The acting is third rate; the story is second rate; and everything else goes downhill from there. Even the dancers who are supposedly dancing the Frug, the Swim, and other 1965 period dancers are bad.

The oddest element is the incidental music played while people are talking. It's impossible to describe! I guess it was meant to be funny — a la Ozzie & Harriet, perhaps, but it's just so bad and has no real connection to the scenes in which it is played.

Sonny & Cher's performance is typical, but the song, "It's Gonna Rain Outside" is laughable.

This would have been perfect for the old 80s show MST3000, which goofed on bottom-budget movies like this. These days it's probably best for stoners who may or may not recall 1965.

Laughably awkward teen-opus, filmed on the cheap in black-and-white, concerns young male and female college students battling each other over the rights to a swanky beach-house. It's the boys against the girls! (Wouldn't it makes things more interesting for these kids if the pad were co-ed?) Worth a quick peek for the musical cameo by Sonny & Cher down at the local hot-spot (they sing the growly slow-burner "It's Gonna Rain"), but their bit comes early--at the 22-minute mark--leaving nothing but godawful acting and teenage contrivances for the next hour. Positively painful! "Wild on the Beach" makes the A.I.P. "Beach Party" flicks seem Oscar-caliber by comparison. * from ****

There is nothing wild about this movie, and there is no beach. Aside from a few stock footage scenes of surfers, there are no beach scenes whatsoever. This is not an Annette movie, but a cheap rip off. The only redeeming value of this movie to the Beach Genre is the music, which features Sonny & Cher and the Astronauts. No longer available on VHS or DVD, you'll have to find a copy on ebay, expect poor quality.

Without a doubt the absolute worst beach-party-style rip-off film that I've seen, and there is plenty of competition. Adam (Frankie Randall) and Lee (Sherry Jackson) both rent the same beach house for the summer, and each refuses to give up their claim. Zero laughs and amateur drama ensue. Also featuring Russ Bender, Gayle Caldwell, Jackie Miller, and Booth Colman. If you haven't ever heard of these people, there is a reason for that. There are also performances by Sonny & Cher, The Astronauts, and Sandy Nelson. The Sonny & Cher song, "It's Gonna Rain", may be one of the worst songs in the history of Western Civilization. The entire film is like hammering a railroad spike through your foot.