Où sont les mecs?

Though far from an intelligent production, this 1984 reworking of the 1960 film is nevertheless a fun time capsule of early-to-mid 1980's culture. Forget about plot. This movie is just a mindless and pleasant romp on the beach at Fort Lauderdale before spring breakers were driven out and the monster condos took over the skyline. It features far more location shooting than the original (that one was mostly Hollywood sets) and some interesting 80's music. I am biased; I'm nostalgic for the 80's and I love Fort Lauderdale and Florida, so I may enjoy it more than the average viewer.

Not every film should be a literary gem as life is more than that. "Where the Boys Are" is an honest look at what was going on with the college kids of the time. There is some brief nudity and sexual content that may be mildly distasteful, but that is what was happening in Fort Lauderdale until the late 80's and 90's saw the city powers-that-be effectively sweep the spring break crowd north to Daytona.

Don't build up great expectations and you will probably enjoy this otherwise forgettable flick.

I used to watch this movie on VHS at my friend's house after school, in the late eighties. I wish I could find the movie now because I'd definitely buy it. It's a crude beach flick, meant to make you cringe and giggle, and it does it well. The performances are earnest, if not actually good, and you end up actually liking the group of ditzes. The music and the party scenes are enjoyable, in a trashy way, and I love that the rich, upper class characters like Barbara and Camden are so out of place in all the spring break wildness. I mean, who visits their uptight family friends on Spring Break? The plot to this movie is irrelevant, because its fun lies in its brainlessness. Enjoy the half-naked coeds and cheap jokes, because sometimes, that's a beautiful thing.

This is a really tacky 80's movie. Crass, crude humor that is not really dirty or shocking enough to be funny. This movie was made 40 year olds, acted by late 20's to late 30 year olds, made for horny teenagers and I bet even they were unsatisfied. The original 1960 version was a light piece of fluff that was beautifully filmed and had an innocence to it. There is nothing innocent about this! Lorna Luft entering a "Hot bod" contest? Okay, she is no slouch but she is not Carmen Electra! All this movie needed to push it over the edge was a cameo by producer Allan Carr playing a lesbian gym teacher on vacation. If you want to see some really bad 80's perms and fashions then by all means knock yourself out and watch. It does have some bad movie appeal.

I saw the original in 1960 and it was a piece of fluff even for back then. What I can't understand is who would want to remake a bad movie, except, perhaps, if your goal was to end the collective careers of everyone in the cast. All the actors were a little long in the tooth for the roles they played. Lisa Hartman Black looked like she may have been a professor at Heidi Fleiss University but a 21 - 22 year old co-ed? I don't think so. This movie was so awful, I felt embarrassed for the actors. Come to think of it, it did effectively serve as a career-ender for several of them. On the whole, I think it's only marginally better than the "Attack of the Killer Tomatoes," which is generally believed to be THE worst movie of all time.

This is one of my top spring/summer movies to watch every year. The movie emits a signature 80's aura to it that has me longing for the year it was released - 1984! A time when college student revelry during spring break was a must! I love each character and the Florida scenery, even with all the cheesy scenes, like the bouncy dance competition. It's still nostalgic and that's right up my alley. You could even see hints of homosexuality where muscle men are riding on each other's shoulders, lol! To me, it's just good amusement. There is also something about road trips and checking into sleazy, run-down beach motels that I love. Probably because I remember staying in those places where the beds had loud flower covers and the vending machines only produced warm soda. Sure it was hard time, but plenty of us still have fine memories surrounding these little misfortunes. 1984 was perhaps the best year of my life (I wore a pair of checkerboard VANS!) and this movie brings it all back so well. People who never experienced being a young adult in the 80's will never understand how much of a blast the decade was. Louise Sorel and Wendy Schaal are two 80's actresses I admire for their class and talents, both have a history of comedy/drama roles and are definitely underrated, not to mention gorgeous. The producers also did a great job of actually making wealthy characters likable. You even felt sympathy for them, especially when Camden performs his heart out to Jenny on piano, competing with Scott. Giving a hoot about "snooty" characters like these is a rarity in flicks now. No one will ever change my opinion about this movie because it's so well rooted into my past and, of course, it makes me wanna go back to 1984 every time I watch it, even if all I do is grab a warm DrPepper from a vending machine at the beach RAID house. I'm packed.