The Malibu Bikini Shop

LOng before he would make a name for himself in films like "The Great Hereafter"."Double Jeopardy" and "Thirteen Days",handsome Canadian actor Bruce Greenwood was in this perpetual boner on celluloid. He plays the easygoing,beer-guzzling beach bum who co-owns the titular shop with his upright,uptight brother(Michael David Wright,anyone know where he went?)after their dear Aunt passes on,leaving the store to them in her will(likely? You betcha!). Of course,nearly everybody in this film is a nobody(Save for long-running lounge and TV variety act impresario Charlie Brill,in a bit part),and the film is entirely motorized on the presence of sexy,scantily clad women who may or may not be taking' it all off over the course of the film. THink "HArdbodies" with a slightly less misogynistic tone. I enjoyed this movie quite a bit when I was a teen(take a wild guess as to why),and while I probably haven't had a look at this film since the early nineties,I saw it enough times that I can practically count all the scenes of nudity(and recall them in loving slow-mo!)that occurred and which ones I liked the best(a scene involving a two-way mirror and a proportionately perfect,LAnders-sister-looking model was my favorite). i would say that if you've rarely if ever seen naked women before,or are under the age of eighteen,you'll enjoy this film immensely. To anyone else--and assuming you'd have the patience to sit through this!--I'd say,understand that this whole film is a device and accept it for what it is: a pure,brainless '80s sex movie featuring an up-and-coming actor who'd probably like to forget he'd ever agreed to do it. Well,Bruce,just repeat to yourself:it was experience and I needed the money.

Two bothers, business oriented Alan, & the more fun loving, skirt-chasing Todd (Bruce Greenwood) inherit a bikini shop in Malibu and attempt to make the failing business profitable. At first in order to sell it. Meanwhile Alan (whom is engaged to the stunning, but whiny, spoiled Jane) is falling for Ronnie, a sexy worker at the shop.

This is a typically lightweight '80's teen sex comedy that's a tad light in the nudity department when compared to other films of it's ilk, yet still holds a place in my heart, simply because it was a staple of USA's now sadly defunct "Up All Night" series which in turn was a big part of my formative years. Choice nudity from the stunning Bobbi Pavis doesn't hurt in the least, and it's always nice to see the late great Frank Nelson at work (sadly younger generations only know of him through his caricature on a few episodes of "The Simpsons") So if you're in the mood for stuffy 'old fogies' getting shocked at the 'hijinks' of teens, big hair, natural boobs, light escapism & other staples of the more innocent 1980's comedies, give this one a watch. (although the lengthy dance number & cheesy hot tub scenes still makes me cringe a bit whenever i see them)

Eye Candy: Bobbi Pavis, Jeana Loring, Barbara Horan, & about 8 or 9 extras fleetingly get topless; one extra shows her ass

My Grade: C+

"Alan" (Michael David Wright) has just graduated from Northern Chicago University when he learns that his aunt has passed away and left him an inheritance. Curious to discover what he has inherited he heads out to Malibu with the intention of selling his new property and getting back to Chicago to be with his extremely spoiled fiancé, "Jane" (Debra Blee). However, when he gets there he finds that all he is left with is 51% of a bikini shop which is heavily in debt. He also discovers that the other 49% belongs to his brother "Todd" (Bruce Greenwood) who loves to party and has no business skills at all. In addition to that, he has 3 female employees named "Kathy" (Ami Julius), "Cindy" (Gayln Gorg) and "Ronnie" (Barbara Horan) who depend on the bikini shop to make ends meet. Now rather than reveal any more of this movie I will just say that this could have been an okay "bikini movie" if it had better comedy and a less predictable plot. Be that as it may, I thought the acting was adequate enough for the job at hand and having some attractive ladies certainly helped to a degree. That being said, although there are certainly better movies of this type out there, this one wasn't too bad overall and for that reason I rate it as just slightly below average.

This film most definitely belongs in the so-bad-it's-almost-good category. Very much a product of its time (1985), the hairstyles, fashions and soundtrack songs are hysterical to those of us who were fortunate (?!) enough to grow up in the 80s. There are embarrassing dance sequences, bikinis that are testament to the aerobics craze - and of course there's lots of flesh on display. Hmmm, must be a guy thing... Bruce Greenwood is the only actor in the cast who has moved on to bigger and better things - I bet a clip of this will come to haunt him one day on The Tonight Show!

This is it! I just can't believe that people don't like this movie. Whenever I'm sad, I watch it and it always cheers me up. And by the way, the music is great. The closing song is my favorite. Though I'm a hip-hop fan I really like it. If I see the movie in the morning I can't get it out of my head til late afternoon. And it's always enjoying to see all these palms and sunny beaches. And the mood is so right :)) And even the fact that people are getting old and this movie reminds them of what they won't ever have again is not enough. If you want to see a drama, go and see "Titanic". If you want to see many special effects, go and see "Star Wars", but if you want to see a funny movie full with sun and smiles, go and see "Malibu Bikini Shop" because I really think that young people will enjoy it.