Beach Party

Released Jul 14, 1963

1h 41m

Comedy

List

50%

Tomatometer

8 Reviews

42%

Audience Score

250+ Ratings

Dolores (Annette Funicello) and Frankie (Frankie Avalon), attractive young surfers in Southern California, are just out for a good time. Their relaxed lifestyle fascinates Professor Sutwell (Bob Cummings), an anthropologist who decides to study the social lives of teens. A series of beach-themed films would follow the blueprint set by this one, which hinges on romantic rivalries, rugged motorcyclists, an attempted crime and plenty of handsome people.

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Vincent Canby

Variety

Beach Party is a bouncy bit of lightweight fluff, attractively cast, beautifully set (Malibu Beach), and scored throughout with a big twist beat. It has a kind of direct, simple-minded cheeriness.

Mar 26, 2009

Full Review

Renee Schonfeld

Common Sense Media

Silly '60s surf musical with stereotypes, sexual situations.

Rated: 2/5

Jan 13, 2015

Full Review

David Cornelius

Popcornworld

a barrage of live-action cartoon madness aimed at the in-the-moment entertainment atmosphere of, well, a party.

Mar 25, 2013

Full Review

Emanuel Levy

EmanuelLevy.Com

Rated: 2/5

Jul 7, 2005

Full Review

Linda Cook

Quad City Times (Davenport, IA)

Rated: 4/5

Aug 11, 2002

Full Review

Ken Hanke

Mountain Xpress (Asheville, NC)

First of the long-running series. Not that bad and good nostalgia

Rated: 3/5

Aug 7, 2002

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joel h

As a movie, Beach Party is fairly ridiculous. As a time capsule for youth culture of the early 60s, however, it's pretty fascinating. I felt like Professor Sutwell as I watched it, trying to understand why the "kids" acted the way they did. Coincidentally, I also found Sutwell to be one of the most entertaining characters in this picture. As strange and simple as it is, I can see why Beach Party launched a franchise.

Rated 3 out of 5 stars

03/30/23

Full Review

dave s

Beach Party was the first and probably the best, which isn't really saying much, of American International's beach movies from the early to mid-60s. The threadbare story, which involves anthropologist Professor Sutwell's (Bob Cummings) investigation into the mating habits of American teens, serves only as a device to show off scantily clad young ones as they surf, dance, sing, throw pies, and make out. All of the regulars, including Frankie Avalon and Annette Funicello, are along for the ride. For the most part, it lacks the consistent silliness of the later efforts in the series, but it's still pretty mindless. On the bright side, Cummings has some decent lines and, considering the overacting surrounding him, gives a surprisingly subdued performance.

Rated 2.5 out of 5 stars

03/30/23

Full Review

Audience Member

The odd thing about the Beach Party movies with Frankie and Annette is that none of them are perfect films. They ALL have their many flaws. Yet, for some weird reason, I keep watching them. I especially enjoy watching them when the weather gets COLD. What makes me want to enjoy a beach movie when it's snowing outside? I don't know. Anyway, these movies are corny, no doubt about it. Sometimes they are VERY corny. But if you're like me and think Gilligan's Island is a fun TV show, then you might forgive the corniness here. You might even start to enjoy it! It's like Frankie and Annette's characters live in some alternate universe. They not only succeed in making me nostalgic for a time when I wasn't even born yet; but they make me long for a time that never even existed! That's quite an achievement.

Rated 5 out of 5 stars

02/22/23

Full Review

Matthew D

The kind of movie where when someone says "You can say that agian", the first character will repeat his previous statement. My kinda movie.

Rated 3.5 out of 5 stars

08/17/21

Full Review

kerry w

Rating: 4/10. 44/100.

Rated 2 out of 5 stars

03/31/23

Full Review

Audience Member

Written by people in their 40s and 50s, sympathetic to the "younger generation", this movie is what they saw as representative of teenagers in the 1960s. To say the least, they had no idea what they were writing about, but the movie is light-hearted and funny and is not condemnatory toward teenagers, like most adult institutions were in 1963. They should have used current 1963 music as soundtrack to keep it relevant to the times.

Rated 4.5 out of 5 stars

02/16/23

Full Review

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William Asher

Director

Bob Cummings

Professor Sutwell

Dorothy Malone

Marianne

Frankie Avalon

Frankie

Annette Funicello

Dolores

Harvey Lembeck

Eric Von Zipper

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Synopsis

Dolores (Annette Funicello) and Frankie (Frankie Avalon), attractive young surfers in Southern California, are just out for a good time. Their relaxed lifestyle fascinates Professor Sutwell (Bob Cummings), an anthropologist who decides to study the social lives of teens. A series of beach-themed films would follow the blueprint set by this one, which hinges on romantic rivalries, rugged motorcyclists, an attempted crime and plenty of handsome people.

Director: William Asher
Producer: Samuel Z. Arkoff
Screenwriter: Lou Rusoff
Production Co: American International Pictures (AIP), Alta Films Productions
Genre: Comedy
Original Language: English
Release Date (Theaters): Jul 14, 1963, Original
Release Date (Streaming): Sep 10, 2016
Runtime: 1h 41m

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