Film Snail

6.0

Back to the Beach

PG·1987·92m

Comedy

Music

Comedy

Music

Summary

Cowabunga! The surfing '60s ride into the new wave as Frankie and Annette star in this hip update of their old-time, good-time beach movies. With special appearances by Bob Denver, Tony Dow, Pee-Wee Herman, Jerry Mathers and other familiar faces. Frankie and Annette grow up and have kids in the midwest. They return to LA to visit their daughter who is shacked up with her boyfriend and tries to hide the fact. They begin to have marriage problems when Frankie runs into Connie, who has erected a shrine to him in her night club. Their punk son has joined up with the local surf toughs, and things all come to a head when the toughs challenge the good guys to a surfing duel

Cast

Frankie Avalon

Annette's Husband

Annette Funicello

Annette

Lori Loughlin

Sandi

Tommy Hinkley

Michael

Demian Slade

Bobby

Joe Holland

Zed

John Calvin

Troy

David Bowe

Mountain

Laura Lanoil

Robin

Connie Stevens

Connie

Don Adams

Harbor Master

Barbara Billingsley

Announcer

Edd Byrnes

Valet

Bob Denver

Bartender

Tony Dow

Judge #1

Alan Hale Jr.

Bartender’s Buddy

Jerry Mathers

Judge #2

Paul Reubens

Pee-Wee Herman

Linda Carol

Bridgette

Marjorie Gross

Airline Hostess

Hartley Silver

Fleishman

Alan Barry

Salesman

Thomas David Parker

Salesman

Todd Bryant

Webby

Floyd Foster Jr.

Ernie

Emil McKown

Odie / Band Member

Jon Paul Jones

Punk

Eddie Vail

Surf Dude

Drew Steele

Surfer / Band Member

Lola Rose Thompson

Punk Baby

Honey Lea

Baby’s Mother

Nicholas Hales

Autograph Hound

Rodney Bingenheimer

Self

Dick Dale

Self

Stevie Ray Vaughan

Self

Angelo Moore

Fishbone

Kendall Jones

Fishbone

Norwood Fisher

Fishbone

Walter A. Kibby II

Fishbone

Christopher Dowd

Fishbone

Phillip Fisher

Fishbone

Steve Aschoff

Band Member

Gary Usher Jr.

Band Member

Ron Eglit

Band Member

Tony Avalon

Band Member

Frankie Avalon Jr.

Band Member

Rick Avery

Surfers & Punks

Robert Keller

Surfers & Punks

Pat Banta

Surfers & Punks

Bruce C. Magee

Surfers & Punks

Geoff Brewer

Surfers & Punks

Dwayne McGee

Surfers & Punks

Jamie R. Brisick

Surfers & Punks

A.J. Nay

Surfers & Punks

Bob Brown

Surfers & Punks

Mark Orrison

Surfers & Punks

Cooper Hamilton Bailey

Surfers & Punks

Noon Orsatti

Surfers & Punks

Jay C. Currin

Surfers & Punks

Víctor Quintero

Surfers & Punks

Greg Gault

Surfers & Punks

Charlie Skeen

Surfers & Punks

Randell Dennis Widner

Surfers & Punks

O. J. Simpson

Man At Airport (uncredited)

Scott L. Treger

Connie's Beach Date (uncredited)

Crew

Director

Lyndall Hobbs

Characters

Lou Rusoff

Screenplay

Steve Meerson

Screenplay

Peter Krikes

Screenplay

Chris Thompson

Story

James Komack

Story

Bill L. Norton

Story

Bruce Kirschbaum

Reviews

Wuchak

August 21, 2023

**_Revisiting those zany beach party flicks from the mid-60s_**

Frankie & Annette are now married and living in Ohio. Frankie’s a workaholic business owner and neglecting Annette, so they decide to fly out to SoCal to visit their daughter and old haunts on their way to Hawaii.

“Back to the Beach” (1987) pays homage to those dozen AIP ‘beach party films’ that were released from 1963-1968, half of them starring Frankie Avalon and/or Annette Funicello. The movie is amusingly hammy, poking fun at those madcap 60’s flicks. Connie Stevens is on hand, looking great at 48, along with several cameos of familiar faces, like Bob Denver from Gilligan’s Island.

Siskel & Ebert praised the movie on their show (the episode is available on Youtube). And, sure, it’s entertaining to a point, but I was disappointed. It’s just no where near as great as they made it out to be. Still, if you’re in the mood for an innocuous musical with a goofy beach milieu, give it a watch.

The flick runs 1 hour, 32 minutes, and was shot in Malibu and Santa Cruz.

GRADE: C+