Armand sun, beach, surfing, love, wise advices, easy naive story. the spirit of pop culture from '' 60 and nothing more. the charming James Darren, the profound Cliff Robertson, the innocence of Sandra Dee 's character and few footage are pillars of a comedy not different by many other from period, mixture of romanticism, nice music and children - parents relation. a film who say almost nothing to the viewer of present but remains interesting for the spirit and sensitivity of a public. because it has all ingredients and spices for real success at the beginning of ''60's. a summer story who could be good example for a kind of America. nothing complicated, nothing serious. only a teenager story. and the classical end.

ifyougnufilms (Slight spoiler below.) The historical importance of this breezy, enjoyable film is often overlooked. Frederick Kohner developed the story from his daughter Kathy's teen-dream summer diary (with her permission), giving the world an inviting view of California's burgeoning surfer/beatnik culture. The film's enormous popularity resulted,some old-timers complained,in the jamming(pun intended)of Malibu with gawking wannabes. It also spawned a generation of C- surf/rock films of considerably lesser quality. The reputation of the first Gidget film suffers from the sins of its "children." Some reviewers here are angry about Gidget's innocence. Their comments tell more about their own unhappy "now" than they do about the coy, complacent "then" they condemn vaguely as "the fifties." Angry feminists' comments about the traditional oppression of women that is supposedly approved of in Gidget are apparently unaware that the film and the novel(there is much testimony from women on this)were a great boost to young women athletes who wanted to become excellent surfers.Sandra Dee as Gidget is the key-light here: pretty and bright (in both senses of the word). Though sometimes over-the-top in her teener enthusiasm, she is much more than just another airhead beach bunny. She is insightful, sensitive, and eager to explore surfing and mature love.(And she plays the cello, but we're spared that.) It's a delightful portrayal.Moondoggie and the Big Kahuna, with their summer-camp nicknames, represent American types emerging from the nonconformist movement, post-Korea era of America. Robertson gives depth to his character as a restless war veteran who wants to escape the responsibilities of a time-clocked world and who is subtly reminded by Gidget of the loneliness of his itinerant lifestyle. The last scene plays out this conflict skillfully, despite the admittedly sugary final moments of the film.But it's not intended to be a critical documentary on the evils of the past. It's a brilliantly colorful and skillfully shot romantic comedy. Forget its minor flaws. Enjoy that exciting summer of the not- so-distant past. Surf's up!

Lee Eisenberg On the one hand, "Gidget" looks like an intelligence-challenged flick, as the cute teenage girl goes to the beach to possibly meet boys. But I think that there's more to it than just that. As far as I could tell, the movie also looked at her burgeoning sexuality and her uncertainty thereof. Plus, the girls wear pants; wouldn't that have looked a little tomboyish in the '50s? What I'm saying is that people need to watch this movie again. While it remains a 1950s time capsule, I got the sense that something - I don't know what exactly - hinted at the changes coming over the next decade. In case anybody chooses to call this movie stupid, I totally reject that. "Stupid" is the description that I would apply to Eddie Murphy's movies from the past few years, or any Steven Seagal movie. As for Sandra Dee herself, from what I've read about her it sounds as though she was a pretty intelligent person, having far more substance than her movie roles implied.Anyway, I recommend this movie. Also starring James Darren and Cliff Robertson. That means that Cliff Robertson is the only actor who has worked with Sandra Dee and Tobey Maguire (in "Spiderman").

aimless-46 The reputation of the original "Gidget" (1959) has eroded over the years thanks to two weak sequels and a truly dreadful television series. So if you have never seen the original don't dismiss it based on the extremely shallow content of the Gidget stuff that came later. While not a good double-feature match for "Rebel Without a Cause", it is dark and serious enough to still have some relevanceWhile presenting a rather tame portrait of California's surf and beatnik counterculture, it fits solidly with the better coming-of-age/generational revolution stuff of the 1950's and 60's. Sixteen year-old Francis Lawrence (Sandra Dee at her most innocent) is the film's title character; girl plus midget equals Gidget. Dee managed to avoid the other two features and the television series but not fatal type casting. She would become more associated with "Tammy" than any other character. Although soon to be a teen idol, looking at her films it is probably difficult for today's audiences to understand her appeal. She was a talented actress with an especially good performance in "The Young and the Innocent" but was never able to transcend the teen idol stigma. Francis and her more mature and boy hungry friends (watch for "Batgirl's" Yvonne Craig) start their summer vacation trolling the beach for excitement. Francis doesn't really like boys but she can see that they will inevitably become a big factor in her life. Rescued by a boy named Moondoggie (James Darren who was never much of an actor but would also develop into quite a teen idol), Francis is introduced to the surf culture (watch for "Billy Jack's" Tom Laughlin). She is both attracted and repelled by the hedonist freedom and the inherent hypocrisy of the culture's preoccupation with money. In no sense is she the ditzy Gidget later portrayed on television by Sally Fields.There is a pervasive sexual undertone to the film with the possible loss of Gidget's virginity a unifying theme. But she is essentially a child, and the three main male characters are each protective of her in their own way. Along with Moondoggie are her clueless father (Arthur O'Connell) and The Big Kahuna (Cliff Robertson).Robertson is a combat veteran (Korea) who has basically dropped out and is living in a shack on the beach. Robertson does a good job in a challenging rol, as The Big Kahuna alternates between the seriousness he would soon bring to his portrayal of Jack Kennedy in "PT-109" and the manic qualities of a Dick Shawn character. Ultimately some irony is introduced as "Moondoggie" turns out to be Jeffrey Mathews, the clean-cut boy Mr. Lawrence has been trying all summer to persuade his daughter to date. Their summer at the beach is just a transitional point on the road to a ranch house in Sherman Oaks.Then again, what do I know? I'm only a child.