By: debbie lynn elias
When I received the line-up of films for the LA Film Festival, there were some 5 or 6 films that immediately jumped out at me as if to say, “you must see me, you must review me.” One of them was THE BEACH PARTY AT THE THRESHOLD OF HELL. As if the fact that Jane Seymour (whose talent and graciousness I respect more than you know) wasn’t enough of a reason to see the film, her daughter Katie Flynn is line producer. Those of you that know me, know that I have a passion for multi-generational film and tv families, being in one myself. But, the icing on the cake came before I even had a chance to see the film. At the LAFF Filmmaker Reception, I met the talented group of filmmakers responsible for BEACH PARTY AT THE THRESHOLD OF HELL. Their individual and collective enthusiasm alone was enough to convince me this was a film not to miss and one destined to become a cult classic. Boy was I right. The film is as exciting and exuberant as the creative forces behind it. And thanks to their collective talents – and especially writer/director/star Kevin Wheatley, the movie world is about to get a “s**tload brighter” because of it.
Set in the year 2096, “New America” has emerged from the apocalypse of 2075. Called the “Sunstroke Days” by historians, between May 17 and 19, 2075, America and the world met its demise. With only a handful of survivors (okay, maybe 1,000,000), the bulk of them lived in bunkers underground for 20 years. One such survivor was Tex Kennedy. An eighth generation of THE Kennedy clan, he emerges from his bunker a grown man. Sadly, his robot protectors had to live outside the bunker and wait and wait and wait and wait and . . . You get the idea. Having existed alone with nothing but a radio transmission from self-proclaimed King of America, Clark Remington, Kennedy is a man with a mission – a mission to travel from Los Angeles to The Threshold of Hell in search of Remington’s appointed successor, his nephew Benny Remington. But as one might suspect, Kennedy’s mission is not as easy as it seems.
With his trusty robot protectors, Yul and Quincy, by his side, the three make their way across the vast wasteland of New America and to no one’s surprise, encounter pockets of other survivors along the way – and all with a similar but self-serving mission. Vince “The Jackle” Remington, son of Clark Remington, wants to eliminate his cousin Benny and take his place as King of New America. But his right hand man, Marcellus St. Joan has other ideas. Then, of course, there is the Devil himself, Yorick, and his followers, the Children of the Second Sun, none of whom have aged the past 20 years and who self-heal when injured based on their purity and faith in Yorick, who sees himself as ruler of the New World. (Oy vay!) And lest we forget Cannibal Sue whose name speaks for itself.
It has long been Yorick’s mandate that no one enter the Threshold of Hell. Employing some rather extraordinary measures to insure the “sanctity” of his domain, it’s no wonder Yorick is somewhat amazed when Tex, Yul and Quincy, together with Benny (whom they located not 4 kilometers from the Threshold) and a caged Cannibal Sue, are found in The Threshold. Even bigger surprise when The Jackle and his group of bandits are found there. But wait a minute!! Even Javier Castro, eight generation from Fidel Castro, gets caught rafting his way over to New America from Cuba. And things get even stranger when Kennedy and Castro find themselves on the same side!
Camp, comedy and craziness abound as each faction has one goal – to take control of the strongest radio transmitter tower in the country. With a signal strong enough to travel from sea to shining sea, across the amber waves of grain and over America’s purple mountain majesties, whoever controls the air waves will control the country. (Ah, look out world, my dad has towers in his backyard!) For Tex and his crew, their goal is get Benny on the air to announce himself as successor to his uncle. For everyone else, well…………..
Written and directed by Kevin Wheatley, he wields cunning sarcasm with Ginzu-knife precision in his script writing. His blend of dark irony and semi-serious overtones, add a modicum of “authenticity” to the film, but it is the tightrope that he walks with the script that brings the comedic elements to the forefront. Done in the format of an “historical documentary” or retrospective, the underlying socio-political commentary adds a richness to the film that everyone should be able to appreciate. From a Cuban arriving in America on a raft, wondering if a robot can cook and clean for him in his country, references to LA having only 3 survivors from Armageddon (namely, Tex, Yul and Quincy) the struggle for power and key being the media air waves, the irony to is staggering while being both funny and sad. And of course, the obvious care and consideration taken in the selection of the character’s names is hysterical in and of itself.
Directed by Wheatley along with Jonny Gillette, the two employ live action, animation, old news clips and every camera trick in the book to have just enough to whet everyone’s palette. Key visuals speak volumes and bring to the forefront “the more things change, the more things stay the same) and particularly one with Tex Kennedy looking out of a porthole into “space” as if in homage to the vision of his ancestor President John F. Kennedy with the space race. On the downside, there are several sequences that could have and should be shortened to aid in the overall flow and pacing.
Crucial to the success of this film is the Cameron Pearce’s cinematography and editing. What could have been “cheap and trashy looking” instead has an even blend of a myriad of effects. Both exemplary and impressive, he clearly shares the directors’ collective vision and doesn’t disappoint. Truly big budget and big studio quality and given the mix of animation, color, desaturation, sepia tones, live performance and a true hellish beach location (aka a broiling sun and beach in Pensacola, Florida), the result is phenomenal. Given the caliber of excellence of his work in BEACH PARTY, I am anxious to see what the future holds for Cameron’s talents (besides a sequel!). Just a modicum of horror effects (seems everyone gets their heart ripped out or die when their eyes are poked out), the film is truly a campy fun-filled delight.
The acting is first rate (which is not generally the case in a film like this). Intertwining the minuscule, but oh-so-serious apocalyptic performance by Jane Seymour as President Coffey with the pure irony and comedic relief in the performances by Chandler Parker as Yul, Paul Whitty as Quincy and Kevin Wheatley doing triple duty as Tex Kennedy, you find yourself begging to see more from all of them. Wheatley is so Clooney-esque in both his actions and self-deprecating wit and delivery that I can actually envision George Clooney in this role. A stand-out, though is Ted Schneider as Marcellus St. Joan. With shades of Tony Randall, David Hyde Pierce and a touch of early James Spader, he is THE one to watch. And I would be remiss not to mention Daniel Baldwin as Clark Remington. It doesn’t seem to matter which Baldwin brother is in a role, they are all excellent, and here is no different.
One thing I rarely get a chance to mention is the multi-tasking of a crew. Here, the cohesiveness of then project is openly apparent and I believe it is attributable to the fact many of the cast and crew wore multiple hats. By multi-tasking, each developed a sense of what is necessary to pull a film together – especially a fun-filled campy film like this – and clearly developed an appreciation of each technical area and the need to understand them all to achieve a well-rounded result.
Part Coen-esque (as in Coen Brothers), a little bit Saturday afternoon serials of the 30’’s and 40’s, even a and 50’s, some definite Rocky Horror and even a touch of Dudley Do-Right narration and there is something here for everyone. Oh yea – we’re all going to Hell – The BEACH PARTY AT THE THRESHOLD OF HELL that is. From the puns to the palette, this is one vacation in Hell that I won’t mind taking again! Yep, the world is about to get a s**tload brighter!
Kevin Wheatley: Tex Kennedy Paul Whitty: Quincy the Robot Chandler Parker: Yul the Robot Jamie Bullock: Cannibal Sue Ted Schneider: Marcellus St. Joan Daniel Baldwin: Clark Remington
Directed by Kevin Wheatley and Jonny Gillette. Written by Kevin Wheatley.
Photos © 2006 – All Rights Reserved
