Palm Springs Weekend (1963)

So much average

This is one of the few movies I've ever seen where the whole audience broke into spontaneous, loud applause a third of the way in.

This film is so real. It treats its characters with so much care and sensitivity.

This is one of the best movies I’ve seen in a very long time. You have to go and see this on the big screen.

Of course escapism like this shouldn't be compared with anything meaningful. But even by Gidget-type standards, this entry bumps along in unwieldy fashion. That's mainly because a hundred minutes is too long for the erratic material; the humor from Van Dyke is more frantic than funny; while some exterior desert sets are cardboard and worse, look like it. Also, WB inserts about every contract player from TV (Stevens, Hardin, Conrad, Duggan) into the awkward mix, likely accounting for the stretched out run-time. Then too, Donahue, the ostensible star, is likely on WB's downgrade with little to do but stand around and model country club clothes. The movie does manage a few good moments— judo expert Amanda could be a dangerous date, a good impression of Eve Arden from a waspish Naomi, and a winning Ty Hardin as a romantic cowboy. Also, there's a charming little version of Bye, Bye, Blackbird from Hardin and Van Dyke. Anyhow, this sort of teen-age hedonism was about to give way to a Vietnam counter-culture that would soon look nothing like this glossy bon-bon. I confess to a soft spot for the Gidget series, but this lumpy confection unfortunately comes in a poor second. At least the surfing crowd didn't wear uptown suits for every occasion.

You have to love the casting in 60's films where all the teenagers were pushing 30 (or in a few cases 40) and all of them looked it. There must have been an audience for these B pictures but even as an actual high school student when this was filmed I knew as did my friends that the actors in the Beach Party films and knock offs like this had nothing in common with us. Who went to parties in jackets and ties? And the plot here: overage basketball team tries to dodge coach to find women; spoiled and father issue "playboy/man" Robert Conrad pursues supposedly underage teenager, Connie Stevens; ugly duckling girl who knows judo finds love with college student Jerry Van Dyke; and Troy Donahue tries to make it with local who happens to be the sheriff's daughter. If you need to watch a flic of this genre you are so much better off with Animal House.

A smarmy variation on "Where the Boys Are" for jaded audiences, this is the type of teenage comedy that turns some viewers into anti-teenagers. Los Angeles college students trek to sunny Palm Springs for holiday hijinks, but boy-girl jealousies eventually erupt--and when the guys attempt to show each other up, it nearly spoils the fun. Low point occurs when Connie Stevens is assaulted on the hood of a car. Surprisingly tasteless binge (from, of all people, future "Waltons" creator Earl Hamner, Jr.) shows that the teen-genre was taking a turn into more cynical waters, despite the plush production. The gals are attractive, but poor Jerry Van Dyke is used for yahoo laughs and one can easily sense the smug condescension. ** from ****

I loved this movie(Re-run TV) when I was a teenager. I tell my kids about it all the time, all the while wishing that I could show it to my kids. HOWEVER, it is not on DVD and THAT is a crying shame.Teenagers turned loose on Palm Springs for the weekend. Everyone's, especially the police and parents, hands are full. I admire how filmmakers in those times touched upon sensitive social issues (such as premarital sex and being true to yourself) without pounding out the movie's entertainment value. "Palm Spring's Weekend" is a light-hearted, fun movie that I wish I could show my kids.Please SOMEBODY OUT THERE, put it on DVD!!!