Ride the Wild Surf ** (1964, Fabian Forte, Tab Hunter, Peter Brown, Shelley Fabares, Barbara Eden) – Classic Movie Review 5963

Sixties heartthrobs Fabian Forte, Tab Hunter and Peter Brown ride the Hawaiian surf and romance lovelies Shelley Fabares, Barbara Eden and Susan Hart, in director Don Taylor’s frothy and flaky 1964 Ride the Wild Surf, a romantic comedy adventure drama in the beach party style. It is notable for its exceptional big wave surf footage, shot by producers Jo Napoleon and Art Napoleon in Hawaii in late 1963 and early 1964 before they came back home to Hollywood to write the screenplay.

The film has a bit of a Napoleon complex! Writer-producers Jo Napoleon and Art Napoleon stay true to the title by concentrating on the spectacular surf and who will win ‘king of the mountain’ title. The Napoleons also directed the movie for three weeks till the Columbia studio replaced them with Don Taylor, who was replaced by Phil Karlson for three days when his mother died.

The carefree summer lovin’ results are fairly fab, with the stars proving pleasing company, but where are regular beach party movie stars Frankie Avalon and Annette Funicello? It is sweet to have Hunter aboard in his only beach movie along with Fabian and Brown.

Also in the cast are James Mitchum, John Anthony Hayes [Anthony Hayes], Roger Davis, Catherine McLeod, Robert Kenneally, Murray Rose, David Cadiente, Mark LeBuse and Paul Tremaine.

The title number, written by Jan Berry, Brian Wilson and Roger Christian, is sung by Jan and Dean, the film’s sole pop song, played at the end. It was a US Top 20 hit, reaching Billboard’s number 16. But there is plenty of other music in the movie, composed by Stu Phillips.

Jan and Dean were to appear in the film, but, following their friendship with Barry Keenan, who had engineered the 19-year-old Frank Sinatra Jr kidnapping on 8 December 1963, were replaced by Hunter and Brown.

Fabian pent three weeks learning to surf not having previously surfed. But it is mostly real surfers Mickey Dora, Greg Noll and Butch Van Artsdalen you see in the film.

Blue Crush is a similar 2003 film about three surfer girls living in Hawaii.

Peter Brown [Pierre Lind de Lappe] (October 5, 1935 – March 21, 2016) is best remembered for playing Deputy Johnny McKay in the 1958-62 TV series Lawman and as Texas Ranger Chad Cooper in the 1965-67 Laredo.

Tab Hunter [Arthur Gelien] died of cardiac arrest on 8 July 2018, aged 86.

© Derek Winnert 2017 Classic Movie Review 5963

Check out more reviews on http://derekwinnert.com