Wonderfully offbeat film!

Don't listen to the negative reviews

This is ultimately a movie about the very bad things that can happen when we don't address our unease, when we just try to brush it off, whether that's to fit in or to preserve our self-image.

It’s fine. It's literally the definition of a fine movie. You’ve seen it before, you know every beat and outcome before the characters even do. Only question is how much escapism you’re looking for.

Likable teenage soap about a tomboy (Sandra Dee) who falls for a beach bum (James Darren) while discovering her love for surfing. This is not at all a comedy and I'm not sure why it's listed that way, here and everywhere else you look. It doesn't even try to be funny outside of some of the surfer dudes' lines. It's a relic of its time and youth culture. Similar to the Frankie & Annette Beach Party movies, but without the singing and not as much fun. Sandra Dee's adorableness carries the whole movie. Inspired a later TV series starring Sally Field that I liked a lot as a kid.

"Francis Lawrence" (Sandra Dee) is a 16-year old teenager who hasn't quite developed an attraction for boys yet even though all of her close friends are head over heels for them. So in an attempt to stimulate her interest—and meet some young guys themselves--they take her to the beach where they hope to meet a few hanging out and surfing. As luck would have it the girls are rejected by the guys because they are too young. However, Francis takes an immediate love for surfing and because of that they eventually come to accept her. They even give her the nickname of "Gidget" which they have come up with by combining the words "girl" and "midget". Not only that but the leader of the group, known as "the Kahuna" (Cliff Robertson), even takes her under his wing and mentors her on the sport. Soon one thing leads to another and before she knows it she falls in love with one of the surfers named "Moondoggie" (James Darren). Unfortunately, he prefers to focus on surfing and isn't looking for romance. But Gidget is extremely determined. Anyway, rather than reveal any more of the movie and risk spoiling the film for those who haven't seen it I will just say that this turned out to be a cute little film even by today's standards. As a matter of fact, this film was so successful that it became the precursor to the beach movies which were quite popular in the early 60's. Not only that, but it also spawned several sequels along with a television series as well. On a side note, look for a young Yvonne Craig (as "Nan") who later starred as "Batgirl" alongside Adam West in the television series "Batman". Be that as it may, although it loses some of its impact through the years it still retains its charm even today. I rate it as slightly above average.

As someone who lived the dream of being a California surf bum, I was pleasantly reminiscing about those years while watching this movie. The Big Kahuna, played by Cliff Robertson, was easy to identify with. I've heard it said that "surfing makes you feel like a kid again." So there are therapeutic qualities surfing gives to someone who has experienced tragedy as Robertson's character has in the Korean War.The Gidget character, played by Sandra Dee, is a delightful dichotomy as she seems at once a woman and a girl. This is a dilemma I'm sure many 16 and 17-year-old girls have dealt with. Gidget's friendships with the male characters make her "one of the guys" to them. In this regard, she is similar to the Mary character, played by Carmen Diaz, in "Something About Mary." While every man wants a romantic love partner, they are often happier with a woman who can be a friend. This revelation seems to be guiding Moondoggie as he pursues Gidget in the end.

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").