When I received the line-up of films for the LA Film
Festival, there was one, along with some 5 or 6 others that immediately jumped
out at me as if to say, “you must see me, you must review me.” That film 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.
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 (okay maybe 1,000,000) survivors, 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. Okay, so
his robot aids had to live outside and wait and wait and wait and wait. . .
Having existed alone with nothing but a radio transmission from self-proclaimed
King of America, Clark Remington, Kennedy is one 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 and over
and through 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 scriptwriting. 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 retrospect, 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 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 effects. Both exemplary and
impressive, he clearly shares the directors’ collective vision and doesn’t
disappoint. Truly big budget, 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. 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-ou, 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
worse multiple hats. By multi-tasking, each developed a sense of what is
necessary to pull a film together - and especially a fun-filled campy film like
this - and clearly developed and 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, 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!
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.
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