No Beatniks appear in this film, the acting by the young leads is execrable, the song lyrics are both insane and badly lip-synched, and the plot is dumb. As others have commented, radio and voice actor Paul Frees assembled quite a nice cast of fellow radio and voice actors to play the "normal" people in this tale of troubled youth, but he neglected to cast credible actors as the over-the-hill "teens" who hang around engaging in delinquent acts of senseless violence. I was quite pleased to see radio and voice actor Stanley Farrar on screen, and, like other comment writers i wonder whose rather nice voice actually sang the lame songs that the character Eddie was inexpertly mouthing along to, but all in all, this one is a loser. Having read all the reviews here, some folks will no doubt seek it out for its sheer badness. To them i say, "Come back later and tell us if it was really worth it!"
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CatherineYronwode14 October 2006
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MightyGorga10 August 2000One of the very worst of the "troubled teenager" genre so popular in the late '50s/early '60s. Tony Travis as Eddie Crane is a dull hero who seems to be wandering aimlessly through life (and this movie), his girlfriend is about as interesting as dishwater, and his beatnik friends, especially Peter Breck as the horribly over-the-top Moon, give new meaning to the word "stereotype". However, I urge everyone to see the Mystery Science Theater 3000 version of The Beatniks - it's hilarious.
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After knocking over a market, Eddy Crane (Tony Travis) and the rest of his gang stop at a diner for a bite to eat. Quite unexpectedly (at least I didn't see it coming), Eddy begins singing to a little jazzy number playing on the jukebox. He's overheard by a talent agent who thinks he can make Eddy a star. Before you can say "Daddy-O", Eddy's on TV and has a recording contract lined up. But Eddy can't escape his past. While celebrating his good fortune, one of his friends, Mooney (Peter Breck), kills a bartender. Eddy's agent asks the gang to leave Eddy alone and gets stabbed for his efforts. The gang drags Eddy back down at every opportunity. Eddy's must ultimately fight for his freedom.
I wonder if Paul Frees and the rest of those behind this bad idea of a movie had any concept of just what a "beatnik" was. It doesn't appear so. Calling this gang of self-centered, unintelligent, small-time hoods with a Pat Boone style crooner as its leader "beatniks" would have Maynard G. Krebs spinning in his grave. These aren't "beatniks" in the traditional sense of the word. These are not the philosophical counter-cultural bongo beaters Kerouac wrote about. If everyone involved wasn't in their 30s, I'd call them juvenile delinquents. Beatniks? I don't think so.
But beyond the misuse of "beatniks", the movie has very little to offer. Some moments in The Beatniks might be appealing in that bizarrely entertaining sort of way, but not in any traditional sense. The plot it bad, the acting is horrible, and the cinematography is as lazy as I've seen recently. In short, The Beatniks isn't a very good movie. -
This is my largest complaint; no Beatnik culture, no snapping fingers and performance poetry, marijuana, not even the stereotypical black clothes and sunglasses -- how can you get that part wrong? Instead the "Beatniks" are mostly your typical 50s squares and range to a geek-greaser (Mooney) and the lone woman in the group, think of a "Grease" Frenchy-Rizzo mix.
Since, the majority of the plot of this movie revolves around Eddie's musical ability the audience gets plenty of solo performances. The music is fine for a low budget movie like "Beatniks", nothing you will remember past the end credits. Again, even when Eddie was a "Beatnik" he wasn't singing Beatnik music, more like Mel Torme-like crooning.
Other glaring mistakes in this movie is the continuity (see the GOOFS section) and the character of Moon is just ridiculous, with a catch phrase that will live on forever (I'm gonna MOON ya'!). The Eddie character is a little annoying in his inconsistency -- is he a goon with a heart of gold or just a jerk? All in all this is a very, very bad movie. -
bkoganbing31 May 2008If there's anyone out there expecting to see a film about the Fifties counterculture prototypes, skip this one by. Skip it by for that reason and on general principles.
The Beatniks is about a gang of punks who bully and rob people for kicks and one of them, Tony Travis is discovered in true Hollywood tradition in a roadside dive by an agent. He's got a decent singing voice and the agent promises to make him the next Elvis.
But our lug-nut of a hero instead of saying goodbye Daddy-O in true beatnik fashion, doesn't want to lose the old gang. And the old gang don't want to let him go. Especially Peter Breck, a twisted psycho with some gay leanings who's crushing out on Travis big time.
Despite this film where he gives an over the top performance like Jack Palance on amphetamines, Peter Breck was the only one in this no name cast to have anything resembling a career.
The Beatniks is a film without a lot going for it. This was one of those drive-in flicks which one could get down to serious business at the drive-in without missing anything of importance. -
Poseidon-310 November 2005Filmed for $2.67, this routine, rather predictable film is only good for a few unintentional laughs. Among the least of its many problems is that nothing whatsoever having to do with beatniks ever appears in the movie! The story concerns a group of troublemakers who don masks and rob the same store over and over in order to gain spending money. They then head to the coffee shop run by one of their girlfriend's mother and dance to the tunes on the juke box. One day, Travis is singing along with an instrumental number and is discovered by record producer Delaney who is trapped at the coffee shop with car trouble and is hanging on the pay phone, waiting for help. Instantaneously, Travis zips to the big city where he appears on a TV show, then, after making a huge splash, is set up the next evening to record his first album! Unfortunately, he's dragged along his entourage of Breck, Edwards, Wells and Kadler who proceed to trash his hotel room, coerce him into staying out late and generally wreck his chances at success. More drama unfolds as Travis attempts to rectify his and his gang's wrongdoings and make a go of his potential new life as a singing star. Travis is an attractive young man and ought to have had a slightly better career than he wound up with. His lip-synching to the songs is abominable, though. He obviously has no idea what he's doing. (The vocals he's singing to, though, are surprisingly good!) Kadler plays his girlfriend and is a dead-ringer for Ava Gardner, though lacking Gardner's charisma and talent as a performer. Edwards (who was in his mid-forties at the time of filming!) and Wells don't have a lot to do, but do try to come up with ways to pass the time (check out Wells attempting to recreate, in the mirror, a hairstyle on a magazine cover he's holding!) Delaney is all right at times, but doesn't appear to be well and, in fact, died before the film's release! Playing his secretary and the woman who steals Travis' heart is Terry. She gives a reasonable performance, but has distracting blew eyes. That is to say that one blew one way and one blew another! Careening though the film in a reprehensibly bad performance of hellacious ham is Breck. It's amazing that he ever worked again after this unbelievably rotten piece of indulgent, unappealing "acting". (Amazingly, he went on to craft the highly likable character of Nick on "The Big Valley" a few years after this.) One major supporting role (unbilled) is the boom mike, which looms into view with regularity. It's shabbily directed by voice-over artist Frees and he cast the film with virtually all fellow voice-over performers. It's clear why most of them stayed off-camera through the bulk of their careers! The camera-work is often pitiful with uncomfortable framing and close-ups which almost get the actors' entire faces in the frame. It's got a stale story, a bad script, mediocre acting and uncreative direction. The only thing it's really good for is as a curio to poke fun at, which the MST3K guys did gleefully. Viewers may be quite surprised to find out that Edwards supplied the voice of Thumper in Walt Disney's "Bambi" (not to mention that Wentworth, playing Kadler's mom, was Madam Mim in "The Sword in the Stone".)
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InzyWimzy16 January 2004That is one song that never fails to crack me up.
Beatniks anyone? See any? There are none to be found here. Tony Travis plays Eddy Crane; rebel and small-time hood, but also sings like a pansy femme?? This definitely ruins any credibility since you really can't straddle the fence. Either tell Iris to shut up, or sing "With a Look"; you can't do BOTH! That audition scene is hilarious getting to see hardcore, tough Eddy crooning sentimentality. HA HA HA HA!!!
Who else shamed themselves? Peter Breck as Mooney. Ham anyone? He takes the manic psycho character to probably the only entertainment in this flop. It's tough to be scared of someone who threatens you with "I'm gonna MOON you!!". His soliloquy regarding the barkeep is also priceless scene followed by on odd whiny fit. Then there's annoying broad Iris who's dancing can scar even those unprepared for random corkscrew gyrations. Mr. Morrissey taught me that to succeed as a talent agent, get in an auto accident, call for a tow, and listen to the guy near the jukebox!! Then there's a dive called Charlie's run by a guy named Gus(?).
Despite this corny premise, maybe the makers of Beatniks were trying to make a statement about life; it's not all wavy gravy and the man always square forcing the minds of our best generation to conform to antiquated norms while suppressing self expression. Rail against the establishment!! Whoops, slipped into Beatnik mode there. Well, someone had to because this film sure doesn't!!
"I KILLED THAT FAT BARKEEP!"
It's true...it's not what you say, but how you say it. -
lemon_magic13 November 2005Well, actually that line is from another movie altogether ("The Oscar",featuring Tony Curtis), but MST3K used it to hilarious effect in one of their skits lampooning "The Beatniks" during their treatment of the movie.
OK, so what do we have here? Um, let's see...no beatniks, that's for sure, just some well dressed Juvenile Deliquents hanging out and causing trouble. Our hero, he's a Troubled Soul With A Heart Of Gold, and he gets his Big Break when he's discovered singing along to a song on the Jukebox, but he's held back (and held down) by his old gang. His old gang buddy becomes jealous of his success and tries to cause trouble with the hero's agent/producer. Hilarity Ensues. (And by "hilarity", I mean some of the goofiest fist fights ever staged in the history of black-and-white cinema.)
While this movie is strictly "By The Numbers", it isn't all that bad. Yes, the acting is barely there, but it's good enough for the material and the script (with the exception of Peter Breck, who chews the scenery with admirable energy and verve). Tony Travis, who plays the lead, is a handsome fellow who can at least play himself on camera, and while he has nothing new to offer in the Teen Dream department, he's at least as good as the lout who plays "Daddy-O" in the film of that name. But based on what we see in the movie, the only reason he becomes a public sensation is because the plot requires it - 3rd rate Fabians and 4th rate Sinatras were a dime a dozen back then, and this poor guy is so wooden and limited in dramatic range that you could replace him with a life sized Ken doll and no one would probably notice, as long as a stage hand moved the Ken Doll's arms once in a while.
If you feel the need to spend time watching "Public Service Announcement/Moral Drama Films" about Our Troubled Youth, lots of other films do this kind of thing better. "Untamed Youth" and "Girls' Town" have better music and feature Mamie Van Doren, and "Daddy-O" has a mystery/caper aspect that drives a much more intriguing plot. But compared to a snooze-fest like "I Accuse My Parents", this is pure gold. Make your choices accordingly, and don't complain that I never warned you. -
paultrefzger-15 April 2005This movie, that was part of the Mystery Science Theatre 3K batch of "so bad, they're good" flicks. The film's worst offense is its title. There are no beatniks in the movie, but rather, juvenile delinquents (all over 2o, at least). By all Hollywood standards, this is a B movie, but I find it more entertaining than some movies that are nominated for an Oscar. Good looking lead Tony Travis is also a good actor, as is Peter Breck as a wise-cracking gang member who is supposedly psychotic but in the overall scheme of things comes across as funnier than menacing. Karen Kadler is fun too as Mr. Travis' gang girl-friend. Travis plays Eddie Crane, who in the course of the movie sings 4 times and sings well, from Sinatra-like ballads to early rock 'n' roll. There is a plot that involves shootings, and a jazz/ big band score...and a weak attempt at artsy filming but what we care about most is whether or not Eddie will side with the upright show biz people and leave his gang. Don't get serious about this film, just enjoy it!
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LCShackley7 November 2011I watched this movie because of my interest in voice actor Paul Frees, who wrote and directed "The Beatniks." He also wrote the lyrics to all the songs in the picture, with music by Eddie Brandt (who had worked with Spike Jones). In the Frees biography, his ex-wife (who stars in it) warns readers NOT to bother watching it because it's AWFUL. She claims that Frees knew nothing about directing, and that the photography and sound were also terrible. And she was right: this movie is a stinker, loaded with clichés about teenage troublemakers and also the entertainment industry of the 50s. It never really getting off the ground, leaving in the "deep Frees."
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bletcherstonerson16 October 2015If you can only see one movie in your life, IE, you live in the Amazon and are a forgotten indigenous tribal member and you stumble upon a plane wreck where in lies a laptop fully charged, wish upon a star, pray to your god of the oak moss that is used in owaska tea that this is the movie you find inside it. This film is so brilliant that when viewed it is like seeing burning magnesium without protective glasses. it will leave you with an indelible print allowing you to see nothing else the rest of your life. With the amazing Karen Kadler as the female lead, you will think of nothing but the wonderment of seeing her in a state of undress. The story is of Eddy, a singer so talented that the Sirens that sang to Odysseus are jealous of his velvety smooth arias that are the purest form of aphrodisiac. He and his chums are on pilgrimage of spiritual enlightenment, seeking nothing ...but "kicks" , aka..good times, tomorrow's fondest memories of the past.
They settle in at a Diner and decide "this..is where it's at. " The dark side is not Peter Brecks affinity for violence but that a strange group of men named "squares" are coming for them to take them away to "Squaresville". Eddy succumbs to the strange men named " Squares" and sings for them. His close brothers, the defenders of the faith of "Kicks". Are worried for Eddy's transformation into the " Square Society". A secular society deemed to be uncool. Pete and his fellow pilgrims rush to stop the horrific metamorphosis known only as " maturation" to devastating results so grim that this viewer was aghast! You too will watch in horror as the future that unfolds was not the one that was planned, see...the jukebox play the same song over again in a state of consistent déjà Vu.
See the T birds fight for the inalienable rights for Kicks, and see Eddy, god of crooners with a power no mortal man should possess, the voice of Midas brainwash record execs into believing he has talent. You shan't soon forget this visual trip of existential wonder as the Animus is destroyed and the monadic essence is released into " The Beatniks". Not to be confused with the violent blood soaked exploitation movie "The Boatniks" which starred Buddy Hackett. -
johnromanosbooks30 March 2024If you're going to watch an old, low budget crime movie, "Beatniks" isn't the best, but it's genuinely entertaining and has kept me coming back to it about once a year for the last couple decades. The dialogue isn't great but the acting is decent enough, and when it's not, at least it's comical enough to enjoy. I think the low rating is mostly due to people complaining about the false advertising in the title. If you can get over that, the only horrible thing about this movie is the video quality. But it's not unwatchable by any means.
The plot is about the leader of a gang who gets "discovered" by a talent agent while singing to his girlfriend in a diner. At first he's only in it for the money, but he soon realizes that maybe he can really make something of himself. Now he has to decide whether to be loyal to his gang, or move on to stardom. But will the gang let him go so easily? -
sol121828 March 2004******SPOILERS****** Standard late 1950's and early 60's fare that was cranked out of the great Hollywood "Dream Factory's" youth division back then that had nothing to do with what the title suggests: Beatniks and the Beat Generation but what the heck it's a catchy name and back in those days who would know the difference anyway.
Things happen so fast in this movie that it leaves you dizzy after the first ten minutes and almost paralyzed that by the end you have trouble getting out of your seat. A gang of rootless and bored youths who seem to have nothing to do with their lives but rob bars and grocery stores as well as steal cars run into, literally, a top LA record executive Harry Bayliss, Charles Delaney, when they smash into his parked car.
With everyone going into the popular Nadine's Diner to get something the eat and the record exec. going to call to get help for his damaged car. Then just like in the movies, gee I almost forgot this is a movie, one of the gang members Eddy Crane, Tony Travis, breaks into a song and dance. Eddy's singing so impresses Mr.Bayliss that he offers to sign Eddy up on the spot not only to a record contract but to put him on a top Rock & Roll TV variety show that very evening! Talking about instant success!
Although Eddy and his friends aren't that crazy about going on the TV show, crazy is the word for these goof balls, Eddy reluctantly does go on and the rest, like what they say in ShowBiz, is history. Not the history that you would get in a movie about one going from rags to fame and riches but the history you get from any post office or police station by reading the history of the person on a wanted poster.
I For one actually got to like Eddy and was rooting for him to make something of his life and get away from that group of misfits that he was part of. Knowing something about movies like "The Beatniks" I just knew that this wasn't going to happen. I just sat back and waited for the inevitable unhappy ending, and unhappily I wasn't disappointed.
The movie has some of the most unrestrained and obnoxious acting that I've ever seen I my life. Peter Breck, Bob "Moonie" Mooney, is so ridicules and over he top as a psycho/killer that he came across comical more then anything else. "I Killed That Fat Barkeep" was one of Breck best lines in the movie as he yelled it at the top of his voice as the cops came looking for him at the hotel that he and his gang were hold up in.Peter Breck actually made the art of "Ham Acting" Kosher with his unbelievable and outlandish performance as crazy "Moonie".
The insane plot revolves around a bar killing and later a knife attack by the mentally unstable "Moonie" on Mr. Bayliss in the hotel room that Bayliss paid for Eddy and his gang of crazies to stay at. This all happened while Eddy was doing his gig on the TV show that Bayliss got for him with one of the gang members Red, Sam Edwards, under the covers in bed near dead after being shot! All this after Eddy was well on his way on the road to success with him and his friends not having to be criminals anymore, this was was just to much to take as well as believe.
Eddy who seemed to be getting his life back together and was very likable even when he was bad in the end gets his caring and sweet girlfriend Helen Tracy, Joyce Terry, who's a secretary at Mr. Bayliss record office to call the police on him. Eddy felt that he would chicken out if he had to call the cops himself as he and Moonie have it out in back of the record studio; where he just cut his first record and is now in danger of getting cut to ribbons by the insane Moonie.
The movie ended with Eddy as well as his former friend Moonie getting sent up the river for murder instead of Eddy getting sent to Hollywood to become the next great American singing idol. You have to say one thing about the movie "The Beatniks" they really knew how to use their imagination in Hollywood back in those days. -
Maybe for the time is might have been, especially with a tag-line like that. This pretty obscure film is about Bad singers, Sleazy Talent scouts, teen gangs, robbery and general pandemonium. No Beatniks here, really. Ginsberg and Kerouac probably couldn't believe what they had wrought-this certainly was not it.
If you want to see a better example of one of the so called "beatnik" films that were created around 1959 to 1961, (where Exploitation Producers latched onto popular media phrases like "Beatnik"), check out The Beat Generation starring Mamie Van Doren, or Beat Girl starring a then unknown Oliver Reed. Although these were not about 'niks they had a somewhat inkling to what a "beatnik" was.
As with all exploitation films very few of the catch phrases and trends used in marketing the films were used very accurately, nevertheless the films did make obscene amounts of money because they were presented to the public within a few months of a trend that was in high gear. -
First let me begin by saying that Paul Frees is one of my favorite voice over actors. In fact, he is second only to Mel Blanc. His work on Rocky and Bullwinkle helped greatly make that show what it is. So anybody who has seen this utterly worthless drivel can imagine how disappointed I was. Do not watch this movie under any circumstances. It is terrible. Not as bad as 'Manos', but damn close.
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planktonrules26 October 2010"The Beatniks" is far from a perfect movie and there are quite a few problems about it. However, despite this, the basic story is pretty good and the actor playing Eddy (Tony Travis) was exceptional. It's too bad the film wasn't edited and rewritten a bit--it could have made it LOTS better.
Eddy and his friends like to behave like total jerks and do petty robberies for kicks. However, Eddy's life takes a dramatic turn when he turns out to have a great singing voice and he's spotted by an agent. His life is about to turn around and he can make something of himself...if it weren't for his horrible friends who insist on helping him screw up his life. And, after one of his so-called friends kills a guy for no particular reason, the gang blackmails him into sticking with them--with he keeps his mouth shut and takes them along for the ride or they'll squeal. Nice friends, huh?! Eddy really does want to do good, but with these folks in tow, there's no way he can make the most of his lucky break.
The story is interesting, the acting is sometimes good, the jazzy beatnik soundtrack appropriate and Travis had an amazingly likable voice--so much so that I am surprised he didn't make it big as a singer in real life. So, the film DOES have a lot going for it. Unfortunately, the character of Mooney (Peter Breck) is dumb--so over the top that it brings down the entire movie. Had he been using heroin (and there's no indication of drug use in the movie), his extreme behaviors might have made some sense. But instead, he is so obnoxious, so unlikable and such an apparent psycho that having him be a member of any gang (other than the Manson family) makes little sense. And, in the last 15 minutes his silly histrionics really hurt the movie--so badly that I do understand all the ratings of 1 that the film has received on IMDb. It's a shame, really, as the film could have been a nice teen drive-in flick had Mooney been somewhat believable.
By the way, this film was written and directed by Paul Frees--the same guy who provided the voices for Boris Badinov on the "Bullwinkle Show" as well as the host of the Haunted Mansion at Disney. He's in a scene in the show and you also hear his very distinctive voice on another occasion in "The Beatniks". -
God, its awful. Yet in such an inept, cheesy, lame sort of way that I always end up laughing hysterically whenever I watch it. Moon is especially hilarious, with his drugged-up weirdness and schizophrenic behavior. Him screaming in that shrill voice: "I killed that fat barkeep!" Makes me laugh every time. The women are both mannish and homely as hell, the 40 yr old 'teen' is just pathetically amusing...and the music being sung IS very femmy and ridiculous, especially when the hood singing it is supposed to be a beatnik. Beatnik my booty...Eddy's just an idiot, who should have ditched his loser friends the moment he was offered a recording contract. The continuity errors are many in this film, including some terrible editing in several scenes and the appearance of the boom shadow on the wall in several others.
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icehole419 March 2003This movie has one tiny little problem with it: THERE ARE NO REAL BEATNIKS IN IT!! No goatees, no jazz, no berets, and only one of them wears black. What it does have is a cheap Pat Boone clone that can't sing, but does anyway. He sings his way to the top, and the gang he hung out with tries to keep him down. After hearing him sing, I was like Simon Cowell on the American Idol promo poster.
Rightfully skewered on MST3K, this should be avoided unless you're watching that version. -
ericstevenson25 June 2016It's nice to understand what makes something truly dated. It's so easy to tell that this was made in the 1960's, heck even in exactly 1960. The film's main flaw is that the characters are themselves very unlikeable. There's this one guy who keeps imitating what other people say and it's apparently some lame attempt at comedy. The plot is just that this guy wants to be a singer. Oh, and some people get shot as well. It seems like this was a thing back then. You just had a bunch of boring stuff show up and then tie in some random violence. 90% of the characters in this were completely pointless.
The biggest flaw is how unmemorable everything is. I can barely even remember any plot points or dialogue. I wish this had more than 1,000 votes. Then it could be featured on the IMDb Bottom 100. It's hard to pay attention to what's going on and everything is just so dull you don't care in the least. The pacing is very poorly done with pointless scenes stretched out. This is seriously one of the worst films ever made. 1/2 -
mark.waltz23 February 2017With a bunch of teenagers in their mid 20's and up going around the suburbs in an industrial area, robbing them over and over, then go basically to the same location redecorated to be another set, resulting one of them breaking into a song about sideburns, and all of a sudden being offered a contract. If that's your cup of hooch, then you deserve what you get.
Basically filmed like a TV show on the cheap and shoved obviously into the mist desperate of drive-ins and third rate theaters, this is laughable from start to finish. The "heroine" has a greasy spoon owner mom who dances along as if she was Andy Griffith's Aunt Bea completely schnockered. At one point singing rock, and another point sounding like Sinatra, Tony Travis does have some talent, but acting is clearly not one of them. Karen Kadler has no reason to be in front of the camera as the supposed beatnik chick, while Joyce Terry as Travis's "nice" girl is about as emotive as a melting snow cone. Peter Breck's crazy punk isn't nearly as memorable as Arch Hall's freaky scumbag in "The Sadist", a film I hoped that this might emulate.
I don't have it in for these late '50s and '60s B teen angst films. As a matter of fact, I can see how some of them gain cult followings or are considered a work of art. Even the most repulsive of stories can become something profound when it's done right. But everything on this, from the script to the acting to the technical aspect, is just so obviously rotten. The songs aren't really that bad, just relatively second rate. The TV show audience is as fake as the cardboard sets. These aren't rebels with causes or without. They are just early examples of society slime that we're supposed to try to find entertainment value in here. -
scsu197524 November 2022There are no beatniks in this film. There are no goatees, no bongos, no poetry readings, and no intellectuals; however, there are plenty of stupid people.
Tony Travis plays Eddy Crane, the leader of a bunch of morons. In the film's opening scene, they don masks and knock over a liquor store, then head to a greasy spoon. Eddy's babe Iris, played by Karen Kadler (a dead-ringer for Mara Corday) convinces him to sing a song while the jukebox is on. So we get treated to lyrics like this:
"Leather coat, duckbill hair, call me wild, I don't care.
Sideburns don't need your sympathy.
Save your tears, don't cry for me, I'll get along, just let me be, Sideburns don't need your sympathy."
A talent scout just happens to be standing by the phone while this is going on, and convinces Eddie to go for an audition. This is the same guy who convinced Klinton Spilsbury he'd be perfect as "The Lone Ranger."
Eddy tries out, and meets cool blonde receptionist Helen, played by Joyce Terry. It is love at first sight. Eddy goes on television (director Paul Frees lends his announcing voice) and we suffer through
"Anything your little heart desires, Your slightest wish is my command, There's nothing I won't do, I'm so in love with you"
Eddy becomes an overnight sensation, probably because the viewing audience is deaf and blind. However, he is unable to shake the losers he hangs with, especially the psychotic "Moon," played by Peter Breck.
Eventually, they all end up in a bar, where Breck clocks the bartender with a bottle of booze. The bartender gets off a shot and wounds one of the gang. This could have a negative impact on Eddy's career, so he calls Helen and tells her he is giving up his singing. The audience breathes a sigh of relief. Then he changes his mind. The audience walks out.
In the exciting climax, Eddy confesses all to Helen, Moon knifes Eddy's agent, and Eddy and Moon duke it out. Then Eddy decides to face the music (not his own, unfortunately) and take his medicine (by this point, I had a few belts myself).
I'm not sure why a voice-over specialist like Paul Frees decided to direct this (he also wrote it, and is credited with some of the songs). Coincidentally, there seem to be a lot of voice-overs in this film, including Frees doing a detective's voice. Travis is okay as an actor, and not bad as a singer, despite the lousy songs. He looks like the product of a love triangle between Steve Cochran, James Farentino, and Hal March. Breck is over-the-top and irritating; you'll want him killed off immediately, but no such luck. The girls are good looking.
My favorite scene is when the hotel manager, played by Claude Stroud, tries to assert his authority after the gang trash a room.
Stroud: "Oh my goodness, what have you done to the room? Why, this is terrible. Uh, you'll pay for this. ... Why, you young hoodlums, I'll call the police." Breck: "Hey man, you say one word to anyone and I'm gonna moon you." Stroud: "You're gonna what ?" Breck: "Moon you!"
After listening to Stroud, I now know what Porky Pig would sound like if he led an alternative lifestyle. -
I'll be honest; this film made me howl with laughter. It is actually better than most modern "comedies". Even though it is unintentionally funny, does it really make any difference if it makes you laugh for an hour? Eddie Crane is about as talented as Eddie Kranepool of the original Mets. His buddy Moony or Moody is not even high on drugs! He is just plain psychotic with his James Dean imitiation. Peter Dreck, I mean Breck, steals the film as Moody, who was trying out to be the 8th Dwarf in Snow White, but was rejected for being too violent. At one point Eddie says "I can't really believe all this is happening". Eddie, I couldnt agree with you more lol. A must see for those who never went to the drive-in. More cliches than a barrel of monkeys. * Not to be confused with an earlier version of Eddie and the Cruisers, Bruisers, Losers, and woozers.
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Denise_Noe13 February 2024Yes, the movie is bafflingly mis-titled. There are no beatniks in "The Beatniks." No goatees, no coffee shops, no poetry, no bongos, no allusions to marijuana -- no beatniks and no "beat" culture. It's original title of "Sideburns and Sympathy" would have been better -- even though none of the male characters sport sideburns either.
Still, the film is not as bad as some reviewers claim. It is about a robbery gang led by Eddy Crane. The other members are girlfriend Iris who droves its getaway car, and thugs Red, Chuck, and Mooney. They are small-time crooks who rob humble mom and pop stores. After a heist, the gang head for the diner at which Iris's mother is employed. As Iris and Eddy dance, he sings "Sideburns Don't Need Your Sympathy." He is overheard by a talent scout who whisks him to Hollywood crooning glory. However, he is held back by his hoodlum pals. The real problem is the flamboyant, demanding, and nutty Moon who has a powerful gay crush on Eddy. This makes it an interesting flick. Of course, there is a straight love triangle but the real passion is Moon's desire for Eddy. Peter Breck plays Mooney as jealous and rowdy and reckless. Tony Travis is almost too nice as Eddy. Overall, it is an interesting movie and the before its time gay passion makes it especially noteworthy. -
Angel_Meiru29 April 2004This has to be one of my favorite MST3K episodes of all time. And a reason why Paul Frees has stuck to animation and cartoon voice overs, since this was his first and last live action feature film he has ever done.
Though the movie is suppose to be a serious musical/crime drama, I sure laughed my head off over it, especially with Joel and the bots there to save it. It deals with an Elvis clone named Eddy Crane whom hits the top when a music agent and a sexy blond woman discovers his so-called "talents". However, his so-called "beatnik" friends want him to come back to him and stop singing, especially a nutcase named Mooney, whoms immortal lines were "One word outta you and I am gonna moon ya!" "MOON, YOU!". That part right there cracks me up.
And another thing, why did Paul Frees decided to call this movie "Beatniks"? It is a gang of juvenile deliquents (perhaps special ed rejects?) whom like to get into trouble. What was Paul Frees on when doing this?
Oh well, at least Frees learned his lesson here, while there are some much worse so-called "talents" whom have not. -
Lechuguilla1 December 2016A youthful gang of punks includes one guy named Eddy (Tony Travis), who has singing talent and is discovered by a talent agent in a restaurant. Which makes his gang members jealous. As the gang tries to sway Eddy away from a singing career, he makes some mistakes in judgment. The result is an off-screen murder event wherein Eddy is a witness.
This puts Eddy is something of a predicament. At one point, one of the gang members, played by Peter Breck, reminds Eddy: "You're in it (the murder) just as much as I am; we're all in it, together ... you're one of us ... you hip?" "The Beatniks" is mostly a character study of one juvenile delinquent's dilemma in being loyal to his gang vs. pursuing a promising singing career.
The underlying premise is fine. But the script is below average with corny dialogue; too much talk; and the inclusion of Tony Travis' singing, which stops the plot flow. You get the feeling that the film is nothing but a singing vehicle for Travis.
Some of the acting, especially from Peter Breck, is really hammy. Casting is poor in that most of the actors look like they're closer to the age of thirty. B&W lighting is acceptable, if conventional. Background music is nondescript jazz, which is the only element that remotely conveys a "beatnik" theme.
The film's title is deceptive. Despite that, and other major problems, it's not a terrible movie, just not as good as comparable films from that era. Thankfully, the short runtime makes viewing less painful.