Terror on the Beach (1973)

****SPOILERS*** Unusual film depicting the free and peace loving hippies of the 1960's and early 1970's as a bunch of ruthless criminals who terrorize this family, the Glynns, who are out to have a good time on the beach fishing and getting a sun tan. It's Pop the head of the family Neil Glynn, Dennis Weaver, the peace loving adult who at first tries to make peace with the hippie marauders without much success. The hippies who drive around the beach like a bunch of Hells Angels in dune-buggies who think of Neil as a weakling and unmercifully take advantage of him at every opportunity. Neil's son Steve, Kristoffer Tabori, feels unlike his pop that you have to meet fire with fire to deal with these wild hippies who seemed to be overdosing on both beer and weed making them far worse then they are.It takes a while for Neil to realize that trying to be nice to thee hippies isn't what's going to work or keep them from possibly massacring him and his family. It's then that he reluctantly decides to take the gloves off and meet them man to man or, in the case of the weaker sect members of of the hippie gang, man to woman. This leads to the final showdown on the beach with what looked like a martial arts and boxing expert Neil rubbing the head or top dog hippie Jerry's, Scott Hylands, nose in the dirt and having his fellow hippies, men & women, too scared, in seeing what their up against, to come to Jerry's aid.Obviously influenced by the Charles "Sweet Charlie" Manson and his hippie clan's massacre of some half dozen people five years earlier the movie's depiction of hippies or the hippie movement seemed a bid odd since it come out at Manson's trial that he and his gang warn't hippies at all. They including "Sweet Charlie" Manson were a bunch of ex-cons and burned doubt druggies who's only love was for starting up a race war between blacks, whom they framed in their murder spree, and whites! Hardly something that any peace loving hippie would do.

Hippie band menaces suburban family camping at the beach.A made for TV quickie— it's not even hard to spot the commercial pauses. Probably took them no more than 5 days to shoot. One thing for sure-- they didn't have to build any sets. No sir, no phony surf or projection screens here; it's all genuine SoCal coastline.However, the storyline is something else, more like a respectable person's bad dream about stereotyped hippies. So why does the Manson-like band harass good citizen Weaver and his family. Unless I missed something, we're never told, which sort of blows a hole through the middle of the plot. I guess we're to assume it's a culture clash with hippies as the inexplicable bad guys. My guess is the script was a rush job without time to plug the holes.In fact, just what the band is trying to do remains murky throughout. They taunt and leer, drive recklessly, trash the campsite, and even tip over the camper. But who knows why—just hippie fun, I guess. Meanwhile, citizen Weaver finally goes from suburban Milktoast to enraged righteousness, and we wonder what took him so long. I'm sensing a parable here that sort of fits in with the Charles Bronson vigilante movies of the time-- Death Wish (1974)-- where low-life's rape and murder Bronson's family triggering his own murderous rage. But of course, that's much too brutal for a TV movie. So we get low-life vandals, instead.Anyway, the narrative manages some tension as the provocations mount; the acting is good; and I almost got a sunburn from watching. Then too, the bickering father-son, mother- daughter, amount to a realistic touch. But unless you want a time-passer or just don't like hippies, skip it.

for the time as other reviews have mentioned, the idea has its moments, Dennis Weaver (of Spielberg's "Duel" fame) has believability as always playing the victimized average American 70's dad getting abused by some kind of horrific reality. Beyond his control, the world and its people take on sinister tendrils and horrors.Susan Dey and Kristoffer Tabori are the siblings, off at college but not happy, accompanying Weaver and their mom to a day trip on Pismo Beach. The mom is well-played by the understated Estelle Parsons.While the psychological undertones are there, the action is not delineated, it starts with a good suspense premise, but sort of tapers to a slow end. Look for veteran actor Henry Olek as disenfranchised hippie, Jerry the leader ostensibly is a Charles Manson-like cult figure. Although other than their garb, aimlessness and need for a "family" there is fist-fighting and wrestling, no murder. The theme of "survival of the fittest" is intimated and could have been more explored.I did not grow up in the 70's but have studied the films and actors prevalent at that time. Also the political and economic climate as well as gas lines, recessions layoffs and a popular book my Dad had, "The screwing of the average man". It seems that history repeats itself. We are now in a similar recession, people are getting desperate, the fallout is happening now from another war, disenfranchised people and the poor in America....it goes on. But back to the film. Younger generations including my own have interest in the 70s because like it or not we have to learn from history.Recommended. 8/10.

I remember watching this when it first aired - even then, I thought it was lame. That doesn't mean it's not fun, however. Poor Dennis Weaver, cast as a milquetoast yet again, plays the middle-class head of a rather dull family who take a little vacation on the beach (hence the title). No sooner are they settled than the trouble begins, with Pa, Ma (Estelle Parsons) and the kids (Susan Dey and Kristofer Tabori) victimized by a group of would-be Hippies who make the kids in "Hot Rods To Hell" and "Outrage" seem like Hell's Angels. They spend too much time playing idiotic "mind games" with the family, who are apparently too terrified (or too stupid) to simply pack up, jump in the car and head home. Oh yes, Papa is a pacifist unlike the son, who thinks he's a coward, but events will bring Dad around. There are no characterizations beyond this. Parsons, who looks frumpy and tired, just whines throughout. Dey looks fetching, but adds little (dramatic) substance and Tabori is simply there to egg Dad on. As for the hippies, they have no motivation at all, let alone credibility. This is very rarely seen these days, but, as bad movies go, it's well worth looking out for, even though it may not sound like it here.And You really haven't lived until you hear Dad Weaver lead his family in a mind-bending rendition of ''I went to the animal fair''(?). Remember,however, a picture is worth a thousand words and "Terror on the Beach" is quite a picture.