Francie Lawrence (Sandra Dee) is a young woman forced by her friends to go on what they call a manhunt. She and her friends spend time in the sun showing off in order to get boys’ attention, but there’s only one problem, Francie is not like the other girls. She prefers to spend time outside doing things that cause onlookers to refer to her as a tomboy. She doesn’t care what the people around her think of her, for the most part, and she musters up enough courage to buy her first surfboard and give the sport a try. Due to the fact that she is always out and about, she meets many new people and begins to understand what her friends see in guys. As a result of her new relationships, and hobby, she is given a nickname, Gidget (a combination of “girl” and “midget”). But, as life appears to be looking up, love gets in the way, forcing Gidget out of her comfort zone and into a world that she is unfamiliar with. Can Gidget withstand the allure of the new men in her life and continue down the path that she has always pictured for herself or will love overcome her like it has her friends?
Gidget appears to present like nearly every other film with a female protagonist. It presents Francie/Gidget as a headstrong young woman who has substantial hopes and dreams for herself and refuses to let anyone, especially a man, stand in her way. At this point this idea of a woman feels a bit redundant, however, considering that Gidget was released in the 1950’s, it seems that this particular approach must have been unique at the time. Given the fact that women had experienced difficulties in all walks of life just a few decades before the release of the film (and the novel of which this film is an adaptation) introducing the world of cinema to a woman with such aspirations may have been quite the shock. The film is progressive and enticing considering writer Gabrielle Upton and director Paul Wendkos are willing to take such a gamble.
Through all of the positives that surround Gidget throughout the film there are times when all of that is thrown out the window and watered down. Certain scenes end with such optimism; the music, the tone of the characters’ voices and overall feel of the scene leave viewers feeling good about what is about to happen. However, oftentimes, in these moments, characters nonessential to the scene say something that conflicts with the overall tone. For example: as Gidget speaks to her parents for the first time about going surfing and how the sport will make her summer enjoyable, her mother (Dorothy Lawrence--Mary LaRoche), with a smile on her face, tells her that there is no guarantee that surfing will make her happy, and the scene immediately ends. I struggle to understand how and why Wendkos and Upton felt that ending these optimistic scenes with such negativity would be attractive to viewers or would help move the film in the right direction. As Gidget progresses, the negativity that continues to befall Gidget ultimately becomes a turn off. While the point of the film is for this young lady to overcome a series of obstacles, seeing the people closest to her bring her down in some of the oddest ways and having the support of the writer and director in these moments is frustrating and seems a bit disingenuous.
Gidget, Moondoggie (James Darren) and The Big Kahuna (Cliff Robertson)--who sounds eerily like George Clooney (truly the other way around)--all possess similar personalities. While they all appear to be headstrong they have an equal amount of resentment toward the world that surrounds them. The combination of traits reveals itself as obstinance and makes it difficult to appreciate the characters that Wendkos and Upton tried so hard to develop. However, given the fact that the three leads possess such similar characteristics, it is important that they don’t collectively overwhelm the audience. The three have a fantastic chemistry which allows viewers to overlook some of the intractableness and appreciate the characters on the screen. Their relationships feel organic and, while those relationships are not always the most wholesome, viewers feel a connection to what is taking place between each of them.
There are a number of words used throughout Gidget that don’t typically appear in the English language today, one of them being “ultimate.” Using the term “ultimate” to describe what Gidget believes to be the most amazing thing over and over again throughout the story lessens the meaning of the word and the things that she is describing. The vernacular is interesting and unique, but the repeated use of the word makes it hard to feel an emotional connection to Gidget when she belts it out. “Ultimate” is not the only silly issue strewn throughout the film as Gidget is plagued with cheesiness that causes the film to struggle with more modern audiences.
Gidget, in many ways, feels like a roller coaster ride. There are moments of brilliance (i.e. presenting a self-sufficient woman to a world when women are expected to rely heavily on men) but there are also moments of failure that find viewers feeling a disconnect from the story and the characters. Given the time of its release and the message it is trying to send Gidget does its job of intriguing viewers (both male and female) and provides itself the opportunity to find success, regardless of how small, among anyone who is willing to give the film a chance.
Directed by Paul Wendkos. Written by Gabrielle Upton & Frederick Kohner. Starring Sandra Dee, James Darren, Cliff Robertson, Arthur O’Connell, Mary LaRoche, etc.
⭐⭐⭐⭐⭐⭐/10
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