Is The Horror of Party Beach a Hidden Treasure or Dumpster Fire?
Blu-ray Distributed By: Severin Films / August 28, 2018
In 1964, 20th Century Fox released an independent shocker – shot in two weeks for $50,000 outside Stamford, Connecticut by local producer/director Del Tenney – advertised as ‘The First Horror-Monster Musical’. More than 50 years later, this “absolute classic of exploitation cinema” (Legends Magazine) returns like you’ve never seen or heard it before: When nuclear waste dumped into the ocean mutates a shipwreck full of corpses, it will unleash an onslaught of bikini teens, surprising gore, dubious science, an intrepid maid, The Del-Aires, and arguably the greatest worst monsters in horror movie history. Severin is proud to present this cult favorite from “Connecticut’s own Ed Wood” (Stamford Advocate), now featuring a new 2k scan from the original negative and loaded with all-new Special Features like nothing that ever stalked this earth!
In 1964, 20th Century Fox released an independent shocker – shot in two weeks for $50,000 outside Stamford, Connecticut by local producer/director Del Tenney – advertised as ‘The First Horror-Monster Musical’. More than 50 years later, this “absolute classic of exploitation cinema” (Legends Magazine) returns like you’ve never seen or heard it before: When nuclear waste dumped into the ocean mutates a shipwreck full of corpses, it will unleash an onslaught of bikini teens, surprising gore, dubious science, an intrepid maid, The Del-Aires, and arguably the greatest worst monsters in horror movie history. Severin is proud to present this cult favorite from “Connecticut’s own Ed Wood” (Stamford Advocate), now featuring a new 2k scan from the original negative and loaded with all-new Special Features like nothing that ever stalked this earth!Jimbo’s Take 
(4 / 5)
You gotta give credit to The Del-Aires, the 60s rock band featured in Del Tenney’s 1964 feature film, The Horror of Party Beach. Their songs are catchy! It’s already been a couple of weeks since I screened this blu-ray from Severin Films, and I’m still humming the movie’s tunes.
It’s too bad that Severin’s release doesn’t include the soundtrack. Afterall, the music is one of the primary promotional hooks for the film. But I’m not going to bust Severin’s chops too much, because what they do provide is very much worth the asking price. Especially if you like stepping into a time capsule for 1960s cheesy, sci-fi, horror fun.
It’s part Creature from the Black Lagoon meets Night of the Living Dead with a pinch of Humanoids from the Deep, and Zaat. (Okay, Zaat may not be a “favorite” but it should be.) Roll it all up into a big teenage beach party with The Del-Aires, plenty of dancing, and a gratuitous motorcycle gang beach brawl. It’s the kind of entertainment you’d expect to find featured on MST3K or Riff Trax.
Radioactive toxic waste has re-animated and transformed the human remains of sailors lying at rest in a shipwrecked watery grave. The bones of the dead transform into a handful of blood thirsty monsters that come ashore to feed on the teenage beachcombers.
If it weren’t for the atrocious monster designs, The Horror of Party Beach may have been looked upon in a different light. The monster’s actions are reminiscent of Romero’s “ghouls”. In one memorable scene, a pack of monsters raid a slumber party with some 20 girls.
It’s almost a frightening encounter, except no one can take seriously a deep-sea chicken with a mouth full of hotdogs. A second creature design, which is not featured as prominently, looks like a cross between Hedorah (the smog monster of Godzilla fame) and Swamp Thing. And Del Tenney isn’t afraid to get a little gory and gruesome. Even by 1964 standards, I’m sure some of the deaths seemed incredibly exploitative and graphic.
Imagine for a moment, Del Tenney had made the decision to have re-animated sailors rising from the ocean instead of these fake and stupid looking monster suits. It would have been cheaper and Del Tenney would have beaten Romero to the modern zombie flick by about 4-5 years! Alas, Del Tenney didn’t have a foresight for such things and admits his primary goal was to have fun making a movie and generate some profits in the process. And in that, he succeeded.
The blu-ray extras are brief, but the information packed within is plentiful. There is some considerable overlap of information between the “retrospective documentary” Return to Party Beach and an archival interview with Tenney. But I kind of like having the uncut Tenney interview to validate the information that was presented in Return to Party Beach. An interview with two members of the Del-Aires is brief but sweet. There’s something charming about seeing the elderly gentlemen perform their way through “Zombie Stomp”. The final extra is an interview with Director Tim Sullivan (2001 Maniacs) as he discusses rock music’s influence and merging with horror cinema.
Hidden Treasure/Dumpster Fire?
With its strange but entertaining hodgepodge of genres and musical tie-ins, The Horror of Party Beach proved a moderate success. And now thanks to Severin Films, the rest of us can rediscover this strangely bizarre but endearing entry that pioneered a film category no one asked for: ‘The First Horror-Monster Musical’.
Jimbo says: Hidden Treasure!
| Jimbo's Take: |  (4.0 / 5) |
| Blu-ray Extras: |  (3.5 / 5) |
| Average: |  (3.8 / 5) |
Special Features
- Return to Party Beach: A Retrospective Documentary on The Horror of Party Beach
- It’s the Living End: An Encounter with The Del-Aires – Interview with Band Members Bobby Osborne and Ronnie Linares
- Shock & Roll: Filmmaker Tim Sullivan On Rock & Roll Horror Movies
- Archival Interview With Director Del Tenney
- Trailer
