Cliff Richard is still going strong. Or as strong as 80 years old allows
you. He never made it big in the USA but in England he is an institution.
Cliff Richard and the Shadows. Besides their music, he also appeared in a
handful of pop music films in the 1960's. That was a thing then - especially
in England - not so much any more. Nearly all of them are at most passable
entertainment - but I have a nostalgic fondness for them since I was actually
around back then. Richard's screen persona is as bland and genial as a boiled
potato and his music is melodic but not far from easy listening really. Still
I have enjoyed a few of his films just for these reasons. Pretty girls, forgettable
tunes, a band on the road, attempts at comedy and an opportunity to really
not pay much attention. His film Summer Holiday is actually not bad at all
- and that is a tune that will stick in your head for a while. This one is
as light as a dust mote and I expected it to just blow away. Insipid plot,
bad acting but a song every few minutes - none that I recall an hour after
seeing it.
The band gets a gig in a small Spanish hotel that is owned by an English
ex-pat played by Robert Morley, who basically plays Robert Morley as he does
in every film - I can take him or leave him depending on my mood and how
much screen time he gets. Too much here. The American air force has lost
a bomb and has closed the beaches and fishing down as they look for it. So
when the band gets there, it is an empty hotel. Not that this stops the boys
from finding lots of local girls - in Cliff's case the very attractive Viviane
Ventura. Nice exotic name that sounds like stage name but isn't - born in
London. Morley is a spy for the Russians - an inept and not very enthusiastic
one. Not sure why I am wasting my time on the plot - there is one - barely
- but really the only reason you would watch this film is if you are a fan
of the star.
