MovieChat Forums > Gidget (1959) Discussion > Intelligent movie.

Intelligent movie.

posted 15 years ago by Herowithgreeneyesandblue
16 replies | jump to latest

The Big Kahuna answers "who says so" in regards to how we 'have' to live our lives. Later he realises "everything has a price" or in other words everything has a tradeoff (as in, there is no such thing as total freedom). This epiphany leads to him deciding his life as a surfer bum is no longer what he wants.

Also there's Moondoggie who clearly is intending to follow Kahuna because he admires him and Moondoggie is seeking a kind of status as a surfer bum as an alternate to his father's more conventional path to the acheivement status but it's still about status for Moondoggie and not a lifestyle choice for it's own sake as it is with Kahuna.

Even the whole Kahuna (almost) having sex with underaged Gidget thing is done well. Kahuna genuinly doesn't want to but he's not above doing it since she's kinda insisting and she's desirable. Then Moondoggie is critical of Kahuna for it.

There a few other things too but I don't want to get long winded. This movie is quite intelligent for a 1959 beach flick. One flaw is that Kahuna doesn't mention that while he's leaving the surfer bum lifestyle, he probably doesn't regret having lived it, values it as a lifestyle choice and would do it again.

I like waking up in the morning not knowing who I'll meet or where I'll end up: The Titanic

[–] hka-3 15 years ago

Great post. I agree that there's a lot more to it than just some beach flick. I'd be interested to read your other thoughts on the movie.

As for Kahuna, his bird dying helped get the ball rolling for his new path in life. I can't help thinking about what his life became after leaving the life of a surf bum. I'm sure he was raking in the money as an airline pilot, but as he said, he didn't care for all the rules and regulations in the military, so I wonder how long it took him to adjust to living his life by other people's schedules...and was he able to find a woman who "brought out the best" in him like Gidget did?

[–] Herowithgreeneyesandblue 15 years ago

Kahuna wouldn't have made it to military pilot if he hadn't been able to set himself to a disipline to acheive a goal. I'd say he'd natuarally gravitate towards a job that was less a set schedule, as a pilot is, and it allowed him the maximum latitude to persue a variety of experiences, again as a pilot job would do.

I recalled something interesting and related. Steve Jobs, founder of Apple computers had an episode in his life of taking LSD and living on the street, questioning the big questions ect and he now says it's one of the most important parts of his life.

It's no surprise at all that the Kahunas out there become pilots and entrepenires(sp?) ect.

I like waking up in the morning not knowing who I'll meet or where I'll end up: The Titanic

[–] cnicknz 14 years ago

Kahuna was kind of a pre-hippie in his quest for freedom--he drank booze instead of dropping acid--but the philosophy is similar. Some ex-hippies went on to predictable mundane lives, while others stayed true to their counter-culture roots and made something more profound of their lives. Who knows what path the Kahuna would have taken? I doubt if he would have returned to the rigid world he left behind. I see him opening a surf shop or maybe becoming a landscape architect, something that would have kept him near nature and the outdoors.

[–] nutsberryfarm 14 years ago

his minimalist tiki hut is something special.

I was thinking of the immortal words of Socrates, who said, "... I drank what?"

[–] hka-3 14 years ago

If only people could get away with that these days (if it's allowed at all they'd probably need a special permit...a lot of red tape). Dylan McKay could've used a hut like that. He had to settle for the Beach Club instead

[–] hka-3 14 years ago

I see him opening a surf shop or maybe becoming a landscape architect, something that would have kept him near nature and the outdoors.

Those seem like they would suit him. If he lived economically for a while off his pilot's salary and built up his credit, that would allow him to do something like what you suggested. On the other hand, if he met a woman relatively soon who made him happy and was someone whom he wanted to have a family with, he may have felt it was worth it to remain with the airline, indefinitely.

[–] jl-39962 8 years ago

Like a beat poet.

Check out photos of Kerouac -- looked fairly similar to Kahuna, with a similar view on life.

[–] MarrG 14 years ago

I figure he was working out a case of postwar PTSD. Five years of dropping out of life was what he needed to get it out of his system, and now he's back to doing what he does well.

[–] 14 years ago

[deleted]

[–] runyoucleverboy 11 years ago

I think this was one of the first beach movies that spawned alll the later ones which weren't nearly as good. Does anyone know of any earlier beach movies than Gidget?

[–] alisotom 10 years ago

"from here to eternity" lol

[–] liscarkat (17811) 5 years ago

"Woman on the Beach"

[–] forlorn_rage (162) 6 years ago

As for Kahuna, his bird dying helped get the ball rolling for his new path in life. I can't help thinking about what his life became after leaving the life of a surf bum. I'm sure he was raking in the money as an airline pilot, but as he said, he didn't care for all the rules and regulations in the military, so I wonder how long it took him to adjust to living his life by other people's schedules...and was he able to find a woman who "brought out the best" in him like Gidget did?

Flyboy dying also set up a deep conversation between Kahuna and the Gidget, which revealed a lot about Kahuna's background, including his time in the war and how it affected him. This film had wonderful character development.

It makes me very sad that the rest of the Gidget series got so horribly butchered. It's so odd, considering the film was not only successful, but a cultural phenomenon as well. Even the TV series didn't have much of a chance to flourish after season 1 even though it did find an audience and could've gotten a season 2 instead of unnecessarily moving on to a new series.

[–] Forlorn_Rage 8 years ago

I can't help, but think of Sunday in New York as kind of an unofficial spin-off to Gidget, 4 years later. Cliff Robertson is in it, playing a pilot helping his naive, innocent sister who is having issues with men (kinda like Gidget). Lol.

[–] hka-3 8 years ago

So glad someone else feels that way about Sunday in New York! Plus the woman he (Adam) proposed to was the redhead Gidget went manhunting with at the beach.

Mag, Darling, you're being a bore.

[–] Forlorn_Rage 8 years ago

So glad someone else feels that way about Sunday in New York! Plus the woman he (Adam) proposed to was the redhead Gidget went manhunting with at the beach.

Really? I did not know that! Thanks for letting me know! I looked up just now. Jo Morrow is her name. I loved her in SINY. Glad that Adam was able to appreciate her in the end. The "manhunting" definitely paid off. xD