Filmed in 1975, "Lifeguard" relays the story of an aging L.A. lifeguard (Sam Elliott) during the summer of '75. He suffers an early mid-life crisis when his friends and family continually reveal their disapproval of his career choice. This is heightened when he attends his 15-year high school reunion where he reunites with a recently-divorced ex-flame (Anne Archer). To complicate matters Elliot runs into a cute underage teen on the beach (Kathleen Quinlin) who makes him feel like an Adonis.
I remember catching "Lifeguard" on TV sometime in the '90s and all I can remember is what a great film it was. I never heard of it before but the story took me right in and captivated me throughout. This is a secret gem from the 70s.
What makes it work so well? For one thing the film is very realistic. It's like they filmed a story of real people. That's how good the writing and acting is.
Parker Stevenson appears as a lifeguard apprentice who works with Elliott throughout the summer. The fact that he's a college student and goes back to school at the end of the film adds to Elliott's crisis.
A handful of items I found interesting in the story:
The film runs 96 minutes and was filmed on location on the beaches just south of L.A. (Torrance).
The score is 70s light pop, including Paul Williams "Time and Tide." It's not to my tastes but it fits the film.
FINAL ANALYSIS: "Lifeguard" is about numerous important topics that we can all relate to -- aging, career choices, (early) mid-life crisis, manhood, staying true to oneself, responsibility, love, sex, competition, consequences, and much more. Although it's generally a "quiet film" it smacks of reality and is full of insights. If you're in the mood for a great drama you can't go wrong. And, yes, this is Elliott's best role and performance IMHO.
GRADE: A
I remember catching "Lifeguard" on TV sometime in the '90s and all I can remember is what a great film it was. I never heard of it before but the story took me right in and captivated me throughout. This is a secret gem from the 70s.
What makes it work so well? For one thing the film is very realistic. It's like they filmed a story of real people. That's how good the writing and acting is.
Parker Stevenson appears as a lifeguard apprentice who works with Elliott throughout the summer. The fact that he's a college student and goes back to school at the end of the film adds to Elliott's crisis.
A handful of items I found interesting in the story:
- Elliott instructs Stevenson to not mess with the underage cuties on the beach who often tend to flirt with lifeguards. He then does this very thing with a girl named Wendy (Quinlin), who says she's 17 but could very well be as young as 15 (girls are known to lie in such situations). Elliott's character in the film seems pretty mature, honest and intelligent. Was he being hypocritical? I think his actions reveal the crisis he's undergoing. He's getting older and his manhood is being threatened by the numerous people encouraging him to get a "real" job. Wendy makes him feel like a man and he unwisely gives into temptation. I lost some respect for the character when this happened but, you'll see, he "sees the light" later on.
- The film effectively shows that Wendy wasn't ready for a sexual relationship with Elliott or anyone else. When Elliott informs her that they simply can't be together her breakdown is potent. This leads to another event that, I'm sure, drives home the point for Elliott to never mess with "jailbait" ever again.
- At Elliott's reunion he gets tired of hearing negative reactions to his still being a lifeguard so he opts for ambiguity, "I work for the county." Have you ever done that?
- The film reflects the loose sexual morals of the pre-AIDS 70s era e.g. "You're hot, let's have sex! And, no, I'm not interested in marriage." Also, one woman is shown totally nude near the beginning. Despite this, it's NOT a T&A exploitation flick; the flimmakers were obviously simply shooting for realism. To support this, the beach scenes are filled with realistic-looking people, unlike Baywatch which exclusively showed incredibly bodacious babes walking the beach in the background. I've been to numerous southern Californian beaches on four separate vacations and know this isn't true.
- Speaking of Baywatch, that TV series obviously used "Lifeguard" as a prototype. I've only seen a couple of whole episodes in my life so I'm not the right person to ascertain that show's quality, but I think it's pretty safe to say there's no comparison. In other words, don't allow a negative impression of Baywatch keep you away from "Lifeguard."
- Elliot's friend (Stephen Young) encourages him to take a lucrative job selling Porsches. When he goes to the dealership for an interview you can tell he's almost ready to lose his cookies at the prospect of being a car salesman despite the better money. Have you ever experienced this? I have.
The film runs 96 minutes and was filmed on location on the beaches just south of L.A. (Torrance).
The score is 70s light pop, including Paul Williams "Time and Tide." It's not to my tastes but it fits the film.
FINAL ANALYSIS: "Lifeguard" is about numerous important topics that we can all relate to -- aging, career choices, (early) mid-life crisis, manhood, staying true to oneself, responsibility, love, sex, competition, consequences, and much more. Although it's generally a "quiet film" it smacks of reality and is full of insights. If you're in the mood for a great drama you can't go wrong. And, yes, this is Elliott's best role and performance IMHO.
GRADE: A