Summertime Blues: Lemon Popsicle VIII (1988)

User Rating:

3.7/10   

Director:

Reinhard Schwabenitzky

Writers:

Zachi Noy (idea)
Reinhard Schwabenitzky (writer)

Release Date:

18 August 1988 (West Germany)

Genre:

Comedy

Plot:

Plot Keywords:

Sequel | Number In Title

Cast

Yftach Katzur	...	Benny
Zachi Noy	...	Johnny
Jonathan Sagall	...	Bobby
rest of cast listed alphabetically:
Jack Cohen	...	Polly's Father
Elfi Eschke	...	Polly
Dan Harden	...	Romek Weiss
Sonja Martin	...	Iris
Sissi Pitz	...	Tami (as Sissy Liebold)
Sibylle Rauch	...	Eva
Dan Turgeman	...	Charly

Also Known As:

Eis am Stiel, 8. Teil - Summertime Blues (West Germany)

Runtime:

90 min

Country:

West Germany | Israel

Language:

German

Color:

Color

Certification:

USA:R | West Germany:12

Company:

KF Kinofilm

Movie Connections:

References Every Day's a Holiday (1937)

Soundtrack:

Heartaches By the Number

Anyone for the last Popsicle? Be warned the flavor is slightly different....!

In the last entry in the 'Popsicle' series we have somewhat of a conflict, namely a slight return to form but a compromise of content. The Popsicle series has had many twists and turns during it's reign, it started out as a raunchy Iserali 'American Graffiti' homage, branching into a series of entertaining, if dopey, sex comedies and then, from Episode 6 onwards, a shameless cash-in on it's former glory, complete with bored cast members and non-existent stories. So it ends as bizarrely as it started, as a German teen movie. Raunchy content is more-or-less ditched in favour of a more family friendly approach, keeping in line with the TV edits of the previous movies very popular on German television. The boys are back, older but not much wiser, with yet another name change (do the translators even watch previous entries??) this time aspiring to open a Hawiaan-style bar with a little help from a rich investor. The key to his help is the rich investor's daughter who has long harboured a crush on bad boy Bobby (Momo) who has no interest in romancing a geeky accident prone nerd to gain the necessary cash to make Hughie/Yuhadle/Johnny's (!!) dream a reality. Interestingly it develops that Zachi Noy's multi-named character is the love-lorn one here replacing Benzi's usual character-ark and in the process giving him little to do. Bobby or Momo has a nice change of pace exhibiting a possible softer side but proving by the final reel that the new writers keep Bobby in check. To say it's flawed is an understatement, it's certainly nowhere near as interesting as the first entry but thankfully seems like 'Gone With The Wind' compared to the previous one! This time the German producers have paid for proper versions of GOOD songs from the era and the new writers at least have bothered with a thread of story (although typically twee and easy) and took the characters (bar poor Benzi) is some new directions. Shame they forget to up the laughs and give the Popsicle fans some scantily clad babes in the process. At least it's a fitting end to this branch of the series, if a watered down one.