The Flamingo Kid

This Matt Dillon vehicle serves as the light-hearted equivalent to "A Bronx Tale." Richard Crenna plays the Chazz Palmentieri role as the idolized kingpin and Hector Elizondo plays the Robert DeNiro role of the honorable working class father. There is some memorable dialogue, cute humor, and distinctive card playing (the upside down fan). But, best of all, are the coming of age lessons that are taught to Dillon's character about values, hard work, and summer romance. In the latter category, the movie is aided immensely by the refreshing debut of Janet Jones (now best known as Mrs. Wayne Gretsky). I recommend this without reservation!

"The Flamingo Kid" is a coming of age film that covers a single summer of Jeffrey Willis. In his job at an exclusive Long Island beach club the summer after his high school graduation, Willis sees a lifestyle that he would like to have. Taken under wing by one of the club members, Phil Brody, he sets his sights on money, getting ahead fast and success. That is as opposed to going to college and studying liberal arts among his subjects.

So, Jeffrey has a falling out with his dad over his choice. Arthur Willis is a plumber who provides well for his family. They live in Brooklyn and he has saved money for his son and daughter to have higher educations.

Jeffrey has a romance with Joyce Brody, niece of Phil and daughter of Phyllis Brody who doesn't have the same attitude as the rest of her family about mingling with club employees. The obvious translation is with anyone not of their higher class.

Something happens at the end of summer that opens Jeffrey's eyes and brings him down to earth and reality.

The cast are all good in their roles. Matt Dillon is Jeffrey, Hector Elizonda is his dad, Richard Crenna plays Phil Brody, Carole Davis is Joyce Brody, and Jessica Walter plays Phyllis. Several other actors have fine supporting roles, including some of the card-playing members of the club, and several parking attendants, cabana boys and others.

The film has a nice moral to it, and a look at class distinctions of the time and place. It also has some funny lines and poignant bits of dialog. Here are some favorite lines from the film.

Phil Brody, "I hate aspic." Phyllis Brody, "Oh, Phil, Lizzy worked all day on this dish. I read it to her from the New York Time." Phil, "I don't want anything on my plate that moves, hmmm! Right, Jeffrey?"

Phil Brody, "You ever hit by a bug going 180 miles an hour? Believe me, it's not a thrill. For you or the bug."

Phil Brody, "The point I'm making is the salesmen of the world make the money. Remember that."

Phil Brody, "See, Jeffrey my boy, God put certain people on the earth to give you money. And your responsibility in life is to go out there and take it."

Phil Brody, speaking of his father being discouraged one time, "And he sat there, and he looked at me. Do you know what he said to me? 'Phil, how many pounds of potatoes will I eat before I die?'"

Jeffrey Willis, "Dad, did you have potatoes tonight?" Arthur Willis, "Oh, yeah, boiled." Jeffrey, "How many potatoes do you think you'll eat before you die?"

Jeffrey Willis, "He says what he sees in me spells salesman." Arthur Willis, "What I see of you spells crap."

Jeffrey Willis, "Listen, pal, I'll have you know that I know jujitsu, karate, judo, and some other big words. So don't mess with me, all right?"

Arthur Willis, "I remember my father telling me there are two important things in life. He said, finding out what you do well, and finding out what makes you happy. And if God is smiling on you, they're both the same thing."

Garry Marshall certainly had a feel for the mood and atmosphere of New York in the Kennedy years in directing The Flamingo Kid. I knew someone who practically lived at the Brighton Beach Baths in Brooklyn growing up and who played a mean competitive paddle tennis.

Matt Dillon is our hero protagonist at the Long Island summer beach club where the boys live for the tips. But the guests here tip like Frank Sinatra, in fact some of them are paying their way through college. They're rich and like to thrown their money around. Just have your hand out and catch as a cabana boy.

Dillon is a working class kid with parents Hector Elizondo and Jessica Walter and dad's a working guy all his life and like every other parent hopes his kid will do better than being a plumber. Funny thing is that plumbers do very well and the work is steady.

But Dillon falls under the influence of charismatic car dealer Richard Crenna who eschews the value of education. He's Donald Trump with a little more polish. He also has a nice side income in some high stakes gin rummy games with some regulars at the cabana.

Essentially Dillon has to make a choice and get an education or go to work as Crenna's dealership. For all their smoothness it would probably astound Crenna at how much he does not know, but he probably wouldn't care.

Let's say Crenna is not quite the hero Dillon first thinks he is. Matt does a lot of growing up at that cabana that summer.

The Flamingo Kid is an acting duel between Dillon and Crenna. Dillon strikes a lot of emotions as the tough kid from Brooklyn who makes the right moves in the end. Crenna does one of the best performances in his career as a charming, but sneaky and potentially dangerous if the conflict was more than a gin rummy game.

Garry Marshall gives us a winner with The Flamingo Kid.

A great cast but the storyline is about a kid coming of age during a summer stint as a valet/cabana boy at a Long Island Beach Club. Matt Dillon does a fine job in this role as a lead. He holds his own against heavyweights like Richard Crenna and Hector Elizondo. There is Jessica Walter who played bored Mrs. Brody. The cast also featured Martha Gehman as the sister, Nikki, to Dillon's Jeffrey Willis in the role. While Jeffrey's father, Arthur, is not too happy that his son is working at the club, he deals with it and Mr. Brody's influence over him. Arthur Willis is a hard working plumber who lives with his family in a Brooklyn apartment and not a spacious mansion in Long Island like the club's crowd. I also recall seeing Fisher Stevens and Brian McNamara play his friends and Bronson Pinchot in a small role as well. It's a fine film with some comedic moments but not too many and a predictable ending.

Released in 1984, "The Flamingo Kid" is a coming-of-age beach flick. What occasionally draws me to these types of films is their youthful energy and fun spirit, as well as the oceanic locations and the women. It brings one back in time to the carefree era of his/her coming-of-age years. Thankfully, "The Flamingo Kid" shoots for something deeper than just a shallow beach flick, which the best ones do, e.g. the original "Gidget" (1959).

The story takes place in 1963 where 18-year-old Jeffrey (Matt Dillon), a plumber's son from Brooklyn, gets a summer job at a private beach club on Long Island called the El Flamingo. This was his final summer of carefree fun before going off to college, but his experiences at the club change his plans. He makes loads of money on tips, meets a beautiful blonde and becomes fascinated by a new mentor, a fast-talking businessman and card shark, Phil Brody (Richard Crenna).

Brody convinces Jeffrey that there are easier, faster (i.e. dishonest) ways to make loads of money than going off to college for years on end. When Jeffry cancels his college plans and moves out of his house it naturally creates friction with his father (Hector Elizondo). Will he go on to become the next generation's fast-talking businessman/card shark?

Almost the entire film was shot on location at a Queens' beach club with loads of gorgeous females on hand, including Jeffrey's girlfriend in the story, Carla played by Janet Jones, whose body is so well sculptured she could've been Wonder Woman (the movie even jokes about this). Carole Davis also shines as Brody's brunette daughter, Joyce, a low-key part. Cutie Marisa Tomei even has a cameo.

The bottom line is that "The Flamingo Kid" offers everything you'd want in such a film and more, including an interesting story where you care about the outcome. And, thankfully, there's NO RAUNCH (well, maybe a flash). In addition, the soundtrack includes numerous early 60's hits like "Runaround Sue," etc. What's not to like?

The film runs 1 hour, 40 minutes.

GRADE: B+/A-