50
Miami Herald by Charles Savage
While there is archival value in permanently recording this work on celluloid, the best way to really enjoy it remains live on stage.
What are people saying?
What are critics saying?
30
The viewer is left to ponder the number of levels on which this counts as a pointless exercise -- a parody of parodic movies, a deconstruction of transparent genres, a self-negatingly knowing example of camp.
75
A little Hitchcock and some good Psycho fun at the beach.
42
Portland Oregonian by Kim Morgan
Never maintains the spark necessary to sustain a feature film.
25
Charles Busch's spoof of beach-party movies and psychological thrillers, an off-Broadway hit 13 years ago, stubbornly refuses to entertain in this unrelentingly dull film version.
40
TV Guide Magazine by Maitland McDonagh
This unsubtle parody probably worked better on stage; its candy-colored artifice looks more than a little strained on film, and the actors are all trying really hard to be camp.
67
Austin Chronicle by Marjorie Baumgarten
Its cheeky, good fun is what makes Psycho Beach Party an enjoyable, if weightless, romp.
58
Seattle Post-Intelligencer by Sean Axmaker
For all its energy and inspired moments of giddy goofiness, Psycho Beach Party gets stuck in the sand.
80
The New York Times by Stephen Holden
It is surprisingly timely.
63
San Francisco Examiner by Wesley Morris
Overstays its welcome until the jokes curdle and the satire becomes a blunt instrument, but not before Busch throws some priceless one-liners.