Perhaps a little cheesy now, but coffee bar rebellion in the late 1950s was captured for the big screen with both Beat Girl and Expresso Bongo. Both are getting a serious reissue from the BFI very soon.
Beat Girl dates from 1958 and is the story of Paul, a divorced architect who marries a Parisian named Nichole to the displeasure of his teenage daughter Jennifer). In an attempt to rebel, she falls in with the London coffee bar teenagers, mixing music with juvenile delinquency. In doing so, she finds a way of humiliating her father’s new wife.
This new version is a dual-format DVD / Blu-ray, remastered in 2K and featuring a newly-filmed interview with star Gillian Hills, as well as some related short films and an illustrated booklet.
Expresso Bongo dates from a year later and is actually a vehicle for teen star (of the day) Cliff Richard. It’s the typical tale of a teenager being spotted playing music in the coffee bars before being signed up by a major label. But the deal isn’t quite the bight future teen star Rudge expected.
This is the ‘longest ever version’ of the movie released, again in a dual-format and with extras still to be confirmed. But knowing BFI Flipside, they will be good.
Both are available from 18th April 2016 and both are available to pre-order now.
More on Beat Girl at the Amazon website
More on Expresso Bongo at the Amazon website