JohnHowardReid An American-International picture, presented by James H. Nicholson and Samuel Z. Arkoff. U.S. release: April 1966. 82 minutes. (The M- G-M DVD rates 10/10).SYNOPSIS: Showman Karloff leaves his million-dollar estate to Kirk, Kelly and Walley, but Rathbone, White, O'Hara and Rubin want the loot for themselves. Matters are complicated by the invasion of an inept gang of bikies and a do-gooder teenage ghost.COMMENT: Although billed as a guest, Rathbone is actually a major player in this labored farce. Despite plodding, pedestrian direction and unfunny dialogue, the film still manages to held one's interest, thanks mainly to the game efforts of the players (particularly Quinn O'Hara) and the use of American-International's standing horror sets (which certainly give the movie "class"). The songs also are catchy enough, although it's Nancy Sinatra who provides the stand-out number, "Geronimo". She then, alas, disappears as the spotlight shifts to the nubile Quinn O'Hara. I'm not complaining, but it would have been nice to see more of Nancy as well. Karloff fans will also be disappointed as the king of menace is given little to do but comment on the action from time to time.Oddly, although everything has been thrown into the pot in a desperate attempt to make the picture as appealing as possible, contemporary audiences stayed away. For all its heavy-handedness, however, the movie bears at least a little bemused watching. And it's an absolute must- see for Nancy Sinatra and Quinn O'Hara fans.

MartinHafer This is a truly terrible film and marked the end of the so-called "Beach" films. And, after seeing it, it was pretty obvious that this one alone killed the genre--though is that really such a great loss?! For once, Annette and Frankie are NOT in the film. Instead, a new cast of "actors" are on hand along with some old familiar Beach actors as well as some once-decent actors who obviously needed the money or were so ego-centric that they'd star in anything just to see themselves on the screen. Boris Karloff, Basil Rathbone and Patsy Kelly all appear out of place here and it's rather sad to see them in such a wretched film. Now I have never been a Patsy Kelly fan, but here I even felt sorry for her! No, after listening to her scream and overact yet again, she's exactly where she should be in this wretched film.The film begins in a crypt. Apparently Boris Karloff has just died and doesn't know it. A long-dead girlfriend appears and informs his of this AND the stipulation that he must do one good deed before being allowed to go to Heaven. This plot is right from a Tom & Jerry cartoon--seriously. But instead of an 8 minute short, here it's stretched to almost an hour and a half!! And, in an odd twist, Karloff is NOT allowed to do anything to help do this good deed but must send this dead lady in his place. Why? Well, because obviously Karloff wasn't interested in anything other than a walk-on! And, even more oddly, when you do see this ghost lady, she looks like a ghost BUT her bikini is totally invisible. With her magic powers, she returns to Earth and manipulates things to the betterment of Karloff's heirs--the ubiquitous Tommy Kirk and Deborah Walley. These two actors (Kirk and Walley) seem to be available in practically every kooky teen film of the era whenever more talented actors refused the roles! Do an IMDb search if you don't believe me, as their films include IT'S ALIVE (1969), SPINOUT, MARS NEEDS WOMEN and SERGEANT DEAD HEAD.Back on Earth, there's a swinging party where Nancy Sinatra and dozens of bikini-clad teens (at least the girls) all have a ring-a-ding good time. Into this "fun" comes a bad lawyer (wow, that's being redundant), his gang of killers as well a gang of leather-clad idiots led by Eric Von Zipper-- this is the same group of morons who appear in all the other Beach films as comic relief, though they seldom, if ever, are funny. So what do you need to round out this assortment of unfunny jerks? Yep--an escaped gorilla, a culturally insensitive Indian character, a dungeon in this California mansion as well as a mummy! I'm almost surprised they also didn't include pirates and ninjas!!What makes this a particularly bad film is that unlike many of the teen-oriented films of the 50s and 60s, this one had a rather impressive budget. Decent camera work, music and a large cast make it atypical of horrible films of the era. At least with TEENAGERS FROM OUTER SPACE, PLAN 9 or THE KILLER SHREWS you could blame the rottenness of the film, at least in part, to minuscule budgets. What's the excuse here with this film?! Bad writing, overacting, cartoon sound effects and a plot that isn't worthy to line a parrot's cage is what you've got with THE GHOST IN THE INVISIBLE BIKINI...and to make matters worse, it isn't even that entertaining to bad film fans--it's just stupid. I only recommend this film to people with severe head injuries and those who thought BEACH BLANKET BINGO was too intellectually taxing!!

moonspinner55 Representing the (somewhat fatigued) tail-end of the "Beach Party" saga, minus Frankie and Annette, this haunted house comedy has some style in the live-action cartoon vein, but is hurt overall by an unenthusiastic cast and too much chatter. Sleepy Tommy Kirk and distracted Deborah Walley are involved in the reading of a will in a spooky mansion; Susan Hart is a sexy apparition (wearing a dopey-looking blonde wig for F/X purposes); Boris Karloff saunters through, tossing off droll comic lines in a debonair manner; Harvey Lembeck returns as Eric Von Zipper (although he doesn't look happy about it); and Nancy Sinatra is one of the teens there for a slumber party (she sings "Geronimo" poolside in the film's best sequence). Not terribly witty or lively; most of the kids on display are artificially frantic and 'nutty', waving their arms about. The movie desperately needs more music and more special effects. It relies too much on the talk-heavy plot, which is its weakest link. ** from ****

bensonmum2 I realize that most people who have seen The Ghost in the Invisible Bikini will look at my rating and decide I need to have my head examined. I readily admit that it's one of the stupidest movies I've seen recently. I am perfectly capable of seeing all of the same problems in the movie that all of the other reviews or comments point out. Yes, the beach movie was on its last leg when The Ghost in the Invisible Bikini was made. Yes, there is no plot. Yes, most of the comedy is incredibly lame. Yes, Tommy Kirk is beyond terrible. Yes, Harvey Lembeck was way too old to play a rebellious motorcycle leader. Yes, Benny Rubin's Chicken Feather character is offensive. Yes, Deborah Walley is no Annette Funicello. Yes, Boris Karloff has little more than an extended cameo that almost appears to have been an afterthought. Yes, I see all these problems and more in The Ghost in the Invisible Bikini, but for whatever reason, the movie is still a lot of fun. I had a blast watching Nancy Sinatra sing "Geronimo". She's just so cool. I also enjoyed watching Basil Rathbone in one of his final performances. He seemed to really be enjoying the chance to ham it up. As goofy as it may sound, I love the fact that The Ghost in the Invisible Bikini takes many of the traditional beach movie trappings and transports them to a big, old haunted house. A swinging 60s style beach party set in Karloff's over-the-top torture chamber is an awesome idea. Finally, I've got to give the movie a bonus point for having a completely unnecessary gorilla. It adds a surreal touch to everything.So, despite the many, many weaknesses and problems in The Ghost in the Invisible Bikini. I still had a great time watching it. I'll continue to say that the entertainment I get out of a movie is more important to me than anything else. And with that in mind, the 6/10 rating I've given The Ghost in the Invisible Bikini seems about right to me.