A Day At The Beach~ In Which There May Be Groovy Dancing And Also Death

Good morrow, my virtual buds!

That’s kind of weird sounding, I probably won’t be using that greeting too much in the future. Anyhoo…

You know something awesome? (Like, actually in the traditional sense of the word, not the common slang version?)

THE OCEAN.

There is something truly mesmerizing about the ocean. I visited the coast recently with my dear family, and was reminded of this fact. It’s so huge and powerful and the waves just keep rushing up and down, ceaselessly.

Since I can’t really fit the ocean on my blog, and I don’t have any profound poetry about it to share with you, I will do the next best thing, which I am sure you NEVER saw coming.

I am going to create a LIST of MOVIES that contain noteworthy beach scenes.

Yup. My creativity here astounds me, folks.

Let’s do this.

1. Pirates of the Caribbean: The Curse of the Black Pearl~ Why is the rum gone?

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Of course I could pick any of the Pirates of the Caribbean movies for this, but this scene is probably the most worthy of note and overly noted Pirates of the Caribbean scene there is.

It features the somewhat vague and questionably sane Captain Jack Sparrow and the spunky Elizabeth Swan, who have been stranded on a tiny island in the middle of nowhere with no prospect of rescue. (But, hey! They have no lack of beach!) Elizabeth is trying to burn down the island and in so doing increase their chances of being rescued.

And Jack just can’t seem to wrap his mind around the fact that the rum is gone.

2. The Count of Monte Cristo~ FREEDOM! and knives!

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Edmond has just escaped from a creepy prison where he has been for many years after being convicted for a crime he didn’t commit. He swims to shore and gets to dance around on the beach joyfully for a bit. But then there are pirates. And knives. But what better place for a knife fight than the beach, am I right?

3. The Chronicles of Narnia: Prince Caspian~ We were going to school but ended up at the beach instead

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We all wish this would happen to us, don’t we? The Pevensie siblings are on their way to the unpleasantness of boarding school and then suddenly they find themselves in Narnia. At the beach, no less.

Why, oh why did this never happen to me?

4. X-Men: First Class~ I can’t feel my legs

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Sometimes beaches are a little less fun.

We’re on a beach in Cuba, and we’re trying to stop everyone from exploding each other. And then we’re trying to stop Erik from exploding everyone. And then Erik accidentally sends a bullet into my back. And then I CAN’T FEEL MY LEGS.

So yeah, we didn’t exactly have time to admire the scenery or eat a picnic on this particular trip. I’m sure it was a nice beach though.

5. Pacific Rim~ Look, dad, a giant robot!

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There is a kid and a dad (or maybe a grandpa) walking along a beach, scavenging. The kid complains that they never find anything good, and then lo and behold, a giant robot containing a traumatized Raleigh Beckett enters the scene. Almost as cool as seeing a live crab. Almost.

6. Rogue One~ The End of All Things

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Also practically my favorite ending to any Star Wars movie ever. Strangely enough.

They have succeeded in their mission. They have done everything they can do, and there is nothing left they can do. So they do nothing, except sit together on the beach, and wait.

And LOOK at my children just HUGGING and not kissing. Respect. I LOVE THEM SO MUCH.

Also I love Bodhi, but he doesn’t go to the beach. So really there is not reason for me to be mentioning him. Except that he is great.

7. Inception~ Filled with regret

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Dom Cobb is haunted by his memories and his dreams. He has arranged certain memories in his mind, memories that he wants to change. Some of these memories are explained to us, and some are merely glimpses.

One of these glimpses shows his family at the beach, building sand castles. We see Cobb’s wife, and his two children, and they look happy. Meanwhile, Cobb is standing gloomily in his Regret Elevator (a term coined by my sister in her Inception musical) watching the memory.

By the way, Cobb’s way of dealing with his issues is totally healthy. And he totally has it under control.

Yes, I’m lying.

8. Harry Potter and the Deathly Hallows Part 1~ A sacrifice

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Bill and Fleur Weasley live in a lovely little cottage by the sea. It’s a lovely hiding place if Death Eaters are after you.

It’s also a lovely place to, um…die.

Let’s pretend I didn’t say that.

One of Harry’s most loyal friends gives his life to save Harry and get him to Shell Cottage safely. Just add that to the pile of reasons to despise Bellatrix Lestrange, folks.

9. A Series of Unfortunate Events: Season 1~ Perished means killed

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On a cloudy, foggy day, the Baudelaire children take a trip to Briny Beach to test inventions and make observations about the world and bite things, but then Mr. Poe shows up and informs them that their parents have perished in a terrible fire. (Perished means killed.) The Baudelaires know what perished means, but having a good grasp on the English language, though never a bad thing, doesn’t seem to have any positive influence on their situation. Thus, a series of unfortunate events ensues.

10. That Thing You Do!~ We’re being invaded!

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I am sad that I could not find a picture of Goofball, and that the only picture of the Shrimp Shack Shooters that I could find is such poor quality. Clearly this movie is underrated and not circulated on the internet nearly enough.

So, the Wonders (previously known as the Oneders) are on set for a big Hollywood movie. The scene is a beach party, and everyone’s dancing and grooving out while Anita and Goofball have an argument (with stellar acting, by the way). Then Anita goes off with Rick, and Goofball peers out at the ocean. And horror! What does he see???

His next words are “We’re being invaded!” and then he runs out of the shot.

I only wish this was a real movie that I could see in its entirety. I am sure it would be a thing to behold.

Thankfully, though the Rick and Anita film is fictitious, That Thing You Do! is a very real and wonderful movie and if you haven’t seen it then you are missing out, let me tell you.

Epilogue

Well, folks, there you have a day at the beach. Most of these beach scenes ended up being somewhat traumatizing (if not lethal), but I assure you, the beach is a very fun place. Even if you die, it will be in a scenic locale. So there’s that.

Have you ever been to the beach? Do you find the ocean to be as awe-inspiring as I do? What is your favorite thing to do at the beach? Have you seen any of these movies? What are your favorite beach scenes?