Shag

Directed by: Zelda Barron

RS: Not Rated Average User Rating: 3of 4 Stars

1988 Drama

Shag

556/57 (7-13-89)
This coming-of-age comedy, set in South Carolina in 1963, has a seductive charm that sneaks up on you. Just when you're lulled into expecting yet another twinky variation on Where the Boys Are, there's a fresh line or a frisky performance that sucks you in. Shag is finally out of the chute this month after a distribution snag that has held back its release for more than a year. There's no telling how a low-key, unhyped little picture like this will do against the summer behemoths, but be on the lookout: It's full of sly, sassy surprises.

The slender plot pivots on a weekend fling at the beach planned by three Southern belles (Bridget Fonda, Annabeth Gish and Page Hannah) for their friend, bride-to-be Phoebe Cates. Director Zelda Barron and screenwriter Robin Swicord show a flair for depicting the nuances of friendship among women.

Cates has her best screen role yet as the virginal snob whose socialite fiancT, Harley (Tyrone Power Jr.), is "so square he's got corners." Best known for playing the sex bomb on TV's Lace, Cates has been honing her craft by doing regional and off-Broadway theater. The improvement shows. There's a gleam of perversity in her acting that pulls the role out of its clichTd roots.

Fonda (daughter of Peter) brings snap and humor to the blond bad girl, whose dream of having an affair with President Kennedy "outside of marriage" has moved some to label her "a piece of Dixie ass." It's Fonda who advises Gish (no relation to Lillian) to attract her man by pretending she can't stand him. Hannah (she's Daryl's sister) is content to pick up Cates's leavings.

Things come to a head at a shag dance contest (you thought maybe the title referred to carpeting or a haircut?), where these steel magnolias sort out their partners in a disappointingly tidy ending. No matter. Shag uncorks as a tantalizing summer pick-me-up. There's a real kick to it.