Hardbodies

Hardbodies is a 1984 American comedy about three middle-aged men who travel to California hoping to enjoy the beach and meet women. They rent a house near the ocean and soon discover that their apartment and convertible are not enough to impress anyone. To improve their chances, they hire Scotty, a young and attractive surfer, to act as bait and teach them how to connect with the women on the beach. His girlfriend Kristi becomes involved in the arrangement, complicating matters, and the scheme eventually turns out to benefit everyone in unexpected ways.

The film was directed by Mark Griffiths, who also co-wrote the screenplay with Steve Greene and Eric Alter. It was the first feature Griffiths directed, followed much later by Beethoven's 5th and Going the Distance. Grant Cramer plays Scotty, with Teal Roberts as Kristi and Gary Wood, Michael Rapport, Sorrells Pickard and Roberta Collins among the main cast. Produced by Columbia Pictures with Chroma III Productions, it had a budget of 2 million dollars and returned 7 million worldwide, a solid multiple of its cost.

Audience response has been modest. On IMDb it holds a rating of 4.9 out of 10 from about 4,600 votes, and on TMDB its rating is 4.8 out of 10 from 74 votes.