Why so much hype?

An action-packed slog

The film makes a home in your brain and the only cure is to see it again.

an ambitious but ultimately ineffective debut endeavor.

I actually bought the VHS of this movie strictly in order to watch Farrah's (alas, all-too-brief) scuba scene about one-third through. (I hope there is a DVD in the works; the VHS of this scene is rather grainy.) Watching her swim in that French-cut white shorty is a treat for any guy, especially a diver like myself. Also, for aficionados of "only-in-a-Hollywood-movie" moments, it belongs right up there.Farrah signs up for a scuba diving class so she can surreptitiously board a suspicious yacht anchored in Acapulco Bay. After donning the jaw-dropping wet suit, we see her hoisting her tank onto her back by herself. Hey, all I can say is, if that were any scuba group that I have ever been a part of - and an unaccompanied woman built like her showed up wearing THAT wet suit - the guys would be tripping over each other to say, "Let ME give you a hand with that, ma'am, and by the way, do you need a dive buddy?" Which leads to the next problem. Once underwater, Farrah manages to slip away unseen from the rest of the group in order to swim to the aforesaid yacht. Like I said, riiiiggght.....With every male eye in the group fastened on her, the chances of that happening are somewhere south of zero.Only in Hollywood, of course. Memo to Farrah: being undercover means NOT calling attention to yourself. Next time, wear an ill-fitting black wetsuit, or better yet, a full dry-suit. Nobody will give you a second look.

I remember being very upset when Farrah left TV and started making movies. It was before VCRS and DVDS so once she was gone there was no way to see her every week. The movies that she made once she left didn't help with getting your Farrah fix. She still looked beautiful, but they didn't capture her personality the way her TV show was able to. This is a starring role for Farrah Fawcett (her second film after leaving Charlie's Angels) but it is Joan Collins who turns out to be the sexier of the two and who steals the film despite her small role. Charles Grodin is seriously miscast and makes the film hard to watch. Luckily the scenery is beautiful and so are the two women. This was the movie that made me realize how sexy Joan Collins really is. Watch her vamp it up in her Pre-Dynasty days.

A forgettable easygoing romp in the rich tourist section of Mexico, this movie was hamstrung from the beginning with its insurance scam plot - not an exciting prospect. Grodin is the maverick investigator whom the head of the insurance company wants on the job even though he caused them some problems in the past. Grodin plays this sort of slack jawed throughout, to the point of annoyance. Farrah joins up as his make believe wife. This was Farrah in her prime, just post the silly Angels TV show and before she got into serious actress mode. It's her middle film in the 'S' trio - all of which bombed. She & Grodin are incompatible, in more ways than one, and the fact she does end up in bed with him feeds the fantasies of many a middle-aged males. Art Carney's a private eye employed by Grodin; he brings in the usual feisty old man humor. Joan Collins shows up as a rich, horny wife. A lot of the scenes are plain stupid, such as Grodin dressing up in a night prowler outfit for no reason, other than to appear stupid. But, since all of this takes place in hot weather, Farrah usually wears something skimpy. There's also a fairly exciting car chase in the last third, including a run-in with a bull - some of those shots looked very realistic, to the detriment of the bull.

Despite being labeled as a comedy, "Sunburn" really isn't one - its aim seems to be a light-hearted mystery. But there really isn't much mystery in this movie - much of the footage is more or less padding. I started to grow impatient as the movie progressed. I didn't find any of the going-ons amusing in any way. Also, there is some very bad editing that really sticks out like a sore thumb.I was prepared to hate F.F.'s performance, but I was surprised. She isn't great, but her acting is a lot better than you'd think. And it's nice that her character isn't the expected bubblehead, but someone with average intelligence, and isn't a screaming wimp. However, the romantic pairing of F.F. and C.G. is one of the strangest and most unlikely pairings in motion picture history!