The movie
A cult Israeli teen flick, which later continued into a whole series of movies. Also known as "Eskimo Limon" (the Hebrew name). Uncommon for an Israeli movie, this one was quite a successful export -- screened in the United Kindom, Germany and even the USSR.
The movies feature 3 stereotypical teenager boys; the romantic type (Bentzi, Benji in the export release), the girl-grabbing macho type (Momo, Bobbie) and the fat funny type (Yudale, Hughie), whose life rotates around sex, the ultimate goal being getting some. The scenes where they do get some are quite explicit, unlike American Pie-like "gross out" where the viewer doesn't really see a thing.
First chapter in the series filmed in 1979, the movie's plot was placed in the 1950s Israel, which added a bit of nostalgic charm to it. The worldwide audience can enjoy an extensive 1950s soundtrack and authentic-looking sets, while the Israeli viewers would also appreciate the parody on the stereotypical immigrant parents and grownups (Israel, a new country at the time, mostly consisted of immigrants). As more chapters were made, the 1950s style diminished, making place for more explicit sex and less-than-credible plot. The eight chapter, a co-production with West Germany, had little to do with the original movie.
The ingredients
Few obligatory ingredients were present in all movies in the series:
- Teenager pranks
- Nostalgic parodies
- Bentzi's (Benji's) occasional love (refusing him at first, breaking his heart, but falling into his charms by the end of the movie)
- A foreign porn actress of nordic origins (as "the new nymphomaniac woman in the neighborhood")
The party goes on
In year 2000, the 9th chapter in the series was released, entitled "The Party Goes On" ("HaKhagiga Nimshekhet" in Hebrew). Of course, the movie was shot with a different cast, since the 1980s boys and girls ain't what they used to be no more. The story behind this release is rather sad -- it's a bunch of chapters from the cancelled "Lemon Popsicle" TV series, re-edited into a film. The result is a rehash of old jokes, seam-ridden plot and an incredible amount of affairs and sex scenes for one movie. Intentionally ironical, the owner of caffe Montana (a place the boys commonly attend) in "The Party Goes On" is the same actor who played Yudale (Hughie) in the original series - Tzahi Noy.
See also...
The Israeli movie "Alex In Love" ("Alex Khole Ahava" in Hebrew) can be considered as a lighter version of the series, aimed at the 12-13 age range, also placed in the 1950s, with more slapstick jokes and no nude imagery or sex.