A Day at the Beach Blu-ray Movie

Rating summary

Movie		4.0
Video		5.0
Audio		5.0
Extras		3.5
Overall		4.0

A Day at the Beach Blu-ray Movie Review

Reviewed by Dr. Svet Atanasov July 14, 2025

Simon Hesera's "A Day at the Beach" (1970) arrives on Blu-ray courtesy of Indicator/Powerhouse Films. The supplemental features on the release include new program with actress Fiona Lewis; archival program about the life and legacy of cinematographer Gil Taylor; new video essay by critic Michael Brooke; and archival program about producer Gene Gutowski. In English, with optional English SDH subtitles for the main feature. Region-Free.

Men and women become alcoholics because of the indifference of the most important people in their lives. Indeed, alcoholism is the final phase of an evolution that lasts many months, sometimes even years. There are always opportunities to terminate it permanently, but someone needs to care and be willing to help those who are struggling to stay away from alcohol. If no one does and the evolution is completed, it is extremely difficult, most of the time impossible, to save an alcoholic. It is why alcoholics are routinely compared to drug addicts. When the evolution is completed, their dependence on alcohol becomes too strong and they can no longer pull themselves out of the abyss. After that, it is only a matter of time before they overdose on alcohol just as drug addicts inevitably do while consuming their favorite fix.

Mark Burns’ character, Bernie, is a middle-aged alcoholic who has been left to self-destruct. Because he is intelligent, Bernie understands perfectly what will inevitably happen to him, so to shorten as much of the unavoidable misery as possible, he drinks hard.

On a gloomy day, Mark visits his ex-wife and picks up his daughter, Winnie (Beatie Edney), who has no idea that he is her father and calls him uncle, for an improvised trip to the beach. Even though shortly after it begins pouring, the two reach the beach and start wandering around. In the hours ahead, Mark consumes a massive amount of alcohol and, while interacting with various characters and struggling to keep Winnie close to him, concludes that the Big Man has presented him with the perfect opportunity to finish himself off.

Simon Hesera’s A Day at the Beach has always been of interest to film buffs because it was made with a screenplay penned by Roman Polanski. However, this is rather unfortunate because what makes it intriguing cannot possibly have been carefully described in a text. Indeed, Burns portrays the suicidal alcoholic much like Mickey Rourke does Henry Chinaski in Barbet Schroeder’s Barfly, revealing pain and unleashing anger that have a very intimate resonance, which becomes the story.

Edney’s character is wonderfully inserted into this unorthodox story, but while her presence is crucial, it does not move the spotlight away from Burns. When Edney is around Burns, it simply supercharges his misery, making it even more obvious that his self-destruction is inevitable. Peter Sellers pops before the camera as a gay vendor, but his performance does not have the same effect.

Like most real alcoholics who are left to self-destruct, Burns can be seriously repulsive at times, so A Day at the Beach is not a film that is easy to recommend. However, films that feature such miserable alcoholics must be difficult to endure if they are to appear authentic. They have to reveal the ugly and the sad, and how indifference creates human kamikazes that easily could have been saved.

Hesera’s director of photography was Gilbert Taylor, who lensed such notorious films as A Hard Day's Night, Flash Gordon, Repulsion, and Star Wars: Episode IV - A New Hope.

A Day at the Beach Blu-ray Movie, Video Quality 

Presented in an aspect ratio of 1.75:1, encoded with MPEG-4 AVC and granted a 1080p transfer, A Day at the Beach arrives on Blu-ray courtesy of Indicator/Powerhouse Films.

A Day at the Beach has been fully restored in 4K by Indicator/Powerhouse Films. (The same 4K restoration is also made available on Blu-ray in the United Kingdom. See our listing of this release here). On my system, the entire film looked phenomenal, boasting an all-around very attractive organic appearance. I thought that delineation, clarity, and depth were as good as they could have been in 1080p, while the density levels of the visuals were often at near 4K levels. In fact, I upscaled several sections to 4K, and they all looked like native 4K content. Color reproduction and balance are equally impressive. All primaries and supporting nuances are properly set and very healthy. Saturation levels are particularly good, which is why the dynamic range of the visuals is frequently striking. There are no traces of any problematic digital corrections. Image stability is excellent. Finally, the entire film looks spotless. (Note: This is a Region-Free Blu-ray release. Therefore, you will be able to play it on your player regardless of your geographical location).

A Day at the Beach Blu-ray Movie, Audio Quality 

There is only one standard audio track on this Blu-ray release: English LPCM 1.0. Optional English SDH subtitles are provided for the main feature.

The lossless audio is healthy. However, there are several sections of the film where some of the dialog is a bit difficult to follow. For example, when Mark Burns meets the poet and his fustrated wife in the pub, a few of the lines he utters there sound extremely thin. But it is quite easy to tell that this is how the audio was recorded and finalized, with noticeable, sometimes somewhat annoying fluctuations. Dynamic intensity is modest.

A Day at the Beach Blu-ray Movie, Special Features and Extras 

• Fiona Lewis: A Country Girl - in this new program, Fiona Lewis, who has a small part in A Day at the Beach, recalls how she met Roman Polanski, and the shooting of the film in Denmark. Lewis also mentions that the current ending is not the original ending of the film. In English, not subtitled. (7 min).

• Dancing Before the Enemy: How a Teenage Boy Fooled the Nazis and Lived - this archival documentary takes a closer look at the life and legacy of producer Gene Gutowski. It was directed by his son, Adam Bardach. In English, with optional English subtitles. (64 min).

• Michael Brooke: The Word of an Alcoholic - this new video essay was created by critic Michael Brooke. In English, not subtitled. (15 min).

• Behind the Camera: Gil Taylor - this archival program examines the career and work of cinematographer Gil Taylor. Included in it are clips from interviews with Taylor, Roman Polanski, and Anthony Minghella. In English, not subtitled. (13 min).

• Booklet - an exclusive booklet with new essay by Michał Oleszczyk, a compilation of trade journal reports on the film's production, interviews with director Simon Hesera at the time of the film's 1993 re-release, an overview of critical responses, and techncial credits.

A Day at the Beach Blu-ray Movie, Overall Score and Recommendation 

It takes a long time for someone to become an alcoholic. However, once the transformation is complete, it is enormously difficult, typically impossible to avoid self-destruction. It is why alcoholics are frequently compared to hardcore drug addicts. Mark Burns' character can easily be placed next to Mickey Rourke's character from Barfly and Ray Milland's character from The Lost Weekend, both equally miserable, destructive alcoholics. For a while, Burns' character is a bit more civilized, but his story has an entirely predictable ending, made possible by an all-too-familiar indifference. I quite liked A Day at the Beach and think that it looks sensational on Blu-ray after Indicator/Powerhouse Films fully restored it in 4K. HIGHLY RECOMMENDED.