The surf movie is a hallowed tradition among enthusiasts. Not unlike the ski flick, it is used to get the juices flowing while exciting our inner cravings for liquid. It preys upon our ability to float, glide, slide and ride the substance that sustains life.
You cannot talk about surf films without mentioning Bruce Brown. His film The Endless Summer (1966) set the bar that all surf films should be measured. There are major needs a surf film should cover to properly represent the art of surfing. Incredible surfers and surfing are only part of the equation needed to equal film success. A quintessential surf film must not only include the exotic destinations, but the funny quirks that occur along the way. Lastly, but perhaps the most important, is a killer soundtrack. The music touches us on a level our eyes cannot. That level helps to solidify an atmosphere that places us, the viewer, on those waves around the world.
Thomas Campbell’s 16mm surf flick
Sproutnails this model for surf film success. It invites the viewer to shed their cloths, daily cube lives and step into the water for a ride. The opening sequence combines gorgeous imagery with smoldering horn driven jazz. You watch as Rasta slides his 6'2" pintail thruster across a pristine face. His hand drags as he catches the tube. He rides directly in front of the camera as the shot is submerged in the wave and you’re left w/ an amazing underwater curl. Goddamn, you can’t help by gulp or bite your tongue in utter yearning to be in that very spot for that moment. Instantly you realize this filmmaker has a beautiful eye with a camera and you’re in for a film not only about surfing, but also about the beauty of the ocean and the people who play in it.
Thomas Campbell’s intro commentary tells us that this is a film about the exploration of riding water mountains and molehills. The idea is to show how many ways we have to access our ocean. The movie goes on to highlight nine journeys around the globe. It is so refreshing to see the soul of surfing exposed again for what it truly is – a Lifestyle. This is not a new school surf flick, not that there’s anything wrong with those movies. It’s a throwback to the grace and beauty in surfing- a sort of feminine to surfings masculine - if you will.
This film displays some of the sports greatest athletes including Rob Machado, Belinda Baggs, Joel Tudor, Dan Malloy, Tom “Weggy” Wegener, C.J. Nelson, Gerry Lopez and many more. The soundtrack couldn’t have been better picked. It’s a super-slick mix of Jazzy tunes with some soft spaghetti western rock mixed in from the likes of The Mojave 3, Tommy Guerrero, The Shins, Calexico and many more.
There are a few standout pieces and moments to this film. To begin with, the film work speaks for itself. I could watch hours of Campbell’s non-surf shots just as easy as his surf sequences. Tom "Weggy" Wagener’s sequence and style are inspiring as is the glimpse into his life and family. The bodysurfing guru’s Mark and Mike must have gills. How they do what they do is unfathomable. Dan Malloy’s slash session on the Aussie waves riding 70's style boards is something one could only dream of duplicating. The comedy of the "Chaka" PSA is excellent even Bruce Brown would have laughed. C.J. Nelson’s schooling of the nose in California is matched almost too perfectly to the sounds of the Yellow Wallpaper. 62 year-old Skip Frye surfing with Rob Machado and Joel Tudor in Costa Rica is superb. The amazing boards and life of Gerry Lopez brings history to youth. Ashley Loyd’s delicate footwork is a water ballet. The pura-vida fun and freedom from the magnificent seven in the East Indies and the hour of bonus footage will keep you satisfied on the flattest of days.
As Thomas Campbell said in the beginning “we as surfers are so ridiculously lucky … to experience the moment and sensations and to have the life we have.” Let this movie inspire you to get out and surf, travel or just have fun around our worlds oceans. Grab your heavy 1960 style log, join me for dawn patrol, or just pick-up Sprout, and let it inspire the inner wave-rider in you.
