Bruce Brown's films are a celebration of an era and the surf lifestyle, and this one features a little road trip to Mexico as well. How much you like this may depend on whether you see it as a documentary which seems low budget and scattered, or as a home move which seems elevated and organic. For me, it's the latter. I like Brown's hip narration, with its little bits of wry or corny humor set to a jazz soundtrack. There are some groaners but I found myself smiling, and I chuckled out loud when he imitated an old lady who had pulled over to watch the surfing. I could've done with a little less of the "Warner von Utter" experiments with the model planes and firecrackers though.
The surfing down in Mexico at Mazatlan, Cuyutlan, Alcapulco (Pierre Marquesas), and Petatlan was notable because no one had ever surfed there before, but the quality of waves wasn't the greatest, which made other footage perhaps more interesting, like the driving conditions, a cliff diver, or (randomly) some 45-minute-old baby goats. Interspersed were needed switch backs to surfing in Southern California at Cottons Point and Rincon.
Eventually we get to the real highlight of the movie, the footage out in the significantly larger waves off the North shore of Oahu, at Sunset Beach, Waimea Bay, and Pupukea. The power and danger can really be felt, and the waves really allowed the surfers to show off their talents. There are too many surfers shown to list here, but notable to me were Phil Edwards (who Brown calls "the best surfer in the world right now"), the graceful Joey Cabell, the fancy-footed Kemp Aaberg, and 15-year-old phenom Donald Takayama.
The camaraderie between these guys is sometimes silly and may not be of interest, but including it does give us a little window into their playful, laid back vibe, the simplicity of their meals, and how difficult it was to get around. Warning though, a couple of surfboards were sacrificed to cheesy comedy in the making of this film.
