The surf is definitely up in this exhilarating documentary by Jeremy Gosch that profiles in extensive and thoughtful detail the historical moment—between 1974 and 1976—that surfing was elevated to a prestigous professional sport. On the North Shore of Oahu, in the winter of 1974, the new kids on the beach are a handful of starstruck young athletes from the other side of the globe: Shaun Tomson and Michael Tomson, from South Africa, and Australians Mark Richards, Wayne “Rabbit” Bartholomew, Ian Cairns, and Peter Townend. With no sponsorships and little money, they come for love of surfing alone, to test themselves against the waves and mingle with legendary Hawaiian surfers. As young Rabbit says in a vintage interview, “surfing is an art form,” and like most artists, they must scrounge around for the wherewithal to keep doing what they love from one season to the next. Unable to pony up the entrance fee for one of the few surf competitions of the era, and no off-season “circuit” on which to build a reputation, these guys decide the only way to get noticed is with bravado and innovative new moves, putting their lives on the line against “mountains of water” in hopes of being invited to join the club. Also-rans at a competition in ’74, but prize-winners the following year, Shaun and Rabbit hatch a scheme to earn surfers funding and respect by establishing a pro circuit. But their dream comes at the expense of their formerly cordial relations with the Hawaiian locals they idolized, who don’t appreciate the trash written abot them in Aussie surf magazines to beef up publicity for the fledgling circuit; in 1976, the Aussies and Africans take to arming themelves against violent retaliation by some locals—until members of a respected Hawaiian surfing family broker a “trial” in which the locals get to vent, not fight, and the outsiders get a valuable lesson in post-colonial manners. The film is packed with jaw-dropping surf footage, from thunderous drops at the Pipeline, to Shaun Tomson’s revolutionary tube-rding. (An especially nice touch is the seamless way Gosch blends current images of the older Shaun, Rabbit, and MR riding waves into footage of their youthful selves.) A fascinating homage both to the founding fathers of what is now the Association of Surfing Professionals, and the art of surfing itself, this film is the next best thing to a day at the beach. (Not rated) 90 minutes. (***1/2)
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