Dir: John Stockwell. Starring: Kate Bosworth, Michelle Rodriguez, Matthew Davis, Sanoe Lake.
Blue Crush plays like something of an anomaly. All the ingredients for a typical teen-drama are there, but director Dean Stockwell is so earnest, so… respectful with his material that it beats formula to a bloody pulp and leaves you bewildered, but pleased.
Filmed on location in Hawaii, Blue Crush is primarily the story of Ann Marie Chadwick, an aspiring surfer chick who nearly drowned three years ago. In between changing sheets at a local resort and chasing after her kid sister, she’s gearing up for the Waverider Pro, a surf event being held at the dangerous Pipeline Beach. A romance with a vacationing footballer and her own fear of drowning threaten to end her chances in the comp. Will Ann Marie conquer her fears? Can her romance co-exist with her desire to surf? Take a guess, it’s not exactly quantum physics.
That said, Stockwell’s talent lays not so much in his narrative, but in the way he tells it. For the most part, Blue Crush echoes the rhythm and cadence of teen-aged life perfectly. There’s a very relaxed feel to the proceedings, the dialogue is incidental, the acting affectionate and the emphasis is clearly on having fun, not pandering to narrative contrivance.
The surf scenes are well, if somewhat basically, shot. By keeping the camera low, Stockwell immerses you in the surf, and makes you feel like you’re actually there, praise which could really be applied to the entire film.
Certainly, Blue Crush is a far cry from Lawrence of Arabia – it’s feather-light and a two-hour running length seems bloated by the end. Nonetheless, this is a film about going to the beach, having fun with your friends and running round in bikinis so small Barbie would need a shoe horn to get into them. If that’s not fun, I don’t know what is.
I give it a straight B.
Patrick Garson.
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