When a gang wearing masks of former presidents keep robbing banks in California Johnny Utah (Keanu Reeves) has to infiltrate a group of surfers led by Bodhi (Patrick Swayze).
This is a fast paced movie with amazing surf scenes which quickly makes you fall in love with the sport and it’s way of life. However anyone that has tried to surf late in life knows you spend more time in the water paddling than on the board ripping the waves. I experienced this first hand when doing a three day surf course in the Alentejo coast and had about 8 seconds of standing time. Personally, I would probably be a better bank robber than a surfer. If you do know how to surf then you are one of the few who get to make love with your wetsuit on when you surf that perfect wave. At least that’s what it looks like to us co-ordless ones who can’t stand on water.
Two interesting facts is firstly that the movie was going to be based on a skateboarding gang not surfers and another is that the young kid that tells Jonny Utah “he shouldn’t feel bad as many old guys are taking up surfing” and Jonny tells him “he is not old he is 25” in real life Overdosed at 24, go figure …. Some other great lines from the movie : Tyler (Lori Petty) when she describes Bohdi as a modern day savage searching for the ultimate ride. Many of us live a life in which we try to please others and only realize this much later on in life and then change completely the way we live in order to experience this ultimate ride we are all looking for. Make sure you live your life for yourself as early as you can to avoid having to live a whole new life later on. Another lesson we can take from this movie is that the ex-presidents (gang of bank robbers) only got into trouble when they got greedy, when they went for the vault!!! In life we sometimes want much more than we need and that’s when we go and complicate everything and loose the most important things to us. We also get the feeling in this movie just like in real life that the whole system nowdays is killing the human spirt, there is some truth in this as we all keep being pushed to fit into the same box. However those that don’t and live their passion are lucky enough to enjoy life not according to what they own or consumerism but rather simply by their amazing positive life experiences. Once you live this way it truly is the closest you get to God.
Another top line is “Young dumb, full of Cum” you definately repeat it at least in your head when you hear it in the movie. You will love the sky diving and other wonderful heart stopping action scenes. You will also cheer for the goodies and for the baddies and that always makes for an entertaining 2h and 3 minutes of movie. You will wonder why it all had to go wrong and then you realize life is all about choices and going wrong is a consequence of some of those life choices.
In the end we see Bohdi doing what he wanted do most of all, surfing a monster wave. We can all agree he could have got there in an easier and less devastating way just as we sometimes could do the same in our own lives. If all this movie does is to make you take up a new hobby, sport or ignites your passion for life then that’s AWESOME. Vaya con Deus. Remember just as the robbers say the money is not worth dying for …..
