With this new surf movie coming out featuring female surfers taking on the big waves of Hawaii (I understand it is something of a remake of Ride the Wild Surf shifting the main characters from male to female, but the buzz I heard could well be wrong), what is the most memorable “Surf” or “Beach” movie for you?
The above mentioned RtWS? Beach Party with Frankie and Annette? One of its clones? Gidget? The sort-of documentary Endless Summer?
Didn’t Elvis even make a kind of surf movie?
Beach Blanket Bingo, with Frankie and Annette was really quite good. Erik Von Zipper was always cool, and Jody McRae falling in love with a mermaid was just weird enough to push it over the edge. Oh, yeah… Don Rickles was the club owner.
Surf Nazis Must Die, of course. Title says it all.
Apocalypse Now… was there any other?
lieu, you’re my idol. Anyone for Psycho Beach Party?
I was thinking of Surf II…
Dogtown and Z-Boys had some classic surf footage.
I rather liked the one where Gargamel gathered all the little purple guys up and almost succeeded in boiling them into gold. Almost.
Although I think that was just an episode, rather than an actual movie.
No, no, no, JThunder, we’re talking surf not smerf. These are guys that walk around in baggy shorts, talk in their own kind of English dialect, don’t seem to have a care in the world, usually hang around with cute blond chicks and…
I may have to rethink this.
Oh, good. So I’m not the only one who though that was asking for your favorite Smurf movie. I was worried for a second. 
The Net.
Actually, the movie sucked, but I wanted to make that joke before anyone else could.
North Shore!
Anyone?
Anyone?
Nevermind
Big Wednesday for me, mostly for John Milius and Lee Purcell.
My vote would have to go to Bruce Brown’s series of surfing “documenteries”. TV Time already mentioned “The Endless Summer”, but I actually like “Barefoot Adventure” better. Brown’s films are an amazing slice of Americana. It’s cool to check out the clothes and cars. Although I’ve heard others criticize his narration as being needlessly silly, I find it to be a great part of what makes his films so enjoyable. I also think the music he utilizes in films is absolutely incredible. BTW, every Sunday night this month Turner Classic Movies will show a couple of his films. TCM’s website also has a nice feature on him.
Back to the Beach has Dick Dale and Stevie Ray Vaughan trading licks on “Pipeline,” which all by itself is pretty damn memorable!