Billabong Odyssey (2003)

So much average

Sadly Over-hyped

The joyful confection is coated in a sparkly gloss, bright enough to gleam from the darkest, most cynical corners.

The biggest problem with this movie is it’s a little better than you think it might be, which somehow makes it worse. As in, it takes itself a bit too seriously, which makes most of the movie feel kind of dull.

I've watched this video 1-2 times completely and then have watched specific scenes over and over numbers of times analyzing each wave and listening to the soundtracks. They are all so unique and so big!!!! The footage is awesome. Lots taken from helicopters which is ultra cool...The footage from Teahupoo is insane. The conditions were so powerful, so hollow and pitching.The soundtrack, "Look Out Below" in scene 15 shows big waves and big wipe outs. Awesome footage and soundtrack. Classic rock/blues sound of the 70's.The soundtrack, "Thankyou" Good Lord, 50 seconds from the very end is awesome also. Again, classic rock.Excellent video for the skateboarding generation, safe for kids...They will be inspired by the brave nature of the surfers. Since most kids are active, they can appreciate how difficult some things are.The surfers in the video are the some of the best in the world surfing the biggest waves, with the best cameras...Check it out.

"Stepping Into Liquid", "Riding Giants" and "Billabong Odyssey" are three amazing, recently released big wave movies and I like them all. "Liquid" is less esoteric than Peralta's "Riding Giants" and "Billabong" is more matter-of-fact and less about a "culture". Still, it is awesome to behold. In particular, the footage captured at Mauai's "Jaws" is mind-boggling, as is the Tahitian and Australian ("Cyclops") material. The cinematography is breathtaking and the sound design is very effective. The "odyssey" itself was a two year enterprise in which a group of ace surfers chased the sun all over the world to ride the perfect mountain of water. The film's initial focus on the group falls away as the narrative progresses. Finally, we're left with almost suicidal wave riding that drops one's jaw to the floor. Australian director Philip Boston adds some interviews and typical doco-style snippets to the whole, but the wave's are the juice and they're pretty damn electrifying. The film's opening ride, reprised later in the movie, is stunning.

The reason I saw this movie, a film which I would ordinarily not have given a thought to was because I work at my university cinema. I'm an usher and I was needed to fill in for someone else who couldn't make it. So, as you can probably tell already I had no interest in watching a movie about surfers and surfing. However, I was prepared to watch it through, and I started out with an open mind. Ten minutes in I was bored out of my mind, to the point where I closed my eyes and attempted to catch up on some sleep...unfortunately the obligatory heavy rock soundtrack stopped me from doing this. I understand that the waves shown throughout the movie are very impressive. Some of them are absolutely massive and I did occasionally find myself inwardly gasping at the enormity of the waves. However, after having seen 50 of them, in a row with various surfers battling against them I completely lost interest. It all became monotonous and dull because these shots were shown one after the other for five minutes at a time. There were occasional bright moments throughout the movie which succeeded in peaking my interest. The all too short and shallow look back at the beginning of the popularity of the sport was good but unfortunately didn't provide any insight. The small section about the newest innovations in the surfing world were also good, giving the audience an opportunity to see what surfing could potentially become in a few years time. But, both of these were cut short by more shots of the surfers and the waves, shots which might as well have been recycled for all the originality they presented.The documentary, I'm sure would be of some interest to surfing fans and, for a brief moment would interest non-surfers. The waves were impressive and the way the camera managed to get inside the waves, capturing everything on film was impressive, but there was just not enough depth to keep any interest sustained.

I was very excited to see this movie after recently seeing the superb "Step Into Liquid". After sitting through this movie I am a little disapointed. It was good, just not as good as it should have been. Watching the big wave surfing was amazing at first but the thrill seemed to die out after the first 45 minutes and left you with the feeling that you are watching the same senario over and over. This movie is great if you are interested in learning about tow in big wave surfing but as a regular surfer it was over kill on the particular subject with no real payout at the end. 6/10