Waveriders

When I was younger I used to holiday in Cornwall where surfing was, and still is, very big.  Spending most of my time on polystyrene 'boogie boards', I did have a go at standing up on one only to find that it's much more difficult than it looks and failing dreadfully!  I therefore have quite a high level of respect for those who can not only stand and surf, but can do so with style and riding waves of quite some size.  Something I've never considered is where surfing came from, when it started and who came up with the idea of standing on a piece of wood and riding a wave.  This is what the documentary Waveriders uncovers, following the birth of the activity (before it became a sport with people who do it professionally) in Hawaii and how it has become such a worldwide phenomenon with roots in Ireland.
 

Waveriders follows a group of Irish, British and Irish-American surfers who recount how they began surfing and became aware of the big waves off the west coast of Ireland whilst tracing the roots of surfing back to the Irish/Hawaiian George Freeth. As one group of surfers develop one way of getting the best waves, it is copied by another and we see how the American surfers who use Jet Skis to take them out to sea for the best surfing opportunities is adopted by Irish surfers who, with much less money, use the same technique in search of the same results.
 
The one thing with any surfing documentary is that you are guaranteed plenty of footage of people riding waves, aiming for the biggest swells and riding in the 'pipe' for maximum effect and this is the case here with some extraordinary photography.  Very little of this is set in the traditional surfing heartlands of Hawaii and the California coast where the scenery is extremely picturesque thanks to the bright blue skies and turquoise water. In fact the opposite is the case with the greenery and overcast skies of the Irish coast showing that surfing isn't about the weather, merely the ocean swells and underwater coastline.
 
With contributions from many different types of surfers, from amateurs to pros, there is a healthy cross section of opinion that seems to contain the same passion whether they surf for fun or money - eight times world champion Kelly Slater seems to have all the enthusiasm of those that have never surfed in competition nor intend to do so.  They all do it for the love of surfing and the documentary finishes with locals following the weather forecasts which warn of big storms in the Atlantic leading to massive waves on the west coast;  all this does is attract the surfing community who spot the opportunity for perfect conditions with waves up to 60 feet high.

The Disc

 
Extra Features
Not much really, with a couple of extra scenes and a selection of interviews, some wipeouts just to show that these highly skilled individuals are fallible and can screw up like the best of us and a stills gallery.  Despite the general paucity, the scenes are quite interesting and the wipeouts are always fun to watch.
 


The Picture
The quality varies depending on how the footage was shot, what sort of camera was used and the weather but the overall impression is very good.  The surfing scenes are nothing short of spectacular with footage from people in the water, on the beach and on cliff tops or supporting watercraft.
 
This is the sort of documentary that would look great in high definition, but even in standard def (though upscaled for my screen) the quality is very impressive.
 
The Sound
Both the Dolby Digital 5.1 and 2.0 stereo tracks are good but I preferred the surround for the immersive nature of the surfing scenes and the better presentation of the music.  The filmmakers use a mix of scored and sourced music which works very well as both suit the subject material perfectly.
 
Cillian Murphy proves to be a fine narrator, not the person you would immediately associate with surfing, and explains events and tells the story very well.  He obviously has a good script to work from but his delivery is clear and easy to follow, just as the interviewees are with none having overly thick accents that need subtitling!
 


Final Thoughts
I'd heard about this and considered going to see it at my local arthouse cinema but I'm not that interesting in surfing so decided to give it a miss.  I now rue my decision as I enjoyed it so much on DVD that it would have been even better on a bigger screen.  Only the best documentaries have cross-over appeal, attracting audiences beyond those associated with the subject matter.  This is one of those, a documentary about surfing that those who don't really care about surfing will enjoy.  Waveriders is as much about the people as the sport and that is what makes it interesting - the amazing surfing footage doesn't do it any harm whatsoever!