Off the Lip

What last years "Grind" was to bad skateboarding movies this movie is to horrendously conceived surfing movies. Unlike real surfing movies which show a lot of great surfers, this film takes a bunch of surf shots that were initially created for a Microsoft ad campaign and digitizes them into a couple of quick montages. The rest of film is a faux documentary of a girl being videotaped by her boyfriend while she searches for a legendary surfer called 'the Monk'. They repeatedly cut to the same 3 shots of the Monk surfing a giant wave everytime he's mentioned (which is a lot). Script was improvised and yes, it's very bad, especially since it was contrived from the minds of equally bad actors who have no idea of how to speak realistically. In fact, every character in the film is more an 'extreme caricature' that anything remotely resembling reality. The style of the film is supposed to be like "Blair Witch" with the actors supposedly filming themselves, but once again this film even fails behind the camera as much as it does in front. The leading actress shows her butt in one scene for no reason whatsoever, but like most of the film everything seems to have been created for it's 'selling points' rather than for its connection to what a good movie should be. Young cast, surfing, sailboarding, a butt, and few laughs may look watchable on paper but on the big screen it's merely one word - ABOMINATION!!! Zero stars - stay away! Even on DVD!!!

It's great to see a film about women in surfing that's not totally about "Women In Surfing." While the popularity of women's surfing is skyrocketing, there are no politics to get in the way of your enjoyment. I'd call it a fun romp, you can call it whatever you want, but there's no disputing that it's clever. The search for "The Monk" is reminiscent of the irreverence of The Big Lebowski and Steve Hanft's Southlander, both great movies in their own right and an apt comparison. While Moreau is great (and hot- there's a great scene where she's naked and getting a massage), the best part is the use of local surfers which make it true to the culture and utterly believable. Go see it.

Surf-ripping action on 60-foot waves are more than enough to make this film worth recommending. But OFF THE LIP is much more than its amazing surfing sequences. Leading lady Marguerite Moreau is infectiously charming, and her sassy attitude is pure fun. As a cub reporter sent to Hawaii in search of a legendary and reclusive surfer, Moreau encounters every obstacle imaginable, from drug runners to romance to the financial demise of her new employer. The plot never drags and always keeps you guessing, which makes this film truly enjoyable to jaded viewers such as myself, or to general audiences. The film's "R" rating (due to drug use, language and sexual content) may seem like a marketing obstacle if the audience were the same as "Blue Crush." But OFF THE LIP skews to both an older crowd, as well as to true surf-fans, and to both of these markets, language, drug use and sexual content are likely to be selling points! I'd say the film is probably PG-13 by contemporary TV Broadcast standards. Don't be shy to let the kids see this one... check it out!

Off The Lip is a cool surf movie. The characters are interesting young adults, all out to find the world's greatest surfer, some elusive guy called The Monk.

While the reporter and her entourage are looking for the guy, they surf at several different beaches, go to a luau, ride horses around Hawaii, so there are a lot of beautiful bodies in action for both men and women to admire.

The reporter is out to impress her boss since this is her first assignment, but she also is out to enjoy the ride, so she sees Hawaii in a big way, gets a surfing lesson, and drives her parents back in the mainland nuts since she is too busy to talk to them.

Good story, good acting and characters, great scenery, worth checking out for yourself