Les dieux du surf

The story and acting are laughable, but the surfing footage is ALL-TIME great!

My recommendation is to rent this DVD, turn off the sound, and put on some heavy, loud music. Then just FF to to the wave riding scenes and let your eyes feast on the 35mm footage of GIANT surf riding. It is absolutely mind-blowing. This film contains some of the greatest big wave surfing ever caught on film.

Don't miss the tow-in body-board riding of Mike 'the Wizard" Stewart. WOW! His '360' maneuver garnered the biggest cheers of the night at the opening showing of this film.

The acting in this movie is so bad that it is actually pretty funny. Shane Dorian is an amazing surfer, but maybe, just maybe, should stick to his day job. Not sure if Shane will be putting an Oscar on his mantle anytime soon. His opening line drew raucous laughter from a San Diego opening night movie crowd (and it was not supposed to be a funny line).

So, watch this movie with your favorite heavy music playing. Oh, try to watch it on a big screen.

Alright ....for those of you who can actually admit that you are annoyingly retentive on a movie having a clear plot, resolution, and all those school book-type terms from a movie, steer away from this one. You will be tearing your hair out=)

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For those of you who surf, who know what it *feels* like to ride a wave, you will appreciate this movie ( I guarantee) more than any other surf movie or documentary you've ever seen. Believe me, take it from a surfer. THESE 'ACTORS' ARE NOT ACTORS. THEY ARE WORLD-CLASS/COMPETITION SURFERS.



And though those retentive people will point out that they can't act, I am saying what they do in this film is the *only* way to act. Zalman King used his head here to have three world-class surfers, ( Matt George, Shane Patrick Dorian, and Matty Liu), one of which was #1 in the world for three straight years(Dorian). I have a friend who met him and told me how cool he was and that he's actually *very* self-conscious about the gap between his teeth. I think it is beautiful to watch him try to speak without showing it in the film, because this is a reflection of his true self; his true insecurity. He is also shy about being in the spotlight, even limiting televised interviews on surfing networks.

Anyway, the screen gladly welcomes him here, along with many other surfers, including many 'seniors' over 35, (one of which who invented the toe-in surfboard), who make a few cameos throughout the movie.



*** IF YOU'RE A CINEMATOGRAPHY LOVER (as I am) you will LOVE this movie. The waves, the colors, the sensuality. Yes, this movie is *very* sensual. This film was directed by the same guy who made 9 1/2 weeks, and Two Moon Junction. Because the main focus is on the surfing, the tiny love story in it keeps you wanting more. Somehow everything looks sensual (ie: flowing hair, pearls falling on a seashell in slow-mo, the smiling girl on the train, the music). Everything in this movie can be freeze-framed and it would never look boring. There is always something deep within each picture the characters seem to be thinking and transferring to the screen. SIMPLY PUT, this movie is a work of art.

*** IF YOU LIKE MOVIES TO ENLIGHTEN YOU, this movie will serve its purpose. It delves into the minds of these young men. It steers clear of trying to be something it's not. You end up wanting to be out there with them, riding those waves. You end up understanding, by the end of the film, why (at least Dorian) was always looking for that 'one big wave that starts all the other waves', to simply get that feeling. You'll end up wondering what would make you feel that way in your own life. It might be surfing.



And YES, this movie could've been changed to a documentary on surfers, but why? They would not have had as wide of an audience, and there are simply NOT enough movies about surfing out there. People need to know more about the greatest sport on Earth.

This movie is for everyone except for lazy, narrow-minded people, who can go back to criticizing movies that "should have been documentaries". (not to sound TOO harsh)=)

peace, -Sep

What can you say about a film that has thirty minutes of fantastic surfing footage but not much more at all? Well, not much more at all.

In God's Hands stars three non actors (that's pretty obvious) who are also top surfers. They're the real thing. Patrick Shane Dorian, Matt George and Matty Liu really do ride this 40 plus foot monsters in this film, and really are towed onto them by jet skis. And all of that is pretty awesome.

I didn't find the sound track all that appealing but I think I've been wiped out in a bit of a Morning Of The Earth time warp for twenty years now. That surfing flick, which I saw in a hall in the Coff's Harbour decades ago, just has to be one of the best films for me ever.

But none of those Morning Of The Earth waves were the monsters that these lads snake down, and get murdered under.

So the surfies out there, and there's plenty of them, will just have to see this fantastic wave action and they'll just have to see it on the big screen. They won't expect much more than just waves with human's sliding down them and they won't be disappointed.

it is easy to criticize it. or define as a not the best movie. but it has a great virtue - the honesty. than - a kind of poetic image about a hobby. beautiful images. and something else who reminds a documentary. sure, it is not great or memorable. but it presents a not complicated story in correct manner. the passion, the death, the friendship, the small circle of few people, the personality of each, the advises for survive, the joy, pain and a kind of romanticism who can impress. a film about a risky sport and more than a hobby or competition. the good point is the portrait of a special form of solitude in middle of powerful solidarity. the strange form of hunting, adventure and madness. not the great script, not an extraordinary film. but, most important, a honest one.

This film is definitely not for everyone. It is less about story, and more about life. It has a Zen-like quality about seeking for the pursuit of happiness. I am not a surfer, but I love this movie. As one who is an avid mountain biker, this film provides a dream of being able to enjoy a sport and a lifestyle to the max. Anybody who loves adventure sports would thoroughly love this movie. Not only is it fun to watch for the lifestyle, but the cinematography is absolutely amazing. It's hard to find better.