Aqua Antics

Aqua Antics (1942)

** 1/2 (out of 4)

This Pete Smith short is a sequel to his earlier film WATER BUGS. Here we see members of the California Water Bugs club as they show us some of their wildest tricks. This includes water skiing through the air, off docks and of course on land. Having not seen WATER BUGS this here was my first chance at seeing this club and for the most part their tricks were rather impressive but at the same time I can't say I would have much desire to watch this short again. I think one of the best tricks comes at the very end when one man is being pulled by a motorcycle and both go off the dock but the film cuts off before we can actually see if either man is injured in the stunt. The rest of the time we get a few nice stunts with Smith doing his typical nice narration, which includes a couple funny bits where he flirts with the better looking women in the club.

A Smith called Pete narrates this short documentary about the California Water Bugs, an early group of water skiing enthusiasts. They offer various stunts, including being towed by a dirigible balloon, while Smith offers his usual snarky, impressed commentary.

Water skiing is a recent sport, dating from 1922, when some one adapted a pair of skis to the watery method of breaking one's legs. As with many of the more, ahem, venturesome sports, the charm seems to me to lie in not getting killed, which I can manage from a stationary chair, thank you very much.