Morning of the Earth

This film depicts, in a languorous mood, the special connection surfers and other performance artists have with nature. The overall feel of the movie is mellow and mesmerizing, with long shots of wafer-thin wave faces and hypnotic tube rides. An absolute blast, this is for everyone who has ever ridden a wave or simply wished they had.

I was surprised to see that one Australian online DVD store had this movie categorised under 'Sport'. Certainly 'Morning of the Earth' is a surfing movie, showing footage of many famous 70s surfers going through their paces, but it is also much more than that...

'Morning of the Earth' is a beautiful and artistic movie about the counter-culture of the late 60s and early 70s, which took the form of an alternate lifestyle of simplicity and self-sufficiency in the warm tropics of Australia, Bali, and Hawaii... 'a fantasy of surfers living in three unspoilt lands and playing in nature's oceans', the booklet enclosed with the DVD says... and it goes on to say... 'see everything as nothing but the soul and the soul in everything you see'.

"Morning of the Earth' has no dialogue and there is an excellent soundtrack of Australian music from the early 70s, featuring artists such as Brian Cadd, G. Wayne Thomas, and Taman Shud. One of the classic songs is 'Open up your Heart'... which says... 'It's a start, when you open up your heart, give your love to others, they become your brothers, when you open up your heart'.

The surfing footage in 'Morning of the Earth' is stunning, full of mesmerizing blues, greens, yellows, and reds; including sunsets and sunrises. But as I say this is a movie that is about much more than surfing. Get the picture?

Transcends its genre. Shot on gorgeous 16mm film, this is a one-of-a-kind meditation on the beauty of the earth through the lens of surfing. Looking back from 2010 with the industry's obsession with sponsorships, competitions and tricks, this film now seems a powerful echo from a different era. All the corruptive layers fall away and the viewer is invited into the mesmerizing spectacle of humans balanced on the edge of powerful oceanic forces in between living simply in the woods and building their own equipment. The soulful original soundtrack is the icing on the cake, and reinforces the notion of surfing as no mere sport, but rather an art, a dance, and an attitude towards life.

This work of art has not aged at all, if anything after fifty years its message has become even more important as we pass through a time of overbearing government and interference in our lives. The film depicts a very Australian appreciation for freedom and direct communion with the universe. There is a particularly Zen flow to it as the footage capture surfers in "the now" during their pilgrimages to ride great waves. It is simultaneously so very down to earth and unsophisticated yet it still stands as a spiritual statement as profound as any mysterious gnostic text. The images are paired with a soundtrack that points out the message for you, just in case you didn't just tune in and "get it" directly. May we return to those halcyon days, and never allow them to be taken from us again.

as cliche as it may sound, words cannot describe the beauty in which morning of the earth embodies. it is a story without words, of a group of surfers walking away from it all to live a rich and fullfilling life, surfing, growing crops, building surfboards, and smoking grass... morning of the earth was made during what is generally regarded as hostile time. vietnam was in full swing and many a young man feared being drafted into the military. albie falzon has reminded us that the earth is good, but all in all you have to make it on your own. just like the song says. highlights of the film include, michael peterson getting barreled off his nut at kirra (before the high rises, and only a few other blokes out), whoever the guy is in jean shorts ripping it up at angourie after he builds his own board, and the scene where the two aussies get the indonesian men stoned as. a tru classic.