The Endless Summer (1966)

The crown jewel to ten years of Bruce Brown surfing documentaries. Brown follows two young surfers around the world in search of the perfect wave, and ends up finding quite a few in addition to some colorful local characters.

Director:

Bruce Brown

Writer:

Bruce Brown

Stars:

Robert August, Michael Hynson, Lord James Blears

1 win.

Cast

Credited cast:
Michael Hynson	...	Principal surfer (as Mike Hynson)
Robert August	...	Principal surfer
Rest of cast listed alphabetically:
Lord James Blears	...	Himself (as Lord 'Tally Ho' Blears)
Bruce Brown	...	Narrator
Terence Bullen	...	South African guide
Roy Crump	...	North Shore Surfer
Chip Fitzwater	...	Himself - Bodysurfer at the Wedge with 'rigor mortis of the stomach.'
Chuck Gardner	...	Himself - Bellyboarder at the Wedge throwing board over wave
Wayne Miyata	...	Himself

Storyline

They call it The Endless Summer the ultimate surfing adventure, crossing the globe in search of the perfect wave. From the uncharted waters of West Africa, to the shark-filled seas of Australia, to the tropical paradise of Tahiti and beyond, these California surfers accomplish in a few months what most people never do in a lifetime...They live their dream. Director Bruce Brown creates a film so powerful it has become a timeless masterpiece that continues to capture the imagination of every new generation. When it first played in theaters, audiences lined up to see it again and again, spellbound by its thrilling excitement and awesome photography. But in fact, what's most compelling about the film is the sport of surfing itself, and once you've seen it, you'll never forget why.

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Plot Keywords:

national film registry | surfing | wave | surfer | australia | 

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Taglines:

The Search for the Perfect Wave

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Genres:

Documentary | Sport

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Certificate:

Not Rated

Details

Official Sites:

Official site

Country:

USA

Language:

English

Release Date:

17 August 1968 (Japan)

Also Known As:

A végtelen nyár

Filming Locations:

Australia

Box Office

Budget:

$50,000 (estimated)

Company Credits

Production Co:

Bruce Brown Films

Technical Specs

Runtime:

95 min

Sound Mix:

Mono

Color:

Color (Technicolor)

Aspect Ratio:

1.66 : 1

Did You Know?

Trivia

According to an article in the "L.A. Weekly", after the film was edited, Michael Hynson and Bruce Brown (I) toured the U.S. in a bus in the summer of 1964, screening the documentary in high school auditoriums and Lions Clubs. The film originally didn't even have audio; Brown would play surf records and narrate the action live.

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Goofs

Walking down to the beach in Ghana, West Africa, both Mike Hynson and Robert August are wearing white bathing suits. A few moments later on the same beach Mike Hynson is now wearing a blue bathing suit.

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Quotes

Narrator: [Entering Ghana] Were they really doing the right thing? Had the UN been there before or not?

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Crazy Credits

Special thanks to old king Neptune for providing the waves in this film

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Alternate Versions

Footage not originally shown in the movie is shown in the documentary "Endless Summer Revisited".

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Connections

Followed by The Endless Summer Revisited (2000)

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Soundtracks

Out Front
Written by Walter Georis and John Blakeley
Performed by The Sandals

User Reviews

A good, clean film about a good, clean sport.

Back before Sean Penn gave us his hilarious interpretation of a surfer as a drugged-out loser with a limited vocabulary in "Fast Times At Ridgemont High", the common image of a surfer was that of a clean-cut guy who surfed just like other people sailed or fished. They were normal people. This film was made during that time, when surfing was a sport and surfers were athletes. And its that charm that makes this film special.

Bruce Brown had made 4 feature-length films prior to making this one, but this film's incredible success made him a cult hero, a Cinderella story who came out of nowhere to give us a film that could quite possibly be the best surfing documentary ever made. His premise was simple: take 2 surfers and try to achieve what everyone dreams of: an endless Summer of sun, surf, and girls (but mostly surf).

Brown's narration, with its soft California tone, really gives the film that comfortable, easy feeling, like watching an old Walt Disney film from the early 60's, which contributes to the film's charm. We know, we just know, that these two guys are going to go out on an adventure and nobody will die, nobody will get arrested, and nobody will do anything immoral (or at least _too_ immoral).

From the west coast of Africa, to South Africa, to Australia, to islands in the Pacific, to Hawaii, we go along as two young men from California introduce the sport of surfing to people who have never seen a surfboard before. It is quite hilarious to see villagers in Ghana and Senegal try to surf a longboard in heavy surf for the first time, and Bruce's narration really tells a funny story, and all along we're relaxing to the gentle guitar sounds of The Sandals.

We also get to see some of the best surfers riding some great waves in the age before the beaches got crowded with jet skis, racing boats, and more surfers. "Endless Summer" is one of those films that acts like a time capsule, and is just as entertaining now as it was when it first came out.

I highly recommend it for everyone. Adults, kids, surfers, non-surfers. There's something for everyone in this film. You don't need to know how to surf to enjoy this movie.