Surfer, Dude (2008)

A wave twisting tale of a soul searching surfer experiencing an existential crisis.

Director:

S.R. Bindler

Writers:

S.R. Bindler, Mark Gustawes (screenplay)

Stars:

Matthew McConaughey, Woody Harrelson, Willie Nelson

Cast

Cast overview, first billed only:
Matthew McConaughey	...	Steve Addington
Alexie Gilmore	...	Danni Martin
Jeffrey Nordling	...	Eddie Zarno
Woody Harrelson	...	Jack Mayweather
Zachary Knighton	...	Brillo Murphy (as Zach Knighton)
Todd Stashwick	...	Vic Hayes
Nathan Phillips	...	Baker Smith
Ramon Rodriguez	...	Lupe La Rosa
Scott Glenn	...	Alister Greenbough
John Terry	...	Mercer Martin
Sarah Wright	...	Stacy
K.D. Aubert	...	April-May (as KD Aubert)
Willie Nelson	...	Farmer Bob
Johnny Sneed	...	Technical Director
Nancy Fish	...	Margaret

Storyline

Steve Addington is the world's preeminent surfer - cool, laid back, stoned, shirtless and barefoot, living off endorsements for surfboards and trunks, paid in cash. In Malibu his endorsement contract has been bought by Eddie Zarno, a surfer turned businessman who wants Steve to record his moves for an electronic virtual reality game. Steve just wants to surf. While Zarno tries to change Steve's mind, the Pacific goes calm - there are no waves for days on end. Steve's attracted to Danni, recently fired by Zarno, but the lack of surfing drains him. Plus, he's low on dough. Will he sign with Zarno, get paid, and lose his self-respect?

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Plot Keywords:

public nudity | breasts | scantily clad female | cleavage | bikini | 

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Taglines:

"love and waves, that's what we need in these dark days."

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Genres:

Comedy

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Motion Picture Rating (MPAA)

Rated R for pervasive drug use, language and nudity

Details

Official Sites:

Anchor Bay Entertainment [United States] Official site

Country:

USA

Language:

English

Release Date:

5 September 2008 (USA)

Also Known As:

Banglentininkas dabita

Filming Locations:

Australia

Box Office

Budget:

$6,000,000 (estimated)

Opening Weekend USA:

$5,971, 7 September 2008, Limited Release

Gross USA:

$36,497, 14 September 2008

Company Credits

Production Co:

Berk/Lane Entertainment,J.K. Livin Productions,Winchester Capital Partners

Technical Specs

Sound Mix:

Dolby

Color:

Color

Aspect Ratio:

1.85 : 1

Did You Know?

Trivia

Woody Harrelson and Willie Nelson appeared in Lost in London (2017).

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Goofs

The two connected checks offered to Steve at the party house were drawn on Broadway Bank, in Santa Monica, Ca. from a company called: Beachway Industries, for $50,000 each. The problem was, there weren't any account numbers on the checks.

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Quotes

Custom Agent: Occupation?
Steve Addington: Surfer.
Custom Agent: Is that a job, surfer?
Steve Addington: Not really.

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Soundtracks

The High
Written by Thomas Foyer and Michael Rais
Performed by Deep Sonic
Courtesy of NOMA Music

User Reviews

Dude, where's my plot?

Whoa, dude, it like, totally doesn't exist.

This has got to be the slowest and most shallow film I've ever seen. The plot is so thin it's nearly invisible. Once the conflict is set up it's mostly abandoned, and when the resolution comes, it's abrupt and shamelessly contrived. The story is resolved within a span of 5 minutes at the end, and nothing that comes before has any bearing on it.

Also, despite the claimed genre of "comedy", this only barely qualifies. Aside from a few funny lines here and there, this is really not a funny movie. It doesn't even seem to be intended as such. Perhaps it was supposed to be a "surfing movie" instead, which it might have accomplished, if not for the remarkable lack of actual scenes involving people surfing.

This is more like a long stoner fantasy. Really, it's like seeing the dream of a passed-out stoner. You can just see one waking up and going, "Dude, I just had this dream, where I was Matthew McConaughey, only I was like, this famous surfer, and then these corporate dudes were trying to bring me down, but I didn't care and decided to sit on the beach for a couple months."

Or to draw another comparison, it's like listening to an hour and a half of psychedelic music, in that the sober people in the room will be bored, but the stoned people will see all kinds of depth and colors.

This seems to have been made by stoners, for stoners. The only reason I can come up with for this getting made is that it was written, greenlit, directed, and in the end only appreciated by people whose minds have been burned out by too much sun and too many drugs. It's so slow and uneventful that you could watch it and follow the story accurately while simultaneously doing your taxes.

But hey, maybe I just don't have enough laid-back beach bum in me to appreciate something like this. It was after all a good-looking production, with good acting, lots of hot women in bikinis (and a couple without), and pretty beach scenery. Though again, if, like me, you insist on things like an actual story and interesting events occurring in your movies, you're probably best off skipping this.