Surf video reviews: Young Guns 3, Absolute Mexico, Aquatic Dreams
Since the great majority of surf videos are not sold or reviewed by mainstream media companies I thought after I bought a handful of them I'd post my thoughts. Here's what I care about in a surf movie, in the following order:
- great waves
- great music
- cinematography/photography/aesthetics
- great surfing with a healthy mix of maneuvers
Young Guns 3 disappointed after YG2 had set the bar so high ON MY CRITERIA. I acknowledge that the younger Quik guys are growing up and pushing the limits more and more. The aerial maneuvering is mind blowing. Having said that, probably 20-25% of the DVD is 1-2 maneuver waves at a wedgy closeout beachbreak left. A long long way from the 4-6 maneuver linkages at Maccas or Rifles in YG2, each shot from shot from 3 or 4 different angles and accompanied by a fantastic soundtrack. I liked the fact that G-Land had its own section in YG3 and it's about time someone went back there and shot the new school on that wave. It takes a lot of water photogs/boats/skis to get the shots at G-Land because of the huge playing field, tide changes, currents, etc, and they got the shots. As a surfer who likes going left and getting shacked G-Land is the end-all, be-all wave. As a photographer it's a pain in the ass. Front-lit morning G-Land is onshore, rarely glassy or offshore, and by the time the 10am offshores pick up the harsh midday light or sponsor-unfriendly back lighting is a factor. Never mind the other hassles of currents, distance from shore, and lineup size. Safe to say it ain't HT's.
Absolute Mexico looks great, the surfing is much more on the WCT guys at La Jolla with only a smattering of big-wave Puerto Escondido. It is a great companion to "A Fistful of Barrels", which I also recommend. The music is latin but lively, and thoughtfully selected. You also get a healthy sense for what's IMperfect about the wave at La Jolla when pros are complaining about the swift current and the heavy drops.
Aquatic Dreams looks low-budget but delivers a pretty high action quotient. It's not groundbreaking in any way. The WA barrelling right sequence gets repetitive (Gas Bay?) but the waves are sick and it's not the Box. Expectations were fairly modest for this one and in my opinion it over-delivered.
Labels: g-land, ht's, la jolla, macaronis, puerto escondido, rifles, surfing, young guns 2