The Endless Summer II

In my second review of the day, the 1994 surfing documentary sequel to the original 60's cult classic that I talked about on Letterboxd several days ago but neglected to post here until now: 

I couldn’t turn down the opportunity to view a rare showing of the documentary on Turner Classic Movies when they played the film (Tuesday) night. Otherwise, aside from YouTube (which is a VHS rip upscaled) it’s impossible to stream the movie in its original aspect ratio. In the past I reviewed the cult classic 60’s surfing film and just last week, two early Bruce Brown surfing pictures were reviewed in one day when they played on TCM.

Alongside some comedy sketches and scenes at surfing hotbeds w/ other people, the majority of the picture is two young surfers (Patrick O’Connell and Robert “Wingnut” Weaver) echoing the original film by visiting various locations across the world to find the perfect wave. They first travel to Costa Rica w/ Robert August, one of the two surfers from The Endless Summer and they all ride waves. 

A few others from the 60’s film return to the sequel. The style is the same-including the wry narration-but the filmmaking is greatly improved due to it being an actual professional production with multiple cameramen (and women) instead of Bruce Brown filming everything on one 16mm camera… although the end credits did joke it was of course much more barebones than a fictional film production.

It was fascinating seeing some locations from the 60’s visited 30 years later and noting how the sport has changed SO much—the popularity, the boards, the surfing style, a professional circuit for money (Kelly Slater and Laird Hamilton are among the pros that appear; I mention the former specifically as he’s probably the most famous of all time and skill-wise, certainly is the best), etc. As I proclaimed last week, it’s amazing that in 2024, surfing is a medal sport at the Summer Olympics for the second time.

Those that dig The Endless Summer should naturally track down its sequel as it is a rewarding journey which celebrates how the subject exploded in popularity; sure, losing its niche appeal is a shame for those that love a counter-culture lifestyle, but it also celebrates a sport that’s been around for at least a few thousand years.