Simon Baker’s directorial debut is poetic without being pretentious, capturing the natural beauty of the WA coast and the complexity of coming of age .. .. .from a short story by Tim Winton.
Set in 1970s Western Australia, the film follows two teenage boys Pikelet [Samson Coulter] and Loonie [Ben Spence] as they awkwardly carry their crappy surfboards out to the beach on their bikes. When former surf champ Sando [Simon Baker] takes the boys under his wing, their passion for the surf becomes an obsession with upping the odds. While Loonie lives up to his name when it comes to taking risks on the ocean, Pikelet is more contemplative and hesitant, embracing Sando as an exciting role model while observing the quiet commitment of his own father [Richard Roxburgh] to a simple family life. Sando’s intriguingly sidelined wife [Elizabeth Debicki] however hints at risks to be taken ashore.
This visually poetic adaptation of Tim Winton’s novel captures the boy’s obsession with surfing and the allure of living dangerously. SOURCE: NZIFF, 2018