“Riding Giants” is a salubrious documentary on the history of colossal wave surfing, directed and co-written by Stacy Peralta, who also made 2001’s skateboarding documentary “Dogtown and Z-Boys”. Peralta was a Z-Boy himself, as well as a skateboarding manufacturer and videomaker, so “Dogtown” was very distinguished his element. But “Riding Giants” surpasses “Dogtown” with improved technical proficiency, writing, and editing. It’s a dynamic record of the history of the surfing subculture, starting centuries ago, but focusing on the past 55 years, which saw surfing explode into mainstream culture and become extraordinarily athletic and increasingly plucky.
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“Riding Giants” has 3 parts or acts, each concentrating on one surfing innovator and the culture in which he thrived. The first act explores the world of Greg Noll, surfing’s flamboyant celebrity of the 1950s and 1960s. Interviews with Noll and other surfing giants of the time, including Ricky Grigg, Mickey Munoz, and Mike Stang, rob us through the genesis of the surfing lifestyle in Southern California to Hawaii’s Waimea Bay, through the explosion in surfing popularity brought on by “Gidget” in 1959, up until Noll surfed “the greatest swell of the 20th century” at Makaha in December of 1969. “Riding Giants”‘ second act focuses on Jeff Clark and the surfers of Maverick’s in Northern California. Clark tells the tale of surfing Maverick’s alone for 15 years before finally convincing 2 other surfers to join him in 1990. Maverick’s surfers talk about the challenges of frigid water, fog, and rocks and the day that Heed Foo died. The third act of “Riding Giants” profiles Laird Hamilton, a man who has been described as the “best immense wave rider the world has seen”, and explores the relatively current field of tow-in surfing, in which surfing becomes a partnership instead of a solitary pursuit. A tow-in by a jet ski provides surfers with the hurry required to score expansive waves -up to 80 feet- at mighty worry. Hamilton and fellow surfers Darrick Doerner, Dave Kalama, and Gerry Lopez talk about discovering the tow-in technique and surfing Peahi (Jaws) .
To protest the record of surfing’s history, “Riding Giants” makes utilize of venerable movie footage provided by Greg Noll, hundreds of archival photographs, interviews with surfers who were there, and the knowledge of co-writer Sam George, the editor of “Surfer” magazine. Fresh footage of Waimea, Maverick’s, and Peahi, some of which is quite magnificent, conveys the beauty and improbable power of grand waves. A digital technique that transforms a calm photograph into a 3-dimensional image and allows the “camera” to pull through it has been applied to some photos of gigantic waves with spectacular carry out. In short, this is not only an informative film; it is also quite sparkling. “Riding Giants” successfully communicates the exhilaration of spacious wave surfers, so that even someone like me, who doesn’t care mighty for water, can understand their passion and applaud their accomplishments. “Riding Giants” is a wonderfully spicy gaze at the world of large wave surfing that everyone can like. I hope to gape an Oscar nomination for Stacy Peralta.
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The DVD: Bonus features include a making-of documentary, a featurette on the film’s premiere, 5 deleted scenes, 2 promo spots (for the soundtrack and for Quiksilver), and 2 audio commentaries. “The Making of Riding Giants” (27 minutes) starts out discussing the film’s genesis and includes comments by director Stacy Peralta, the producers, Greg Noll, Laird Hamilton, and Paul George. Then it gets into details of how the film was set together: the interviews, editing, sound, and photos, as explained by Peralta and editor Paul Crowder. “Fuel TV’s Blue Carpet Special” (20 minutes) is a section about the film’s Hollywood premiere at the Egyptian Theater that includes interviews and film clips. It’s too long and expressionless. The audio commentaries are both consuming. The first commentary, by director Stacy Peralta and editor Paul Crowder, is about filmmaking. Peralta and Crowder discuss the technical aspects of putting the film together. The one fault that I get is that they frequently talk about the film’s music, but we cannot hear what they’re referring to, as the film’s audio is turned off for this entire commentary. The second commentary, by Sam George, Greg Noll, Jeff Clark, and Laird Hamilton, is about surfing. They don’t discuss making the film, but they comment on everything that they observe in the film, including more details about the archival footage and commentary on nearly every surfer who appears onscreen. Aspiring documentarians will devour Peralta and Crowder’s audio commentary. The surfers’ commentary is fair involving for a wide audience. Subtitles for the film are available in English and French.
While the Billabong Odyssey tried to recreate The Endless Summer for the immense wave surfing region, Riding Giants is mighty more ambitious. New from the success of his documentary on `70s skateboarding, Dogtown and the Z Boys, Stacy Peralta takes the next logical step and tackles the history of huge wave surfing. What makes these men and women trip such substantial waves and hasten the risk, in some cases, of almost sure death? This doc attempts to acknowledge that seek information from.
Peralta breaks things down into three acts, each one dominated by three legends of the sport from different eras. Greg Noll is a notorious surfer who rode the biggest wave ever. Jeff Clark tamed the wild surf 20 miles from San Francisco known as Mavericks. Laird Hamilton, the greatest stout wave surfer of his generation, pioneered a recent map for riding large waves further from the shore than had been previous attempted.
There is an audio commentary by Stacy Peralta and his editor Paul Crowder. They talk at length about the film was place together in terms of editing. This is an absorbing, informative track.
Surfing fans are in for a genuine treat with the second commentary track that features surfers, Sam George, Greg Noll, Jeff Clark and Laird Hamilton. It’s broad to hear these guys, especially Noll, grunt ancient stories and nick loose with surf lingo. They joke and have fun watching the movie. It is also exciting to hear them talk about the technique of various surfers.
“The Making of Riding Giants” is a 28-minute sight at how Peralta made this doc. Peralta even talks about how he did his research and organized his doc.
“Fuel TV’s Blue Carpet Special” is a 20-minute peep at the premiere of the film at the Egyptian Theater with stars like John Cusack in attendance.
Also included are five deleted scenes that include plenty of surfing sequences that were chop for time and a slightly different ending that would have utilized a Coldplay song.
There are also promos for the soundtrack and surf gear company Quiksilver.
Riding Giants presents an tantalizing view at the history of spacious wave surfing and the men and women who notice the ultimate wave: one that is bigger and larger than anyone has experienced before. This is a astonishing documentary, quite possibly the best one on surfing since The Endless Summer. It is easy for the newcomer to understand and indulge in and yet it also treats its subject with respect as well.
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