NipPierce Wow, this is a REALLY bad movie!

Cebalord Very best movie i ever watch

Glimmerubro It is not deep, but it is fun to watch. It does have a bit more of an edge to it than other similar films.

Juana what a terribly boring film. I'm sorry but this is absolutely not deserving of best picture and will be forgotten quickly. Entertaining and engaging cinema? No. Nothing performances with flat faces and mistaking silence for subtlety.

moonspinner55 Serious, if meandering odyssey of three male surfing friends from 1962 to 1974, local legends in the beach towns of Southern California, who reunite after each has come to a personal crossroads in his life. Jan-Michael Vincent's Matt is the troubled one who drinks, Gary Busey's Leroy is the hellraiser and William Katt's Jack is the writer's conscience, the straight arrow, the only one of the trio who goes to war in Vietnam. They have ladies in their lives but no real family, and their mentor is a bearded sage nicknamed Bear who makes surfboards (he gets married and opens his own shop, but we learn that he, too, goes to ruin). Anchored by beautiful Bruce Surtees cinematography (with surfing sequences by Greg MacGillivray), this drama from director John Milius (who also co-wrote the screenplay with Dennis Aaberg) is full of personal remembrances, quiet contemplation in the midst of turmoil, sad reflection and, yes, lots of fisticuffs (what would a Milius film be without them?). Like all movies extracted from a filmmaker's past--his lazy-hazy days of youth, and all that--these people and their decisions and interactions must mean a great deal more to him than to anybody else. Milius tries making the journey a lively one--he certainly makes it a visually handsome one--but he cannot escape clichés...in fact, he appears to embrace them. Once we move past the tumultuous younger years, the boys are already being referred to as "all-timers." It's important that we see the passage of time, but this exemplifies what's wrong with Milius' approach. He's so impatient and heavy-handed, he underlines everything twice, so that we don't miss a trick. ** from ****

Miguel G Gonzalez I've lived here in SoCal, and particularly here in Santa Barbara for a long enough time to recognize that there truly is a zen spirit and loyalty among the surfing community. The soul of the movie seems to be in the spirit of friendship and loyalty and the idea that you remain true to yourself, no matter where you go in the world. I liked it. Also, after seeing a biopic and reading about John Milius, the film seems to be an ode to his youth along the Malibu coastline and how it helped shape him into the man he became.

happipuppi13 I saw the TV ad for this in May of '78 and it looked interesting but I was only 9 or 10,so I didn't get see it. The film was negatively reviewed and only made so much at the box office.Happy to say since then,the film had been on VHS and was finally brought to DVD (which I now have. The film stars Jan-Michael Vincent (big star from that decade),William Katt (later "The Greatest American Hero) and Gary Busey (6 months before the release of "The Buddy Holly Story".)If you ever doubted Busey's or Katt's acting abilities,watch them here,they're awesome. I'd put the film in the "wild" category,because it's a pretty "wild" look at surfing guys from the early 60s to the early 70s and how they grow and change as people in that time. Find this and give it look,you won't be sorry!

ifyougnufilms Panned by most critics when it first arrived, Big Wednesday has won the belated praise of many viewers. It still may seem contrived and hokey to some. It's sentimental. As the director admits, he likes it that way. Opinions about this film may vary according to the age of the critic and the degree to which he or she is a surfing enthusiast. For viewers like me, who rushed out to the California beaches to "live the life" in the early sixties, served a tour in Vietnam, then returned to start a family and steady job, it has visions and music that evoke strong, bittersweet memories. Showing the gradual intrusion of the real world and its effect on the dreamlike freedom of the younger surfers, Big Wednesday can be appreciated as a successful coming-of-age film. Having lived through those changes in American culture, a viewer can easily overlook the film's sometimes melodramatic nature and enjoy the emotional ride. For younger viewers, especially surfers,it still will have great appeal,especially as a depiction of the golden age of youth as represented by breathtaking, magnificently filmed footage of the riders of the Banzai Pipeline and Sunset Beach in Hawaii. The surfing scenes are excellent throughout, with none of the annoying back-projection studio shots as seen in lesser surfer films. The film is not flawless. The houseparty brawl goes into Peckinpah length for no real plot purpose. The let's-fool-the-drafters segment breaks from an accurate portrayal of the times in order to elicit cheap laughs. Even Busey's typical manic-comic madness doesn't save this segment. For characters who are usually portrayed as sympathetic and even respect-worthy, there are some jarring contradictions such as when Leroy brags about making a living as a "candyman" selling drugs to kids, and Matt(who has a child) and Jack (who is supposed to have matured) act as if this is a great joke. Bear seems a contrived and uncharismatic character a la "The Big Kahuna" though he is supposed to be the conveyor of wisdom to Matt. But these less successful aspects can be forgiven for the overall power of the film's emotional impact and its successful capturing of a dramatic decade of American history. It has some great moments as when Matt goes out for his last ride, and his wife,a tough and empathetic character, sends him off with an understanding smile. Perhaps that's a little unrealistic, but it says a lot about the joy and freedom a couple can share. Milius is capable of writing and directing some very subtle, effective moments in this film. (Note: Milius, an accomplished surfer himself, in his voice-over commentary on the making of Big Wednesday offers interesting biographical details and a fascinating view of American culture of the sixties.)