82
Metascore
12 reviews · Provided by Metacritic.com
- 100New York PostLinda StasiNew York PostLinda StasiBruce Brown’s 1966 documentary, perhaps the greatest surfing movie ever made, follows California surfers as they travel the globe in search of the perfect wave.
- The greatest surfing picture of all time, this unassuming piece of counterculture anthropology is so likable that it had kids around the world buying boards and heading to the California coast in search of the perfect barrel.
- The genius of the movie is that it seeks to do no more than record an escape from the burdens of the real world.
- 80Arizona RepublicArizona RepublicIt's fun, it's exciting, it's entertaining. And if you are sure you can smell the salt and the waves when you leave the theater, who knows, you may be right. [09 Feb 1967]
- 80As with a great silent film, one gets the picture just by watching the pictures, and the film is as good with the sound off as it is with it on.
- 75Chicago Sun-TimesRoger EbertChicago Sun-TimesRoger EbertShunning the tons of equipment ordinarily taken along on location, Brown used only what he could carry. The beautiful photography he brought home almost makes you wonder if Hollywood hasn't been trying too hard.
- 75Slant MagazineChris CabinSlant MagazineChris CabinTrue to its title, The Endless Summer exudes a blissful, mellow buzz that could easily be misconstrued as lazy or innocuous filmmaking.
- Only those who find the subject matter utterly disinteresting will be turned off by Brown's devoted, almost fanatical, approach. Otherwise, the film has a low-budget charm that won it many admirers in and out of the surfing community.
- Happily, the viewer is not asked to ponder profundities very often—just to have fun.