Genre Grandeur – Point Break (1991) – Sweet Archive

For this month’s next review for Genre Grandeur – Heist Films, here’s a review of Point Break (1991) by Reut of Sweet Archive

Thanks again to Drew of Drew’s Movie Reviews.  for choosing this month’s genre.

Due to the Jewish holiday of Passover which falls out this year at the end of April, I will be mostly unavailable for a week, so I decided to postpone GG until May.

May’s Genre has been chosen by Damien of Riley Central. We will be reviewing our favorite Adventure Movies.

Please get me your submissions by the 25th of May by sending them to damienadventure@movierob.net  Try to think out of the box! Great choice Damien!

Let’s see what Reut thought of this movie:

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Point Break (1991)

An FBI agent goes undercover to catch a gang of surfers who may be bank robbers (via IMDb).

I’m not that into remakes and so I’m staying true to the awesome 1991 movie.

Seeing it for the millionth time, Point Break became one of my favorites, mainly because of its awesome 90’s lingo and hot tattooed bods of all those surfer dudes just does it for me every single time!!!

The cast is great, starring Keanu Reeves as Johnny Utah, Patrick Swayze as Bodhisattva, Lori Petty as Utah’s surf crush, Tyler, and Gary Busey as Utah Partner, Pappas, and there’s even a young Anthony Kiedis ruffling feathers over there. But I guess you already knew all of that. I’ll start with one down point, and I apologies for that, but Keanu’s acting needed some serious adjustments as Utah!! The guy can’t act for shit, sounding like a pompous ass most of the time, but I guess he makes up for it by just looking pretty. Researching on the film a little, I read the Keanu was quite the newbie when casted for the role of Utah. Director Kathryn Bigelow insisted on turning this tall, dark and handsome into a star. Patrick Swayze rocked the role of spiritually Bodhisattva!

Point Break is all about a classic friendly rivalry. Bodhi and Utah represent two opposite sides of the extreme, with Utah being the clean-cut former quarterback cutie who fights for justice, and Bodhi as the philosophical ruffian that rebels against society. Both are true believers of what they stand behind, however, still manage to form a respectful friendship which hardens their rivalry, and there’s a thin line between the good and bad until you’re not quite sure which side you’re on.

Bodhisattva is one of Swayze’s most unforgettable roles, if not THE one. He’s a charismatic surfer who loves living life to the full. He robs banks to fund his lifestyle during the summer, and is obsessed with one thing only: the ride the ultimate wave. He’s slightly deranged and willing to pursue crime as long as it’ll get him closer to his goal. When Swayze read the script of Point Break he wanted the role of Bodhi explaining that Bodhi’s spiritual reflections match his own.

The surfing world always intrigued me. The language, the fashion, the lifestyle, the gangs. Surfers run in packs. They rule territories which aren’t to be trespassed by others. The idea of translating the surfing culture into a crime film is genius, as in Point Break, Bodhi and his avid group of followers stick together not only on water but on land as well. They are a wild bunch of adrenaline freaks who get a kick out of dangerous and exciting activities. It’s not your usual crime movie with villains and gunshots. The whole surfing thing creates an interesting detour to another form of culture entirely, and kind of drifts you away to a whole new story. You want to become one of them, you want to follow them, and you almost envy them. They stick together with such loyalty no matter what. It’s almost beautiful.

Point Break is a bona fide cult film. I don’t think there’s any surfer out there not familiar with the name Bodhi. I think the movie is an adrenaline rush on its own. I love watching, and I think it’s cleverly made, not to mention the OST is so good. I would even forgive Keanu for “could be better” Johnny Utah. This movie’s a total BADASS!