THE LONGEST WAVE - FILM REVIEW
Being fashionably late by approximately 20 minutes, I walked into Warrawong Hoyts and took my seat right up the back of a quarter filled cinema and was immediately confronted with the mythical human that is Robbie Naish on the big screen.The film itself morphed into a crossover of ocean related board sports such as windsurfing, kite surfing, stand up paddle and foiling.
The film dives right into Robbie's competitive background and mindset as an all round waterman, elite athlete and overly obsessed competitor, it is a true hero's journey.The films production is handled by the poor boys who have been putting out some of the world's best oceanic documentaries of late and the cinemaphotography on this feature is nothing but spectacular.
The back bone or main storyline of the film for me is related to Robbie facing a really tough few years with injury, a marriage breakdown and the departure of Kai Lenny from the Naish brand, the transition into old age and the frustration of his body not being on par with the strength of his mind, it's interesting to see his semi delusional stand point and how he stays in a state of denial about the fact that he is finally transitioning out of his prime as a professional athlete, I really related with his staunch attitude about still staying true to his idealism of what it means to be a true waterman.
Robbie teams up with two of his Naish pro team riders in Kai Lenny and Chuck Patterson as they chase a few strike mission swells in pursuit of the longest wave, there is a lot of nostalgic footage in the mix here and showcases Robbie almost father like mentorship of Kai right up until the present day where the relationship transitions into idol turned rival and Kai comes off almost smug or cocky and is almost depicted as Robbie's nemesis or young bull entering the old bulls sphere, you can almost feel the competitiveness through the screen and it makes for a real behind the scenes insight.
The film also has appearances by legendary waterman such as Jerry Lopez and Laird Hamilton.
I was completely immersed in the film and only really dipped out as mentioned above. Definitely worth the $21.50 per ticket, do yourself a favour. link up with some friends and make a night of it, well worth it.
Mickie - Australian Sup life.
Another complimentary review on swellnet by Stu Nettle who's a great surf journo;
www.swellnet.com/news/swellnet-dispatch/2020/11/23/robby-naish-the-longest-wave
Berlinger, the filmaker, made the Metallica film.
Sounds like the kind of movie worth having on the shelf you know the ones you pull out on a wet, onshore weekend arvo with a couple of beers.
Saw it last night in Freo and must admit I found it a bit depressing. I have followed Robbie from my early windsurfing days in the 80's through to kiting and now sup. After all those years and a mostly privileged life he still seems discontented with his life and struggling coming to terms with being over 50.
Select to expand quoteRossall said..
Saw it last night in Freo and must admit I found it a bit depressing. I have followed Robbie from my early windsurfing days in the 80's through to kiting and now sup. After all those years and a mostly privileged life he still seems discontented with his life and struggling coming to terms with being over 50.
It happens to the best of us
The late forties/early fifties age group is a high risk age group for mental health issues.
Nothing we can do about aging except stay active, have fun, be grateful for what we have.
Easier said than done though
That film was preceded by a rough time in his life from the standpoint of family, friends, and partners.
I'm sure, and hopeful that he has fully recovered and ready to dive into the next chapter of his life.
Living the dream has great highs, but with great highs come depressing lows.
