Easky Britton surfs Aileens - pic (c) waveriders

Just in from a preview screening of Waveriders in Sligo and have to recommend it as a go see this week in the cinemas.  You might have heard of Waveriders from its premiere in Dublin Film Fest this year, or if you live in the northwest you’ll have heard the tales from it being filmed over the past few years no doubt; Kelly Slater making a visit, the lads going out to surf Aileens for the first time or the huge waves that came with the 2007 storms which these guys subsequently rode for the climax of the film.  

I’m not a surfer, nor will I ever be (tried it once in lovely sunny climes for a week and even then it still wasn’t for me, so I am way too wussy for irish water) but I have a huge fascination with it- well more with the waves and with our need to conquer them.  If you live in Sligo you can’t get too far from it- the sea or the surfing- and to see the positive impact it’s had on Sligo and Ireland over the past 20 years or so you couldn’t but appreciate it.  I remember very clearly when strandhill beach was a dreary spot filled with amusement arcades and little else and now it’s all seaweed baths, great bars, surf shops and tons of people.  But I digress…my point was to be that even as a non-surfer this film is a great watch, expecially on the big screen. 

The director/filmmaker Joel Conroy mentioned that his main motivation was to make a film that illustrated the great beauty of ireland and the irish surfing scene in a contemporary way and he certainly achieved that. He said he wanted to steer away from “surf porn” or candid camera-ish wipeout sequence, a decision which has allowed the film to be about the surfing and the scenery and the irish spirit. It’s certainly majestic and perhaps, as one of the audience suggested in the Q&A, epic.  For the shots alone I would get out to see it on the big screen. Those waves are so enormous, especially Aileen’s and the big swell at Mullaghmore, and to see how expertly Gabe Davies and Richard Fitzgerald tackle them is just something else.  I will never get remotely that close to a wave or to that feeling of thrill and terror and adrenalin and achievement that they clearly feel. The film brings you about as close to that feeling as you’ll ever get from dry land, and seeing Kelly Slater wind his way effortlessly along a wave for what seems like days (or maybe I could just watch it for days) makes you appreciate the sheer athleticism of the thing.

Richard Fitzgerald, Chris Malloy, Gabe Davies and Keith Malloy at the Cliffs of Moher, Co. Clare, Ireland

The movie tells the tale of the creation of modern day surfing- conveniently by a man with irish ancestry- from the early 1900′s in hawaii through the boom in California in the  60′s and 70′s on to the emergence in Ireland in the 80′s. There are times in the early part of the history bit where I did wonder about the relevance but having seen the full film I get it.  The history is really well researched (and, as Joel Conroy reveled in the Q&A, went a long way to establishing the official story of the irish/hawaiin George Freeth) and helps to set the tone for the safety and athletic aspects of the sport. It also charts the history of how ireland got to where it is today, in surf terms, and to understand that you need to fully understand what went before.

Richard Fitzgerald, Gabe Davies, Chris Malloy and Keith Malloy in Doolin, Co. Clare, Ireland. pic Bernard Testimale

Most of all this is a labour of love and a real achievement of a movie. It’s important that irish stories are told by the irish and it’s great to hear the voices of north and south throughout.  It took an age to make (some 5 years) and a great deal of heartache and blood, sweat and tears I’m sure, but it is a testament to all involved and, surfer or not, you should get out to see it while it’s in the movies. It’s crucial to support our own filmamkers, especially when they aspire to such epic proportions, and to see this on the big screen is the way to go.

Incidentally big props to them for a clear, easy to navigate site with tons of info, great sharable content like the flickr pics the youTube and the blog.