The concept was to surf on beaches that had never been surfed before. This led them Africa, Australia, New Zealand and Tahiti. And, naturally California and Hawaii. Sometimes the surf was to their liking. Sometimes it was not. But always it was an adventure, the kind of adventure that I quickly got caught up in even though it all seemed like a home movie and the camera was old fashioned. I remember one spot where there is a long smooth wave to ride and the narrator notes that the wave was so long that he ran out of film, stopped shooting, changed the film, and was able to continue filming the surfer on the same wave.

As the film was made in 1966, it expressed a view of the world that is not politically correct today. For example, there are a lot of little jokes about the "natives" in an African tribe. But in spite of the words, it was obvious that everyone in the tribe enjoyed watching the surfers. Later, with the help of our surfers, these "natives" tried it themselves and soon were improvising their own surfboards.

There are a lot of beaches in the world. But the sport was perfected in Hawaii as pure recreation. That's the way the Hawaiians lived for centuries. Our two surfers came from California, a place very much influenced by Hawaiian surfers.

Other details about 1966 stood out and made me smile. For example, a luxury hotel in Senegal cost $30 per night, which they thought was outlandishly expensive. Gas cost $1.00 a gallon in Africa, a very high cost. And the hairstyles of the two light-haired and sometimes sunburned surfers were short and slicked back with lots and lots of grease. Also, the bodies of the surfers did not look like the surfers today. The two men had narrow chests and the musculature in their arms and legs was just enough to handle their surfboards. Obviously, they never worked out in a gym. They just rode those waves. And loved every minute of it.

This is a film that was made with the pure love of the sport. It is indeed a classic. And a "must" for anyone interested surfing.


In Search of that perfect wave.   January 5, 2001
 23 out of 23 found this review helpful

This classic surfing documentary retains its charm, high quality, humor and nostalgia. Bruce Brown's 1966 Endless Summer was one of the first and remains one of the best documentaries on surfing. It's a laid-back almost relaxing documentary to watch which occassionally features some awesome displays of surfing pioneers hanging ten on perfect, imperfect and very dangerous waves. Tubes, Pipes, perfect waves, surfing towards, and away from the shore, ridin' the wave, wipe out. . . it's all here.

This was a low budget affair, but the camera-work and richness of color is quite impressive. Most of the footage was shot silent with sound-effects and narration and occassional music added later. Don't expect to hear the Beach Boys, or the Ventures or even Dick Dale on the soundtrack--you won't. You won't get MTV fast edits, or occassional messages about pollution, over-population, or politics either.

That's refreshing.

Most refreshing of all is that you won't see a lot of ads for sneakers or cars, or sporting goods plastered all over the surfboards or cars of the surfers either. It was a less chaotic, simpler time.

The movie follows two young surfers Robert August and Mike Hynson as they follow Summer around the world. First after leaving their native California and the crowded beaches of Malibu, Santa Cruz and Newport Beach (the Wedge) they travel to Africa and surf places probably no one has ever surfed before (and have to be careful not to step on dangerous and lethal stone fish). The natives are fascinated by the California surfers and their sport. Soon Robert and Mike are giving surf lessons to the natives. They hitch a ride with an African Game Hunter and travel along the coast with a perfect tour guide. They find the perfect wave. In Australia, Mike and Robert don't have good luck and are told the best time to surf in Australia isn't in the Summer (which is the U.S.'s late fall, early winter), but in the winter. They have a little better luck in New Zealand, and as they go off to Tahiti they are told there is very little to surf in Tahiti. Ah but there turns out to be plenty to surf in Tahiti. Then Mike and Robert are off to Hawaii for two months where water and air temperatures are 75 degrees.

While there will be a few folks who will find Bruce Brown's narration (Bruce an early surfing enthusiast wrote, directed, photographed, edited and narrated this film) annoying, most will find his disarming, tongue in cheek humorous laid back narration utterly charming. And there are no contests or points or organized competitions taking place. It's simply a film about two surfing dudes in 1965 travelling around the world to catch a wave.

28 years later, Bruce Brown would make a well produced sequel to this documentary Endless Summer 2. It's got better production values, more exciting surfing action.... but it lacks the simple purity of this film.

A gem. If I've sparked any positive curiousity in you about this film, you'll enjoy it. ...


The Perfect Wave ---- A Beautiful Journey !   December 5, 2000
 17 out of 18 found this review helpful

"The Endless Summer" is truly a thing of beauty. Bruce Brown captures so much greatness -- the warmth of the sun, the ocean's vast power and the bond of friendship -- and ties it all up in a humorous and touching tale about surfing. We the audience are swept away to exotic locales -- Hawaii, Australia, and Africa --following the carefree journey of surfers Robert August and Mike Hynson. Undoubtedly the luckiest guys in the world, Mike and Robert goof to the max as Brown's hokey, but oh so funny narration keeps us entertained. In fact, throughout the film, we hear only Brown's voice and some really cool 60's surf instrumentals. I truly love "Endless Summer". It effectively captures a time and, perhaps, an innocence which is forever gone. Most of all, it captures our imagination. Who among us wouldn't trade our stressful lives for a life of endless sun, sand and surf? Until I can capture the peace of mind so beautifully expressed in "Endless Summer", I'll just have to watch the video over and over again. Enjoy it. Surf's up!


The ultimate surfer movie   March 5, 2004
 13 out of 15 found this review helpful

Wow, this is one of those movies that those of us who watched it in 1966 when it was released are now proud to show to our own children - giving them an example of what a REAL surfing movie should be.
Shot as a documentary by Bruce Brown, it follows two surfers as they trek around the world, looking for the perfect wave. Do they find it? Contrary to our love of the ambiguous ending, yes, they do find it, down in South Africa on a beach where the wave starts at the tip and seems to go on and on and on, following the coast long enough that you think, by the time the surfers beach themselves, they'll probably need a taxi or a train to take them back to their point of origin.
There's not a huge story line, but that's an advantage. It allows Brown to focus on subtler themes: the sun, the ocean, friendship, travel, and a period of innocence which is gone forever.
This is definitely one to buy and to watch over and over and over.


The Big Kahuna   May 20, 2004
 12 out of 12 found this review helpful

This movie captures a time and a place, or should I say places, as Bruce Brown follows two surfers around the world in an endless summer of exotic locales including West Africa and the perfect wave in southern Africa, which never seemed to end. Surfing was a new thing in Cape Town and many would-be surfers flocked to see Hynson and August, but the best moments are the more candid ones such as in Senegal, when they turn over their boards to the locals and are amazed to see the chief get up on his first wave. The adventure takes in Australia, Tahiti and Hawaii as well, bringing them back to Malibu to close off what has to be the quentessential surfer's movie. Brown followed it up with Endless Summer II, but it lacked the spontaniety of the original as he went back to many of the same places many years later. This movie captures the romance of the big wave like no other movie, and is one you can watch over and over again.