Wipe Out
Usually when I watch a movie I do so alone but when I watched "Surf's Up" I did so with some young relatives who are the right age for animations. Well not only was I bored but so were my young relatives who found the style of "Surf's Up" annoying and stupid and I don't mean stupid in a funny way. Now what I should mention is that "Surf's Up" is an animation which is made like a mockumentary with characters being interviewed and speaking directly to a camera, basically the sort of thing which Christopher Guest does so well. But it actually makes "Surf's Up" feel like an animation made for grown ups rather than children but with cute penguins and some other characters it looks like it should be a children's movie.
As to what goes on in "Surf's Up"; well as I said it is a mockumentary about Cody Maverick, a rock hopper penguin who ever since meeting surfing legend Big Zee as a young penguin has vowed to become a surfing legend as well. The camera follows Cody and his friends to the Big Zee Memorial Surf Off on Pen Gu Island where he has to face hot shot surfer Tank Evans.
So in fairness part of me applauds "Surf's Up" purely because it tries to be different with not only a different type of penguin but a different style of movie with the mockumentary / behind the scenes style. But just because it would make it original to do behind the scenes it doesn't necessarily mean its right and by the responses of my young relatives it seems it was a mistake. Oh they found the penguins cute and picked up on some of the jokes such as the lifeguard with a red lobster as a life preserver float thingy but they found the whole talking to camera, interview stuff dull and annoying. They are not the only ones as I was just as bored by it although in fairness I have never really truly dug the whole mockumentary thing.
Aside from the whole mockumentary thing it has to be said the level of humour also seems to be aimed at a more grown up crowd. Yes the penguins are cute and there are some obligatory quirky characters in the mix but with a lot of the humour coming from what it is said again it seems less interested in catering for children but for grown ups.
What this all boils down to is that "Surf's Up" just didn't work for me or for my young relatives who were as bored as I was. I guess those who love mockumentaries might enjoy this as well as those who are surfers but beyond that this seems like a case of just because we can we shouldn't.
