Red Surf (1989)

Red Surf Film Details

Overview: A surfer enjoys life with drug money together with his gang in 1980s California. His girlfriend is pregnant and will not be in a house with drugs and guns and is going to Portland OR. Can he quit the drugs, the gang and that last big deal?

Tagline: As gang leaders they were brutal – but when they tried to get a normal life hell broke loose!

Review: SPOILER A long time ago: when I was really into independent low-budget films and had no idea who George Clooney was, I watched ‘Red Surf’ and remember liking it A LOT! I bought it two years ago really cheaply on DVD, and was surprised that George Clooney was the actual star of this film I remembered seeing as a teen. When I originally saw it on video, George Clooney wasn’t famous, so I paid no attention to the actors in the film, but I remember distinctly liking this low-budget film with jet-skis and drug deals gone wrong. That’s why I bought it! Now, I have no idea why I bought it! Maybe when I originally watched it, I thought the low-budget story of friendship spliced with action somehow resonated well with me. The second time round, it wasn’t as great as I remembered it, but I’m finding that in many circumstances these days. I do think that certain films work at certain ages, and for some reason, I fondly remembered this in my youth. Not that it is completely terrible or anything. It’s just not worth owning. It’s a decent low-budget action film, with an urban late 80s/early 90s feel to it. However, the film lacks focus and a good script, and some parts are really quite corny. The main duo (George Clooney and Doug Savant) decide to save a friend who sold them out, and only one of them seems to have common sense. Some of the acting is a bit ordinary too, even from Mr Clooney, but he still manages to transcend that leadership quality that he has with most of his characters in this movie as the alcohol-fuelled would-be parent and failed surfer in Mark Remar. Regardless of the overall plot, this is still pretty entertaining, particularly with the final shoot-out scene. Worth checking out for old-school George Clooney, and for Gene Simmons as Doc (which I didn’t realise both times round), but don’t expect to be anything other than a low-budget B-grade action film with slightly embarrassing early 90s hairstyles and a bad guy with a mullet. So my memory of this film was a lot better than the reality! *** out of *****!

Country: USA

Language: English

Duration: 104 min

Genre: Action, Crime, Drama

Also known as: Red Surf,Surf to Die,Kontra sta kymata,Speed Junkies – Red Surf,Giovani iene,Surf Connection,Tráfico Fatal,Красный прибой,Czerwona fala,Soberanos das Drogas,Кървав сърф,Juventude Perigosa,Red Surf – Explosiv,Malibu -huumerannikko