Editorial Staff
Woah.
Instead of a direct sequel to the ‘90s classic (“Point Break : Indo”, as it was then called, would’ve starred Cam Gigandet as a Johnny Utah-type caught up with bad-boy Surfers in South Africa), someone’s dusty crystal ball informed Hollywood that better idea would be to do-over the Keanu Reeves-Patrick Swayze flick “Point Break”.
And while you were diverted by your own loud groans and unpleasant tummy rumbles (“There can be only one Pappas – Gary Busey”, someone who said to have yelled from the top of the Hollywood sign, where they consequently decided taking a nosedive off it, instead of having to sit through a Busey-less remake, was the better way to go), director Ericson Core set out to convince Gerard Butler and Luke Bracey that they were the best man to fill the board shorts of today’s incarnations of Bodhi and Utah.
Dude.
While washboard stomachs are being oiled, Alcon Entertainment and scribe Kurt immer are putting the finishing touches to the shooting script. What we know already is that the film won’t be – like the original – so much set in the world of surfing, as it will extreme sports (a’la “xXx”), but how else will the movie differ from Kathryn Bigelow’s original?
I can tell you already, it’s not going to differ too much – the main and secondary characters remain the same, their back stories essentially remain the same, the tone remains the same, and yes, Utah will forget about Pappas again. Poor Pappas.
So, to these ten things…..
I could merely write “It’s unnecessary” 10 different ways, but I won’t. Here’s a small batch of tidbits about the new movie, pointing out the film’s very subtle differences to its 1991 predecessor.
1. Lot of the film is set in Asota, situated in the Italian Alps; known for it’s awesome SNOWY ‘mountains’ (yep, these guys aren’t so much into water activities as they are…this stuff).
2. Johnny Utah – or ‘Johnny Utah Brigham’ – is a YouTube sensation. A big bike and snow rider sensation from way back he left the extreme sports game about five years back after a kid on his line got killed riding a mountain (which he was somewhat responsible for) and his sponsors didn’t want to support him anymore. Now, he stays off the alps.
3. Utah befriends Bodhi and his crew on the water – as per the first film – where he catches their eye by way of some trendy water tricks. They’re confused, of course, why a “mountain rider” would even be on the water in the first place (again, a reminder that these guys are more about surfing mountains than surfing waves)
4. Utah’s cover? Um… He spruiks sports drinks. Of course. Bodhi, being a nice guy, doesn’t judge him though.
5. Bodhi still has his ‘big wave’-like dream – in this case, ‘the eight’ essentially a chain of the biggest and baddest things for extreme sportsman to do. These guys all have a death wish, of course, and aren’t afraid to cop out young if it means experiencing the ultimate thrill. And when does it all end? (as one character asks in the film) It doesn’t.
6. All of Bodhi’s bank robbers troupe – Grommet, Roach etc – are back. And yes, most are stick pricks. Most of them refer to Utah as “U-Tube”.
7. With Bodhi’s crew, Utah is talked into riding one scary-ass mountain – just as the storm is approaching, of course. After what happened on his last mountain ride, Utah is naturally dripping with sweat about getting back on a ‘line’. I’m thinking, with a slick cinematographer at the helm, these scenes could look, er, fully sick.
8. Pascal Al Fariq, a millionaire playboy, is kicking about with Bodhi and his band of followers. He buys his way into groups, onto mountains and so on. The rich kid, who owns race horses and whose father is some sort of Larry Ellison-type, has paid for the privilege of kicking around with Bodhi and the guys, and partaking in the same mountain rides, and so on Pascal essentially picks up the bill for everything too; still, none of Bodhi’s troupe has much respect for the kid.
9. There are lots of parties. Lots of boat rages. Lots of hot German chicks. A love interest for Bodhi – of course. And yes, she’s torn between right and wrong herself. Mountain-chasing life is one big party.
10. In addition to the other fun stuff he partakes in with the crims, Utah is slowly seduced by the thrill of doing ‘The Eight’, and, like in the original, becomes somewhat of a best bud to the charming, fearless Bodhi.
What I want to know… who is playing Pappas!?
Will it be good? Anyone’s guess! We’ll find out in 2015.
