Surf movies have graced the world’s screens since the 1940s, in both documentary and fiction forms; however for the past two decades, their mention brings one title to mind. Kathryn Bigelow’s 1991 hit Point Break redefined audience expectations of cinematic wave-riding, with many that followed in its wake – Blue Juice and now Drift among them – also complementing ocean exploits with lashings of crime. The latter film, one of only a handful of surfing dramas made in Australia in the past 30 years (alongside Puberty Blues, Tan Lines, Newcastle and, arguably, The Coolangatta Gold) balances an exploration of coastal life with the consequences of hard times.
Based on a true story, Drift is set in the surf-obsessed climes of Western Australia in the 1970s. Andy Kelly (Myles Pollard, Thirst) languishes as a logger, while his younger brother Jimmy (Xavier Samuel, Bait) blitzes surf competitions; their mother Kat (Robyn Malcolm, TV’s Top of the Lake) sews from home to pay the mortgage. The arrival of free-spirited photographer JB (Sam Worthington, Wrath of the Titans) and his Hawaiian friend Lani (Lesley-Ann Brandt, Spartacus: Gods of the Arena) highlights the family’s daily drudgery. The Kelly clan are inspired to turn their hobby into a surf wear and board building business, even if the local banks and bikies have other plans.
Actor-turned-writer/director Morgan O’Neill (Solo) teams up with first-time helmer Ben Nott to craft a leisurely, crime-infused surfing drama, albeit one highly reliant upon cliché and convention. In a story written by O’Neill and producer Tim Duffy (documentary Let’s Talk About Sex), nothing exceeds or subverts expectations. The narrative is simply content to relate the efforts of a family of underdogs, the outsiders who spark their dreams, and the hostile conditions conspiring to see them fail – with all the usual tropes sighted along the way.
If the standard tale retains interest, it is due to enthusiastic lead performances from Pollard and Samuel as the central struggling siblings. Their characters may be adversarial one-dimensional constructs designed to heighten tension, but their rapport remains, with both doing better with the material than their co-stars. Worthington proves little more than a ‘mystical hippie’ stereotype in the script and on the screen; as the key antagonist, Steve Bastoni (Underbelly) is only required to look menacing in a leather jacket. Malcolm and Brandt hover in the background, laden with trite dialogue.
Thankfully, the spectacle of rolling waves and swelling oceans, as sumptuously captured by cinematographer Geoffrey Hall (Red Dog) helps distract from the film’s less than successful elements. While Drift relies too heavily upon such evocative imagery, the repetitive scenes of breaks and crashes remain the feature’s strength; the remainder, although enthusiastically assembled, wades in the shallow end.
Rating: 2 ½ stars out of 5
Drift
Directors: Ben Nott and Morgan O’Neill
Australia, 2013, 113 mins
Release date: May 2
Distributor: Hopscotch
Rated: M
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