2 of 6

Anne Navarro (Catholic News) writes, "Blue Crush is a movie about youthful exuberance with pseudo-profound dialogue about overcoming fear spoken by undemanding characters. The tension in the final scenes is milked for all it's worth, ending almost exactly as the moviegoer would expect anyway. The story dissolves from the mind as the pummeling wave does on the shore. But, oh, those waves."

Brian Shun (Movieguide) calls it "one of the better summer fun movies to grace the screen in a long while. The girls are not the stereotypical Barbie types that you would see in Baywatch; rather, their figures are more realistic, and lean more towards the sporty side as opposed to the bimbo side." Still, he adds a warning: "Viewers should exercise extreme caution due to the obscenities and images of implied fornication."

Not everyone was pleased. "Despite the positive messages about conquering fears and being true to your dreams," says Paul Bicking (Preview), "Blue Crush sinks under vulgar vocabulary and misguided sexual messages."

Michael Elliott (Movie Parables) says, "Stockwell … deserves some credit for breathing a bit of new life into a genre which has never been accused of originality. With a fresh-faced, hard bodied cast and some magnificent camera work, Blue Crush uses the same formula as its predecessors but then layers it with a theme of female empowerment." But he adds, "While the film does have some positive things to say … we shouldn't approach it with the expectation of seeing behavior we would want our daughters to emulate."

Phil Boatwright calls the surfing "awesome," but he is worried that, although these female characters show considerable dedication to their work, they seem to be "exploiting their bodies in order to gain acceptance." He concludes with a caution. "Note to my younger readers: It's a natural desire to want to look at the opposite sex. And sexuality is certainly a driving force in this realm. But, because our culture is so dominated by sexual exploitation, maybe we should be careful about how often we expose ourselves to things sexual."

Steven Isaac (Focus on the Family) remarks he was surprised at the film's emphasis of the dangers that surfers face out there on the waves. He adds, "It's too bad other dangerous activities presented in the movie (sex and wild partying) aren't given as much scrutiny."

Mainstream critics celebrated the exhilarating cinematography, engaging performances, and the unusually compelling story.

But MaryAnn Johanson (Flick Filosopher) argued from a different point of view. "Blue Crush teases the hopeful girl critic for a while, misleading her into thinking it has something of substance to offer. Any girl trying to follow her bliss can identify. [But] it doesn't take long for the story of smart and tough women to devolve into a slick, simplistic washout, all beautiful cinematography and standard sports platitudes. 'When you fall off a wave, you gotta get right back on it again,' or something."

Author A.S. Byatt won the Booker Prize for her 1990 novel, Possession. It tells the story of two British academics, Roland Michell and Maud Bailey, and two Victorian poets, Randolph Henry Ashe and Christabel LaMotte. Michell is researching Ashe when he discovers clues that the writer might have carried on a secret love affair with the lesser-known LaMotte. Bailey, an expert and a descendent of LaMotte, denies it. But as the two begin following the clues together, they begin to uncover a scandalous story, one that excites not only their academic curiosity, but their desire for each other as well. The story jumps back and forth between their present-day research and the past extramarital affair.

next page... |  2 of 6

share this page

August (Web-only) 2002, Vol. 46