Riding Giants
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| Riding Giants | |
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| Directed by | Stacy Peralta |
| Produced by | Agi Orsi (producer)Laird Hamilton (executive producer) |
| Written by | Stacy Peralta Sam George |
| Narrated by | Stacy Peralta |
| Starring | Greg Noll Jeff Clark Laird Hamilton Gerry Lopez Kelly Slater |
| Music by | Matter |
| Cinematography | Peter Pilafian |
| Editing by | Paul Crowder |
| Distributed by | Sony Pictures Classics |
| Release date(s) | 2004 |
| Running time | 104 min. |
| Country | USA / France |
| Language | English |
| Official website | |
| All Movie Guide profile | |
| IMDb profile | |
Riding Giants is a 2004 documentary film directed and narrated by Stacy Peralta, a famous skater/surfer who helped to define modern skateboarding. The movie traces the origins of surfing and specifically focuses on the art of big wave riding. Some of the featured surfers are Greg Noll, Laird Hamilton, and Jeff Clark, and surfing pioneers such as Mickey Munoz.
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[edit] Synopsis
The film begins with a historical overview, starting at its Hawaiian beginnings, then moves on to focus on the dangerous lure of big wave surfing (surfing waves that can reach up to 70 feet). The documentary chronicles the evolution of riding at Hawaii's Waimea Bay in the 1950s, the revolution of lighter boards, and tow-in surfing to allow for "riding giants". Three surfers who are part of this multigenerational evolution are spotlighted: Greg Noll is shown as a fearless big wave rider during the 1950s and 60s; Jeff Clark who discovered Mavericks in Northern California and surfed there alone for years; and Laird Hamilton, the contemporary surfer who brings tow-in riding to the limelight.
[edit] Production
Peralta previously directed the acclaimed documentary Dogtown and Z-Boys, which documented the rise of skateboarding, of which he was an integral part. The success of that film helped give him the financial ability to create Riding Giants. He has said that the primary purpose of making a surfing documentary was that he "wanted to see a film like this," and that he hoped it helped to answer the question "why people choose to devote their entire lives to the pursuit of riding waves." [1]
Riding Giants utilizes stills, archive footage, home movies, and interviews. Some of the surfers interviewed include Jeff Clark, Laird Hamilton, Dave Kalama, Gerry Lopez, Greg Noll, and Kelly Slater.
[edit] Reception
Riding Giants was the first documentary film to open the Sundance Film Festival. It won the 2004 A.C.E. Eddie Award for Best Edited Documentary by editor Paul Crowder. According to Rotten Tomatoes, the film has a 92% fresh rating, having earned mostly positive reviews from critics. Roger Ebert said in his review, "Before seeing Riding Giants, my ideas about surfing were formed by the Gidget movies, Endless Summer, the Beach Boys, Elvis and lots of TV commercials. Riding Giants is about altogether another reality."
[edit] References
- Riding Giants interview with Stacy Peralta at Sony Pictures Classics
- Riding Giants Reviews at Rotten Tomatoes
[edit] See also
[edit] External links
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