"Surf's Up" Rides an Excellent Wave

This post begins with a fractal called Waves and Whirlpools. It seems singularly appropriate since considering the movie I’ll be reviewing.
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Penguins are clever creatures. They march, they sing and dance, and in Sur's Up, the latest (or is it first) feature from Sony Pictures Animation, they surf--and pretty darn well too!
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Plot-wise, Surf’s Up doesn’t carve out any new territory. Cody Maverick (voiced by Shia LeBoeuf in his 2948th movie this year) is languishing in the backwater burgh (literally!) of Shiverpool Antartica with nothing going for him but his passion for surfing. He meets talent scout Mikey Abramowitz (voiced by hysterical fussbudget Mario Cantone) and travels to Pengu Island with perennial outsider Chicken Joe (voiced by John Heder in full “stoner” mode) who befriends Cody to enter the “Big Z Memorial Classic“. Once on Pengu Island he meets bad boy surfer Tank Evans (Dedrich Bader), love interest Lani the Lifeguard (Zooey Deschanel in her 2152nd movie this year), surf promoter Reggie Belafonte (James Woods) and The Geek (perfectly-cast Jeff Bridges) a former surfer with a secret. The Geek takes Cody under his wing (or is is his flipper) to teach him valueable lessons in surfing and in life. The rest of the plot unfolds by the numbers and anyone who has watched a sports-themed movie can guess the outcome.
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Still, Surf’s Up is more about style than substance. It’s “shot” like a documentary film complete with “old” footage off camera voices and a few shots. Real life surfers Kelly Slater and Rob Machado as well as commentator Sal Masekela help add verisimilitude to the concept. Computer animation continues to evolve at an amazing rate and the look of this movie is nothing short of stunning. The waves look so real you could almost grab a board and surf. The songs on the soundtrack serve to help to movie along.
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The movie has received enthusiastic reviews but it’s not getting the kind of audiences it deserves. There are just too many “bigger“ movies out there (and most of them aren't worth seeing.) I think Surf’s Up deserves to be seen on the big screen but I think it will survive nicely on DVD, Kids will have no trouble following the story and parents will enjoy it as well. Bring the whole family and have a good time.
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FINAL GRADE: A-