Disappointing

Rating: 3/10 (9 January 2016)

Yes the action is far more exciting in this version and yes the photography is terrific, along with the music. But where it fails, and it does so very badly, is in the story, the acting, and especially the editing
Recall the original - Patrick Swayze plays the surfer and Kenau Reeves is the quarterback, along with Gary Busey before he got into the motorcycle accident. Then there was fragile Lori Petty who played "the girl". All 4 of these actors did memorable jobs in the 1991 version, but here in 2015, only Ray Winstone adds a bit of showmanship.
The current version instead of being US centric is Euro centric, which I guess someone figured out might make more money but doesn't make for a better film. The film's star and most of the cast were unknown to me, which isn't necessarily bad if they bring something to the table. I thought they didn't.
But worst of all is the editing. What must have been incredible stunts are reduced to edited pieces so that the true nature of the stunt is never captured. By doing quick edits the story lacks the true impact of the stunts, and could have been done on a sound stage in some cases. Here is one film in which long takes would have been mandatory, but they are rare.