Product: Point Break [VHS] (1991)
Rating: 3.0
Action, surfing, sexy young guys=instant cult movie
POINT BREAK(USA - 1991)Aspect ratio: 2.39:1 (Super 35)Theatrical soundtrack: 6-track Dolby Stereo SRKathryn Bigelow's adrenaline-fuelled thriller - co-produced by James Cameron - combines Californian mysticism with pulse-pounding action set-pieces and toplines the iconic figure of Keanu Reeves (fetishized here by Don Peterman's expansive cinematography) as an undercover FBI agent who infiltrates a group of itinerant surfers (led by Patrick Swayze) responsible for a series of daring bank raids. Despite the film's relentless macho swagger, POINT BREAK aims for something more profound than your average summer blockbuster and is distinguished by some extraordinary visual conceits: From the glorious surfing scenes to the action highlights (most notably, Reeves' heart-stopping pursuit of a fleeing bank raider through a suburban landscape) to a show-stopping sky-dive sequence which lifts the film onto another plane altogether, far removed from the typical excesses of American commercial cinema.Lori Petty (TANK GIRL) provides the nominal love interest - and very good she is, too - but W. Peter Iliff's script focuses almost exclusively on the ambiguous relationship between 'good guy' Reeves and 'villain' Swayze, drawing them together in adversity, while the supporting cast is rounded out by the likes of Gary Busey (THE BUDDY HOLLY STORY), John C. McGinley, James LeGros (DRUGSTORE COWBOY), and experienced surfers John Philbin (NORTH SHORE) and Bojesse Christopher (co-writer and director of OUT IN FIFTY [1999]), both exquisitely beautiful. However, Reeves dominates the movie with typical economy and grace, balancing his trademark 'cool dude' persona against the heavier dramatic requirements of his role as a dedicated FBI agent.The narrative stumbles badly toward the end (Swayze's abrupt deviation from established procedure during one of the climactic sequences is totally inexplicable, and the subsequent body count would almost certainly have prompted the FBI to dismiss Reeves from the service long before his final showdown with Swayze), but the film survives primarily as a unique combination of surfing, action and ultra-sexy young actors. Whether by accident or design, POINT BREAK has 'cult movie' written all over it.