Surf's Up

Plot synopsis:
A couple of unseen filmmakers (Ash Brannon and Chris Buck) arrive in Shiverpool, a small fishing village inhabited by rockhopper penguins in Antarctica, to document the life of a teen surfer named Cody Maverick (Shia LaBeouf). Cody is the only surfer in his community and is often shunned by the other penguins, including his big brother Glen (Brian Posehn) who regularly belittles him. Cody's mother, Edna (Dana Belben), is impartial to Cody's lifestyle but would rather see him work and is often preoccupied with her own. She acknowledges the fact that life is often hard for Cody since he's so much smaller than his brother and that he grew up without knowing his father; featured in a picture holding a fish just before being swallowed by an orca. Cody explains that his passion for surfing started when one of the most famous penguin surfers, Big Z, visited Shiverpool on a tour and gave young Cody a 'one-of-a-kind' shell necklace. Ever since then, Cody has dreamed of being as good a surfer as Z and dreams of one day leaving Shiverpool.His wish comes true when a surfer scout sandpiper named Mikey (Mario Cantone) arrives in Shiverpool via whale, along with other prospects he's found around the globe. Mikey finds Cody sorting fish and asks for a demonstration of his skills. Unfortunately, the waves don't cooperate that day and impatient Mikey leaves. Determined to prove himself, Cody chases after the whale and struggles 'on board' with the help of a chicken named Joe (Jon Heder). Joe, a surfer from Sheboygan, WI and on tour as a result of a bet that Mikey lost, is extremely laid back and he and Cody become fast friends.The whale arrives at Pengu Island where the 10th Annual Big Z Memorial Surfing Competition is being held. Cody and Joe mingle with fellow surfers, including pros Rob Machado and Kelly Slater, and take in the local scenery and food. A lifeguard named Lani (Zooey Deschanel) suddenly runs past to save a young penguin named Arnold (Reed Buck) struggling in the water and Cody is smitten. Joe convinces him to talk to her and the two become acquainted before Lani is interviewed by the filmmakers. In the background, we see Arnold fling himself into the water again to be rescued, inciting an exasperated reaction from Lani.Cody and Joe then see the shrine to Big Z; his old surfboard propped on a rock. 10 years prior, Big Z had been participating in a surf contest on Pengu Island when he paddled into a large swell and disappeared, presumably drowned. All that remained were the broken pieces of his board. The flashback is interrupted by Tank 'The Shredder' Evans (Diedrich Bader), the 9-time Big Z competition champion, as he throws rocks at Z's surfboard. Cody stops him and the ensuing argument attracts the attention of Reggie Belafonte (James Woods), the promoter and personality of the competition. The sea otter proposes a one-on-one surf trial between Cody and Tank to settle the dispute and Cody is given a board.The two penguins paddle out into the surf as we hear Cody's assurance from earlier that his first big wave will be the best ride he's ever had. However, Cody ends up wiping out as Tank successfully rides the wave. Cody is tossed in the surf before he's knocked out on a shallow rock. Lani brings him to shore and manages to revive him before he hallucinates and falls unconscious again. Squeamish Joe passes out on the beach while Lani seeks more 'professional' help. She carries Cody into the forest and walks up to a large banyan tree house where she finds 'Geek' (Jeff Bridges) sleeping in his hammock, gargling the rain. She wakes him up and asks him to look at Cody, which he does reluctantly. Geek finds a sea urchin needle stuck in Cody's foot and removes it, causing Cody to violently wake up. However, Geek realizes that by removing the needle he's actually encouraged the poison within to seep through Cody's body. So, using a trick he learned from a medicine man, Geek takes a swig of rain water and proceeds to urinate on Cody's foot. Cody's horrified reaction leaves Lani no choice but to render him unconscious again.Meanwhile, back on the beach, Reggie could care less about Cody's fate and is obviously more interested in his reputation within show business, despite Mikey's concerns.Lani leaves Cody to recover under Geek's care, admitting to the filmmakers that she hates seeing Geek alone all the time and thinks some company will keep him occupied for a while. The next morning, Geek wakes him and escorts him to the path in the woods that will lead back to North Beach. When he finds out he's lost his Big Z necklace, Cody becomes upset and tells Geek that Z had given it to him personally and taught him to 'always find a way, because that's what winners do'. Geek advises that Cody should find his own way before leaving him on the trail. Despondent over his failure at the beach and unsure of what to do next, Cody sulks on a log near the path. Back home, Z finds the necklace Cody lost and resolves to return it to him. When he does, he gets Cody's thanks and pauses to notice that the log he's sitting on is Koa wood; the best kind for making surfboards. He proposes to make Cody a board since he doesn't have one. After some encouragement, Cody agrees.Meanwhile, Chicken Joe wakes up on the beach to find kids building a sand castle over him and Cody missing. He starts searching for him, explaining to the filmmakers that he and Cody have a lot in common and Joe didn't know his father either (enter image of elder Chicken Joe on a value bucket of nuggets). Cody and Geek pull the log through the woods back towards his house but, when Cody attempts to roll it, it careens out of control down a hillside before crashing on a beach hidden within a cove. Cody opts to check it out against Geek's wishes and finds an old surf shack stocked with surfboards that he recognizes as Big Z's. When he asks Geek about it, he discovers that Geek is actually Big Z! In a flurry, Cody asks Z what happened but 'Zeke' refuses to talk about it and claims that he's still 'dead', hiding away inside his shack.He soon comes out, however, when Cody takes one of his boards out for a test run. Z notes that Cody doesn't know how to properly surf and accurately predicts when Cody's inattentiveness leads to him being washed ashore by a wave. Cody asks Z to teach him how to surf which Z refuses to do but tells Cody that, if he wants to learn how to surf the right way, he needs to make his own board.Meanwhile, a filmmaker interviews the local kids including Arnold, Kate (Reese Elowe), and Smudge (Jack P. Ranjo) about their ideas of surfing. Tank has different opinions; his entire mindset focused on winning, even if that means surfing over newbies. He shows the interviewer where he keeps his 'ladies'; the 9 trophies he's won over the years, each with its own name.Z shows Cody how to mark a guide and properly carve away at the log, inspiring a calming and spiritual method. However, Cody's attempt to carve the board is much more focused and rushed and the result is more like a rough plank of wood. When he takes it into the water, it immediately breaks. Flustered and angry, Cody leaves the beach, claiming he doesn't have time to follow Z's methods before the contest and leaving Z bemused. Cody then bumps into Lani, on her way to deliver fresh clams to Z, his favorite. She is stunned and happy that Cody was able to get Z down to the beach, something she had been trying to do for years, and offers to take Cody somewhere fun. She leads him to her childhood sledding grounds within the island's lava tubes and Cody's spirits are lifted again. Later that night, she confesses that Z is actually her uncle and that he must see something in Cody, else he would not have offered to help him.Feeling bad, Cody returns to the beach where he finds Z sleeping and begins work on the other half of the koa log, this time taking care to perfect Z's methods. Z watches him and, the next morning, tests the board by jumping on it; this time it doesn't break. That evening, as Cody waxes his board, Z tells him about how nothing compares in surfing to riding the tube of the wave, an addiction that professional surfers agree with. Cody's inquiry about points earned for riding the tube gets a bitter reaction in Z who doesn't look at it that way.Reggie, meanwhile, lazes about while Mikey prepares for the surfing competition throughout the day. Joe continues his search and recounts how he met native Pengu-ins the previous night. In reality, he was captured and placed in a cooking pot, what he thought was a 'hot tub'. Despite their vigor, the Pengu-ins' bumbling nature allows Joe to calmly leave the camp and continue his quest to find Cody.Eager to start surfing, Cody bothers Z to get up and show him but Z tells him that surfing doesn't start in the water. He puts Cody through some 'tests' to determine balance and patience, though most of them are actually pranks. Finally, after a little payback on Cody's part, they head out into the surf and catch their first waves. Lani arrives at the beach and is surprised to see Z in the water again. She joins them and they surf until the sun sets. They camp together on the beach, sharing shrimp and a few musical selections from Z's ukelele. Cody then asks Z if he'll come watch Cody at the surf contest the next day. When Z refuses, Cody demands to know why Z never came back from that 'one wave'.Z then explains that, at the height of his prime, winning surfing competitions had become everything to him. However, his older methods of surfing could not compare with the talents of up-and-coming Tank Evans. Not wanting to return to shore as a loser or has-been to his fans, Z faked his death, throwing his surfboard into a wave and leading everyone to believe he'd been crushed in the boneyards; a series of sharp rocks and crags jutting out of the water at one end of the beach. Z claims that he's going to stay dead and becomes upset when Cody persists, finally retreating to his shack. Lani tries to console him and Cody angrily leaves to head back to North Beach with his board, throwing his shell necklace in the sea.The next morning, Cody is reunited with Joe who had befriended the local Pengu-ins by inticing them with squid-on-a-stick, a food item that tasted closely to their other favorite; chicken. Cody and Joe make it to the beach just before the contest begins. Sal Masekela gives all the announcements and updates for SPEN, the network for Penguin surfing as competitors are eliminated one by one until only Joe, Tank, and Cody remain. Cody proves himself to be a force to be reckoned with and we see Z watching from his hiding spot just beyond the beach. On their final wave, Cody sets himself up for a tube ride before he notices Tank about to take out Joe. He rides ahead instead and pushes Tank away so that Joe can finish his ride. However, this move lands both Cody and Tank navigating the boneyards. Tank knocks Cody off his board before colliding with a piece of jagged rock. Lani rescues Tank but cannot find Cody who we eventually see clinging onto the rocks.Z appears above him, holding onto the rock where his shrine is located, and instructs Cody to slide back into an approaching wave so that the currents toss him right into Z's arms. The plan works, though the force of the wave knocks them off the rock. They resurface and use Z's old board to paddle back in where Reggie is attempting to auction off Cody's recovered board. Z reveals himself to everyone and explains that he 'got a little lost' but that Cody helped him find his way back. Lani embraces Cody and they all celebrate as the winner of the contest is announced; Joe. Z then invites everyone to go with him to his beach in the cove for some fun surfing, leaving a frustrated Reggie to fume. Cody speaks to the filmmakers for the last time, admitting that he's tired of talking about himself, before joining Z in the surf.The filmmakers return to Shiverpool where they tell Edna and Glen about Cody's adventures, despite the fact that he's not returning home with a trophie. Glen can't help but laugh but, when his mother tells him he should be more like Cody, he deadpans and abruptly ends the interview.

Tags: psychedelic, entertaining, flashback

Review:
Guess you can credit the popularity of our feathered friends from down south to award winning films like the documentary which started it all, March of the Penguins, and the other animated movies Madagascar (where they were scene stealers) and Happy Feet.
But before you actually decide to pass on this one, Surf's Up a surprisingly refreshing tale set in the bright sunny beaches with laid back "dude" attitude, which doesn't seem to try too hard to please, and comes up just about right.One of the good things about the movie is the voice talent featured.
Shia LeBeouf (a name which we will see quite frequently over the next few months with Transformers and Disturbia) gets the lead role of Cody Maverick, a surfer penguin wannabe who dreams of making it big in the surfing community.
However, Big Z is presumed missing in action during one competition, and the new world champion, Tank Evans (Diedrich Bader) looks set to retain his status for the umpteenth time.The supporting characters too are a delight, with Zooey Deschanel as a Baywatch lifeguard babe and James Woods as a sports tzar, and Jon Heder continues his stereotype by playing Cody's new best friend Chicken Joe, a chilled out surfing chicken who finds himself at probably the wrong place each time and associating with the wrong species.What made this movie work is that the filmmakers recognize they have to come up with a narrative style that is different in order to engage, and given that it's a sports type movie, they went for a sports entertainment channel style, complete with replicating camera techniques including details like less than perfect wireless camera transmissions (love those on-board cameras, nevermind if it doesn't make complete sense or is illogical), over the top channel transition sequences, and you just gotta love those faux pas interviews with just about every character.
I can't resist but to again advise our Legend of the Sea friends, this is what computer animation is about, with its depiction of photo realistic quality of the sun, sand and the sea, with realistic surfer moves, a simple story yet packed with adequate thematic moments, with song and music that don't irritate, but serve to move the narrative along smartly.Recommended animated movie, despite the overused penguin characters.
The voice talent is perfect: Jeff Bridges as the laid back Z, Shia LaBeouf the young hero in the making, Jon Heder as a stoned chicken from Michigan, and Zooey Deschanel as the good-hearted lifeguard who keeps secrets well.
It's not the funniest animated movie you've ever seen -- most of the jokes are amusing, rather than laugh-out-loud -- but it does the job.Sometimes the humor just seems to be "it's penguins doing human things -- get it?" But it's fast-moving, colorful, and the voice cast is good.
Along the way, he meets characters such as Joe (Jon Heder, well-cast once again), a surfing chicken from Michigan, and Lani Aliikai (Zooey Deschanel), a lifeguard penguin who also knows a thing or two about Big Z.
A film crew (voiced by the actual directors, Ash Brannon and Chris Buck) has decided to follow an aspiring surfer by the name of Cody Maverick (voiced by Shia LaBeouf) on his journey that begins at his humble home in Shiverpool to the Penguin World Surfing Championship.
We know the story, the characters, and we know the familiar plot (quite like last year's "Cars"), but it isn't the fact that they're penguins that makes the film funny.
There where bits that reminded me of ICe Age 1, especially the speeding through the fire chutes/ice tunnels but overall I'll recommend this for a family film, pleasant movie for a rainy English summer, (no tap dancing penguins and not too many musically numbers).For me I was astounded by the graphics, the water and the jungle - I had to keep reminding myself that this was cgi but it looked more lifelike than real life, someone spent a lot of time on the design and it shows, very well done, if you are into any sort of design or computer graphics then this will blow you away, worth seeing it just for that!.
Lighting, colors - amazing colors, amazing score.Surf's Up is truly a masterpiece, second to none.That's the kind movie that really makes you feel joyous, that makes you realize that life is worth living, if not for anything else but for experiencing moments like those I experience whenever I watch this beautiful animation..
Loved everything: the penguin-goes-surfing premise, the documentary approach, the lesson learned by the lead character, the wonderful visuals, the perfect characterizations, and the humor that can be gentle, hip, juvenile, wacky, and wholly character-based all at once.
Written and animated similar to a Christopher Guest mocumentary film ("Best in Show," "Waiting for Guffman") there's a unique humor to "Surf's Up" that spins the same old underdog storyline into something unusual and fresh that everyone in the family can enjoy.The focus of this "documentary" is Cody Maverick (voiced by Shia LaBeouf), a rock-hopper penguin from Shiverpool, Antarctica with a dream of getting away from the south pole and becoming a premiere surfer like his idol Big Z.
He ends up being spotted by a talent scout and makes his way to Pen-gu island just in time for the penguin world surfing championshipWhen Cody gets challenged before the tournament and fails against the world's best surfer, Tank Evans (Diedrich Bader), he meets some unlikely friends like Joe the chicken (Jon Heder), a love interest in Lani (Zooey Deschanel), and Geek (Jeff Bridges) who helps Cody learn the waves so he can live his dream and compete in the championship.There are jokes for the whole family here, which is "Surf's Up"'s most admirable trait.
There's also plenty of good values that one would expect from an animated movie focused on a sport: never give up, winning isn't everything, the value of friendship in picking us up when we fall.The animation is also strong, though much more cartoonish than the penguin movie "Happy Feet." Most interesting is the way that the animation is meant to reflect what it would look like if the movie were being shot like a live-action documentary.
Cody is the best surfer penguin of the Antarctica is the narrator & the hero of the story who has only one motive- to run away from life & responsibility & surf day & night, Big Z is his inspirational childhood role model.
There is also Cody's big bro, mother, his surf promoter, Cody's friend Chicken Joe & certain other interesting animated characters to cherish in this film.
It's a totally original movie; who ever would've thought to do a film about a documentary about surfing penguins?
'Surf's Up' Is A Very Enjoyable Film, However, It's A Bit Hard To Say Who It's Aimed To..Yes, It May Be Animated, And Also Have Penguins, But It's More That That..The Movie Feels A Bit More Aimed To An Older Crowd, Who Will No Doubt Enjoy The Film A Bit More So Than The Kids They Brought Over To Watch It..sure, You Got Some Of The Kid-Friendly Potty Humor, But There's A Couple Things They Might Not Catch Onto..
And Looking At The Cast Now, I'm Thinking "Oh, THAT Zooey Deschanel" Or "Oh wait, THAT Jon Heder?"..And The Music Compliments The Film As Well, With Some Surfing Rock Music, As Well As Some Good Little Hawaiian Music..The The Film Itself Is Quite A Ride..We First Meet Up With Cody Maverick In A Sad, Cold Little Land Where It's The Same Boring Stuff All The Time (all in documentary-vision, mind you, with shaky cameras, microphone booms, and people talking behind the camera)..
He Kills Most Of The Time By Surfing, After Being Inspired By A Visit From Big Z, A World-Famous Surfer That Has Now Been Lost At Sea..He Eventually Gets Picked Up To Go And Compete In The Big Z Memorial Contest, But His Hopes Are Literally Crushed Early On Before The Competition, Until He Really Meets Up With Lani And Geek, Who We Find Gives A Rather Big Twist On The Story Right Smack-Dab In The Middle Of The Film, which is sadly some-what ruined if you read other reviews, or even the cast..
and yes, The Ending Does Give A Little Life-Lesson Of Sorts..What I Liked About The Story Was That It Was More Than, well, Just Another Penguin Movie, And Also The Little Nods To Actual Surfing Things And Stories..
This movie is a bit like Happy Feet, in that it has the same lovable penguin characters with nice animation, but there's where the similarities ends.Surf's Up brings a new way of telling an animation story.
The characters are being interviewed by the media, making it feels like we are watching a reality show.The story revolves around Cody Maverick & the Surfing Competition being held at a seaside.
Folks, there is nothing funny here.The movie follows aspiring surfer Cody Maverick as he attempts to live up to the legacy of Big Z, a surfing legend who mysteriously disappeared.
Yes, it is that cheesy.I do not recommend seeing this movie.Good) nice water effects Bad) stupidly realistic characters, simple-as-hell story, immature, not funny Disney/Pixar) An animated movie normally fails if not done by either of the these two kings.
Story of Cody Maverick a penguin from Antarctica who goes off to surf in a legendary surfing tournament.Before I start let me say this is not a perfect film.
To that end, he leaves his home in Antarctica and ventures to Hawaii to take part in the Big Z Memorial Surf-off, a competition held in honor of the surfing legend who was washed away by a giant wave during a previous contest, never to be heard from again."Surf's Up" certainly earns points for creativity and originality, as well as for its stunning animation which comes about as close to approximating real life as any movie featuring a bevy of wisecracking penguins is ever likely to get.
Not only for kids but also for adults it has some great points.For the people who likes to surf and want to know some good points about surfing , i say this is the place for your motivation and skills.I watched it like 6 times.For it's great animation makes me feel the movie.The movie itself is an advise.And, of course, Our next gen.
A really sweet, good-natured animated film about a surfing penguin that dares to posit that having fun is more important than winning.
It's shot in a unique "mockumentary" style which makes the movie look fresh and surprisingly, and also allows the filmmakers to adhere less strictly to story development, and allows them to load the movie with a joke per second (NB, the movie also delivers a solid, intriguing, well-developed plot, but the mockumentary style allows the storytelling to be a lot faster, sharper, more off the cuff.Paradoxically, to reproduce the -- usually undesirable -- "wobbly hand- held cam" effect in CGI, the studio had to go to fairly extreme length, with a cameraman filming the CGI framework off a large screen with a specially revamped hand-held camera.Anyway, the result is a very fresh, very funny cartoon that looks simply amazing (those waves look wayyyy better than in reality).
The documentary-style, although occasionally abandoned for a more traditional approach, to easier capture drama, is effective, and it is great to see movie-makers actually allow something that could just be rendered to look perfect, to instead appear *real*, with film grain and the impression of this being shot with a hand-held camera.
Sounds harsh because this is an entertaining movie in its own right but as it is, the whole thing feels like a cheap knock-off of other movies blended together to make a sunny, summery family film with yet more talking penguins.
Focusing on up-and-coming star Cody Maverick (voiced by an actor becoming as ubiquitous as swine flu, Shia LaBeouf), the film documents his journey from the Antarctic to the tropical island of Pen Gu for the competition but after wiping out against defending champion Tank (Diedrich Bader), Cody finds himself in the care of retired surfer the Geek (Jeff Bridges) and soon begins to discover that there is more to life than winning.You see what I mean about it being derivative?
It's an animated movie about surfing penguins - complete with all the lingo, big waves, beach scenes and even fictional history!
Followed by a camera crew to document his experiences, Cody leaves his family and home in Shiverpool, Antarctica to travel to Pen Gu Island for the Big Z Memorial Surf Off.Along the way, Cody meets Seboygan surfer Chicken Joe (Jon Heder), legendary surf promoter Reggie Belafonte (James Woods), surf talent scout Mikey Abromowitz (Mario Cantone), and spirited lifeguard Lani Aliikai (Zooey Deschanel), who all recognize his passion for surfing...
It's an animated film set as a documentary of Cody Maverick, an Empire Penguin from Shiverpool, Antarctica.
Bridges character helps teach Cody some surfing and what it really means to be a "winner." I watched this movie seven or eight times over the extended Christmas weekend (not exaggerating).
This is basically a "feel-good" film, and although I've never even stood on a surf board myself, I felt that I had joined the surfer community by watching this - so they have evidently done a great job of making the viewer feel part of the story.In fact, it had such an effect on me that this morning, when I had to scrape ice off my car before leaving for work, I found myself doing it with loooong, slooooow stroooookes.
The story is a fun, believe in yourself family film that truly has some funny moments.To lead the entire cast is Jeff Bridges who plays Big Z the Surf Legend.
The animation....visually it was perfect , amazing.Atmosphere - wonderful!The characters are the best thing in the movie.I loved them,especially this crazy chicken!Each of them have been outlined with his individuality and appearance.Each one of the penguins is different and has original , interesting image.
At the beginning the movie was a little bit boring , but soon becomes more interesting and funny.If you like animations and ...
While I would say that the humor is somewhat more on the adult side, it has fun animation and great jokes for the kids as well which made it a good family film to watch.
The story was definitely original and was so clever the way the crew decided to shoot it.Cody is a penguin who has had a dream to be like his idol, Big Z, and be the top surfing penguin.
Surf's Up is a quiet hit of the summer, I really enjoyed this movie and I think you will too, even if the penguins have been breaking out a little too much these past couple years.8/10.
Shia LaBeouf as Cody Maverick was very good, great performance from Jeff Bridges as Big Z, James Woods as Reggie Belafonte also was awesome but the one the steals the picture was Jon Heder as Chicken Joe, this permanently stoned chicken was so hilarious and made this movie worth to see it.
Now in 2007 we have "Surf's Up" and help me I still like penguin movies.
Now its the Penguin's with Happy Feet and this, Surf's up.Traditionally every year we have computer animated films shoved down our throats.
But i am calling Surf's Up bad.The animation was OK and the story was OK but i did find it very boring for a kids movie.
It honestly feels like your watching a animated surfing documentary.Luckily a little bit of laugh gives it life.
I liked the movie Surf's Up because of the original documentary style in which the story was presented.
I laughed at lot while watching the film, during scenes such as the sibling rivalry between Cody and Glen around the beginning, Chicken Joe getting captured by a tribe of penguins and not realizing what they really want him for, and so many others, so the humour in "Surf's Up" also works.
The animation, especially the water animation is quite convincing at times and the direction does a great job of creating a faux-documentary aesthetic, complete with shaky hand-held cameras, mounted cams and even using faux-stock footage, treated to look like vintage film.The main character, Cody, is an ambition penguin desiring to make something of himself in the surfing world and some of the underlying story regarding his growing up without a father is pretty well done, especially as he encounters Geek.
This is by no means the best animated movie out (the Shrek films are a lot better), but it's entertaining enough.
When the contest starts, Cody learns winning isn't everything and friends are more important.The movie had good computer animation, the waves looked very realistic.
But when taking aside that, the real pleasures of Surf's Up- a movie that looks like from the trailer that it will be really, really stupid- involve the goofy charms and jokes aimed at possibly more mature viewers than the little kids obsessed with penguins.For one thing, Z is voiced by the best man for the job, Jeff Bridges, who takes part of his Dude character from Big Lebowski and takes on part of the cool mentor; a scene where he shows his young pupil how to fashion a surfboard is classic.
However, Cody realizes that there is more to life as a penguin than just that, and he dreams of the day when he can go off, surf some real waves, and make his impact on the sport just like his hero, Big Z.
This movie was a little better than Happy Feet.It all begins when a 17 year penguin named Cody Mavrick wants to be a great surfer like Big Z.
Big z gives the little penguins surf boards Chicken Joe wins the surf off.I loved this movie.10/10.