'BLUE CRUSH 2': Two Stars (Out of Five)
I'm a big fan of the original 'BLUE CRUSH' (from 2002), it's kind of a guilty pleasure of mine. I'm not really into surfing or surf movies but I do highly enjoy that film and it's probably my favorite of the genre (other than maybe 'POINT BREAK'). Now, nine years later, comes another direct to video sequel. Another sequel in name only (merely cashing in on the brand name of the first movie) as the film has nothing to do with the original other than it's about surf girls trying to follow their dreams of being surfers. It was directed and produced by Mike Elliot, who's produced a slew of direct to video sequels ('DEATH RACE 2', 'SMOKIN ACES 2' and 'AMERICAN PIE: THE BOOK OF LOVE', just to name his most recent) and directed one ('BEETHOVEN'S BIG BREAK', his only other directing credit). The film was written by Randall McCormick who's made a name for himself writing 'B' movie sequels (like two 'SCORPION KING' films as well as 'SPEED 2: CRUISE CONTROL'). This time the film stars three lovely young ladies by the names of Sasha Jackson, Sharni Vinson and Elizabeth Mathis. The girls are beautiful eye candy (especially Vinson, who also recently starred in the excessive sequel 'STEP UP 3D') but they're not nearly as interesting or memorable as Kate Bosworth, Michelle Rodriguez and pro surfer Sanoe Lake from the original. Everything about the film just feels like a stale imitation 'wannabe'.
This chapter tells the story of a young rich girl named Dana (Jackson) grieving over the death of her mother and absence of her father's love. She knows that her mom always dreamt of surfing Jeffereys Bay in South Africa so she decides to leave the security of her Malibu home behind and venture to Africa in order to fulfill her mother's dreams. Once there she meets two other young female surfers by the names of Pushy (Mathis) and Tara (Vinson). One, Tara, is a successful 'Roxy' surfer and the other dreams of being one. So Dana and Pushy decide to conquer their surfing dreams together, while some bitter rivalry ensues with Tara.
The first 'BLUE CRUSH' made Kate Bosworth a star (before that she was pretty much unknown), it also made her one of my favorite actresses (along with her work that followed but 'CRUSH' definitely introduced me to her). I thought she not only obviously looked great but gave a good performance (as did the other two leads). That film definitely made you care about their characters. You don't have that with this film. The girls look cute and they might be able to act, if given a chance in another film, but here they're not relatable or interesting in the least. That's probably due in large part to weak directing and a poorly written screenplay (more so than the girls' acting). The story just isn't involving and the surf scenes aren't visually interesting or thrilling at all. Hardcore surf fans still might enjoy this movie (as well as obsessive fans of hot surf girls) but everyone else will mostly be bored.
Watch our review show 'MOVIE TALK' at: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=i8oXDJoapdc
