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Bethany (AnnaSophia Robb) and Alana (Lorraine Nicholson) are competitors on the water, best friends on shore. |
Imagine your favorite outdoor recreational activity almost ending abruptly in a near death experience. The horrifying nightmare will probably stay with you forever. It happened to mountain climber, Aron Ralston, portrayed by James Franco in the film, “127 Hours”. Ralston literally went out on a limb and was stuck between a rock and a hard place in Utah. A similar and equally terrifying accident also happened to surfer, Bethany Hamilton, who nearly met the “jaws of death, losing her left arm, along with over 60% of her blood, somewhere in the waters of Kauai. Like Ralston, she was extremely lucky to make it out alive.
Based on Hamilton’s autobiography, “The Endless Summer”, “Soul Surfer” is a term coined in the 1970's and used to describe a talented surfer who surfs for the sheer pleasure of surfing (although they may still enter in competitions, winning may not be the main motive) - since they scorn the commercialization of surfing.
Perhaps, Brad Melekian, defines the term “soul surfer” more clearly, which was written from a 2005 article in Surfer magazine: “...to pursue surfing not just as an athletic endeavor or as a sunny day diversion, but to try to glean whatever lessons you can from the practice. It means being aware of your surroundings, and respectful of the people and places that you interact with. It means being patient, mindful, kind, compassionate, understanding, active, thoughtful, faithful, hopeful, gracious, disciplined and…good.”
After seeing the film and reading what Melekian quoted, I now fully understand why the film was not called “Surfing with Sharks”.
AnnaSophia Robb (Because of Winn Dixie, Bridge to Terabithia, Charlie and the Chocolate Factory, Sleepwalking) plays the youthful and spirited teenager, Bethany Hamilton, who had already been creating waves for herself as a surfer. Since the age of eight, her skills catapulted her rapidly into the limelight, competing and winning many championships within her age group in her hometown island of Kauai. With the constant ongoing encouraging and motivational support from her parents, well played by Dennis Quaid and Helen Hunt, along with her brothers, who are also avid surfers; it was only a matter of time when she would start thinking about turning professional.
Then her young life changed. While laying sideways on her floating surfboard in the sunny waters at Tunnels Beach in Kauai, a 15 foot tiger shark attacked her and tore her left arm off, Luckily, at the time, she was with her best friend, Alana, who witnessed the horror, and with the aid of her family, rushed Hamilton to a medical team, saving her life. Hamilton was only thirteen years old.
Her life would never be the same for her after the incident. She was no longer able to do the things that required coordination of both of her hands that she took for granted, like spreading butter on a slice of toast, let alone paddling with both hands in the water. Many of the locals treated her like some kind of mutant. The press and paparazzi constantly harassed her in public, as well as at her own home. Even makers of prosthetic arm products tried to capitalize on her, attempting to have her sponsor their product.
Feeling sorry for herself, she joins World Vision, an organization that helps young children who were devastated by the tsunami disaster in Thailand. In one scene, she helps reacquaint the children to overcome their fear of the water. Being in this supportive position, she realizes that she may have been the fortunate one, since she had succeeded in overcoming her fear of water, as well.
Sean McNamara, known mainly as a TV Director, does a first rate job capturing the mood and spirit surrounding the exciting surf competitions of Kauai. Some of the cinematography of the surf scenes were quite breathtaking, probably because much of the footage was actually of the real life Bethany Hamilton, who was used as her own character’s stunt double. No need for CGI in those scenes.
Even though you may know the story, the film is still quite entertaining, and is well written and strongly casted. Robb’s performance is quite moving, filled with every possible emotion you can ask for in a role, especially for a teenage girl. Look for Carrie Underwood, Kevin Sorbo, and Craig T Nelson in supportive roles.
The story of Bethany Hamilton is quite inspirational, life affirming, and has all the qualities to make this a terrific family film. It carries a clear message and makes us all a better person. If you like “The Blind Side”, you will also love this film, as well. Though, personally, I believe “Soul Surfer” has more of a bite to it.
Reviewed by Marcus Siu
Opens nationwide - Friday, April 8, 2011.
Director:SeanMcNamara;Producers:DavidZelon,DouglasSchwartz,DutchHofstetter,DavidBrookwell,
SeanMcNamara,DavidTice(Executive),DominicIanno(Executive);
Writers:SeanMcNamara,DeborahSchwartz,DouglasSchwartzandMichaelBerk(screenplay),BethanyHamiltonautobiography);Cinematographer:JohnR.Leonetti;
Editors:JeffW.Canavan,DavidW.Hager;Music:MarcoBeltrami;
Cast:AnnaSophiaRobb,DennisQuaid,HelenHunt,JeremySumpter,KevinSorbo,
CraigT.Nelson,CarrieUnderwood,LorraineNicholson Length: 106 min.; Genre: Drama
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From left to right - Bethany Hamilton and AnnaSophia Robb. Photo Credit - Mario Perez.
Courtesy of FilmDistrict and TriStar. |
