Few movies in this world are equal to 1991's Point Break. Starring Keanu Reeves, as FBI agent Johnny Utah and Patrick Swayze as Bodhi, the charismatic leader of a gang of surfing bank robbers. Point Break hooks the audience immediatley with its catchy dialogue, memorable characters and intense action sequences. But enough with the cliches, let me break it down and tell you why this movie is second to few.
Johnny Utah, Bodhi, Roach, Grommet, Bunker, Tone....Warchild?! Whoever named the characters in this movie is a genius. Point Break hands down has the best character names of any movie I have ever seen. As a matter of fact, my future wife better have an open mind when we name our children, because if little Johnny Utah isn't playing little league, or adorable Warchild isn't going to be trick or treating, she can hit the road.
The number of memorable lines in this movie is endless. Many times i have found myself telling people "I only live to get radical" and when they look at me like I'm the weirdo, I have them hold the Point Break DVD in front of their chest, then I spin kick it through their heart. Needless to say, the amount of people whose last words were "wow that was radical" has increased greatly since I first saw this film in the mid 1990's. What makes the movie's dialogue so good are the types of words the screenwriter decides to use. Throughout the movie, the words such as wild, babe, jam, and radical can be found coming from the mouths of any given character. I guess I just cant seem to get enough of a long haired, radical, surf nazi calling a cop a fuckin' pig as he unloads his clip from his automatic weapon at him.
The environment in this movie is also very distinct. Whenever I watch this film, I feel like it should be a warm summer day outside, even it's in the middle of the winter. One particular scene, that gives me this feeling, is at a party at the Ex Presidents beach house. This has to be a top-five party scene that you would want in any movie. It starts off with Johnny Utah venturing into the building to find Jimi Hendrix jamming over the loud speakers, Grommet (Bodhi's younger brother) tripping out on drugs and Bodhi, himself, jazzing up a black girl and taking tequila shots. Soon, the crew moves out to the beach where they tell stories about "big wave riding," then they proceed to do a little "stealth mission," nightime surfing themselves. If i could go to this party every saturday night for the rest of my life, I would.
One thing that I need to point out is how out of control Warchild and his thugs really are. There is one scene where they are on their way home from the beach in their flat bed truck, and they are literally swerving between 3 lanes of traffic on the highway, hanging out the sides and yelling at people. Imagine you are in your suit and tie on your way home from work, and you look out your window to see a group of long haired, metal-looking pshycopaths screaming obscenities at you. When they arrive back at their house, they say "fuck the driveway" and just barrel over the curb, right up onto the front lawn. Talk about a group of fellas who give the middle finger to the man, huh? If these guys didnt tweak out on so much crack and own so many guns, I would want to hang out with them just as much as I want to hang out with the ex presidents.
In addition to great characters, quotable dialogue, and palatable scenes, Point Break really does have an excellent plot. A "young, dumb and full of cum" FBI agent comes to town and joins forces with a veteran agent. Together they try to track down "The Ex Presidents;" a group of surfers who are willing to pay the ultimate price for the ultimate ride. However, in a slight twist, the FBI protagonist befriends this group of criminals and soon learns that they are ones he seeks to track down. Soon, all hell ensues through a number of action packed chase, surfing and skydiving scenes. In the end Johnny Utah gets his man, but in the process his character goes on a life changing journey, in which he discovers there is more to life than simply abiding by the everyday rules of society. Overall, Point Break is a must see for anyone who is born, and if you have yet to see it, all i can say is "Goddamn, you are one radical son of a bitch!"
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