Surf's Up

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Movie Details

• Genre: Action/Adventure, Family
• Release Date: 2007-06-08 Nationwide
• Running Time: 85 min.
• Director: Ash Brannon
• Cast: Jeff Bridges, Shia LaBeouf, Zooey Deschanel, James Woods, Jane Krakowski, Jon Heder, Mario Cantone, Brian Benben, Michael McKean
• Producer: Christopher Jenkins
• Writer: Christian Darren, Lisa Addario, Joe Syracuse
• Distributor: Sony Pictures
• Official Site: Surf's Up Official Site

The cash-cow flippered ones rise again, this time as yellow-tufted surfer dudes riding the waves of life off the coast of an island that looks like a cross between Hawaii and Venice Beach. If you have to see another penguin blockbuster, you could do worse than this loose-limbed charmer written by, oh, a lot of jokesters and directed by a scant two, Ash Brannon and Chris Buck. The gimmick is a reality-television premise -- just how knowingly ironic do we want our kids to be before they even hit their tweens? -- but don't expect much fresh by way of plot, which is almost identical to that of Cars and every bit as pregnant with wholesome messaging. Shia LaBeouf voices Cody, a cocky but insecure Rockhopper penguin sorely in need of a father figure, who bonds with a washed-up old champion surfer (a delightful Jeff Bridges) to train for a big surf-off, during which, it goes without saying, both learn to redefine the meaning of winning. As always, the energy comes from a manic supporting cast, of whom the funniest hands-down is James Woods' Don King-like surf promoter. Surf's Up is copycat moviemaking at its smoothest; its one imaginative innovation -- billowing, silky, utterly sexy waves -- is technical.