Three pals travel to Cabo…
Are you attracted to surfing because it hits pause on life’s grotesque absurdity? That it gives you the power to become something else, even for an hour or two? A private fantasy?
Today, I received an email from the filmmaker Joe Alani. It read: “My brother and I took a trip to Cabo with Cheeseburger and friends. We put out an edit. Do you think there’s room for it on your site?”
Yup, maybe. Let me watch.
I’ll be honest. I’m kinda done on surf shorts, most of which have descended into farce or at least shining examples of bourgeoise seriousness. Millionaire surfers carried to a wave. Closeups of the surfers suffering from a paralysing morbidity. A study, if you want it, of a good, or great, surfer’s technique. But it ain’t film.
This little five-minute short grabbed me a little because it claims nothing of cultural value.
It disregards many of the conventions of the modern surf short. It is low on moody atmospherics. There are no jazz or obscure eighties tracks. The surfers appear to be having a whale of a time.
It doesn’t pretend to channel Truffaut or Wes Anderson.
But it’s something. Surfing you can relate to. A couple of beers speared. A brilliant holiday mood.
Only child?
burger is a complete twat
Not trying to be overly critical but:
I love the coy “ohh maybe i wont post it” but It was submitted by a sponsor whose banners adorn either side of this page, right? The same sponsor whose damn clocks decorate the homepage and tell me nothing of importance? Cmon son, you were gonna post this shit regardless.
and “Claimin nothing of cultural value” is no better manifested than flanking shots of surfers in Mex with Gypsy fucking Kings music. A deplorable choice; reduction on some ole “sounds spanish” steeze and borderline blithe racism in its obtuseness. Gypsy Kings catalonian and french eurotrash ponytail yuppy convertible saab music and sure as shit have nothing to do with Mex other than on some colonialllll oh wait a minute – you deleted those inflammatory Michael articles about colonialism and the white man messing up mexican culture etc. If the post of this Gypsy Kings are Mexico is some hipster irony it’s tré deep man. Then again, if you want real, hard as fuck, mexican rock take your pick Revolution De Emilio Zapata, Los Dug Dugs, Ciruela, Nahuatel, Evolucion etc. Too much good shit to list.
Then again when has anyone behind a surf edit known shit about music.
Love Cheeseburger tho
big ups for Revolucion Zapata recco there jimbo. gold.
this is really good. and, if these content producers thought that their audience was mostly people that know Gypsy Kings aren’t Mexican, they would try harder. your cultural accuracy is too “elite”, too “ivory tower”. we live in a world of celebrity worship, he with the most Instagram followers is telling the truth, everyone else is a hater.
If in doubt: Cheeseburger. Love his mesage to Stab at the end. Thank fuck Lost have never got caught up in trying to turn surfing into some yoga retreat bullshit, like so many.
they stand alone…. and, yr right. very hard to do in a new organic and generic space…
You’re not wrong. I need more cheeseburger up in here