Film review: ‘THE SURFER’, by Nick Gardener from ‘Built For Speed’

Guaranteed to fascinate and infuriate, the Australian/ Irish co-production The Surfer, which stars Nicolas Cage and Julian McMahon is an impressively strange beast. Frequently shifting gears between Wake In Fright-style ‘civilised foreigner meets Aussie ferals’ drama, surreal Twilight Zone-esque moral fable and a critique of the idiotic ‘manosphere’ culture, it constantly challenges our expectations.  Fans of the criminally overlooked 1968 Burt Lancaster film The Swimmer will likely hear echoes of that film here with its tale of a man spiralling into despair, its evocative music and even credit graphics that recall late 60’s films.

At first, The Surfer looks like a familiar father/son drama as an unnamed well-to-do businessman (Nicolas Cage) attempts to take his son (Finn Little) surfing on a beach (in Western Australia) he frequented in his youth.  Overlooking the surf is an expensive hilltop home Cage is desperate to buy. The beach, however, has been taken over by a vile surfie gang who violently eject any perceived outsiders. Their leader, the obnoxious, self-styled misogyny guru, Scally (Julian McMahon) fills his young followers’ heads with crazed toxic masculine rants. Unwisely hanging around the beach, Cage suffers repeated assaults and indignities, losing nearly all his worldly possessions and seemingly descending into madness. Is this all happening to him or is this a patchwork of reality, memory and delusion?

This role would seem to be a prime opportunity for Cage to unleash his patented crazy man routine but despite a couple of outbursts (including one hilarious scene involving an assault with a rat) he’s impressively restrained and delivers one of his better dramatic performances of recent times. As his nemesis, Scally, Julian McMahon is convincingly repulsive, spewing misogynist drivel and twisted notions of mateship and male responsibility. As his acolytes, the young cast eerily capture the obnoxious behaviour of arrogant bigoted bullies. Nic Cassim is also effective in a smaller but key role as a local homeless man. Some of the supporting roles such as Miranda Tapsell’s compassionate beachgoer, however, feel too brief and underwritten.

The film is almost entirely shot on the beach and the nearby car park but director Lorcan Finnegan and cinematographer Radzek Ladczuk make inventive use of the limited setting often evoking classic surf movies with rapturous shots of the swelling ocean and blazing sunsets.

Creating such an oddball psychodrama as The Surfer invariably involves a few missteps with some parts of the story not quite fitting together and scenes remaining confusingly ambiguous.  Those who demand linear narratives and clear resolutions will no doubt have issues with this film.  Many, though, will find this a pleasingly retro film experience and an engrossing depiction of the more disturbing aspects of Australian male culture and of a man forced to confront himself.

Nick’s rating: ***1/2

Genre: Psychological drama/ thriller.

Classification: MA15+.

Director(s): Lorcan Finnegan.

Release date: 15th May 2025.

Running time: 101 mins.

Reviewer: Nick Gardener can be heard on “Built For Speed” every Friday night from 8-10pm on 88.3 Southern FM.

 

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