''Surf's Up'' is a 2007 American animated
mockumentary
A mockumentary (a portmanteau of ''mock'' and ''documentary'') is a type of film or television show depicting fictional events, but presented as a Documentary film, documentary. Mockumentaries are often used to analyze or comment on current event ...
comedy film
The comedy film is a film genre that emphasizes humor. These films are designed to amuse audiences and make them laugh. Films in this genre typically have a happy ending, with dark comedy being an exception to this rule. Comedy is one of the o ...
produced by
Columbia Pictures
Columbia Pictures Industries, Inc., Trade name, doing business as Columbia Pictures, is an American film Production company, production and Film distributor, distribution company that is the flagship unit of the Sony Pictures Motion Picture Group ...
and
Sony Pictures Animation
Sony Pictures Animation Inc. (also referred to as Sony Animation Studios and abbreviated to SPA) is an American animation studio owned by Sony Entertainment's Sony Pictures Entertainment through their Motion Picture Group division and found ...
, and distributed by
Sony Pictures Releasing
Sony Pictures Entertainment Motion Picture Group (formerly known as the Columbia TriStar Motion Picture Group until 2013, and abbreviated as SPMPG) is a division of Sony Pictures, Sony Pictures Entertainment to manage its motion picture operatio ...
. It was directed by
Ash Brannon and
Chris Buck from a screenplay they co-wrote with
Don Rhymer and producer
Chris Jenkins, based on a story by Jenkins and Christian Darren. The film stars the voices of
Shia LaBeouf,
Jeff Bridges
Jeffrey Leon Bridges (born December 4, 1949) is an American actor. He is known for his Leading actor, leading man roles in film and television. In a career spanning over seven decades, he has received List of awards and nominations received by ...
,
Zooey Deschanel,
Jon Heder, and
James Woods. It is a
parody
A parody is a creative work designed to imitate, comment on, and/or mock its subject by means of satire, satirical or irony, ironic imitation. Often its subject is an Originality, original work or some aspect of it (theme/content, author, style, e ...
of surfing
documentaries, such as ''
The Endless Summer'' and ''
Riding Giants'', with parts of the plot parodying ''
North Shore''. Real-life surfers
Kelly Slater and
Rob Machado have vignettes as their penguin surfer counterparts. To obtain the desired hand-held documentary feel, the film's animation team
motion-captured a physical camera operator's moves.
''Surf's Up'' was released in the United States on June 8, 2007, by
Sony Pictures Releasing
Sony Pictures Entertainment Motion Picture Group (formerly known as the Columbia TriStar Motion Picture Group until 2013, and abbreviated as SPMPG) is a division of Sony Pictures, Sony Pictures Entertainment to manage its motion picture operatio ...
, and received generally positive reviews from critics, with praise for the animation, humor and unique mockumentary setup.
The film grossed $152 million worldwide against a budget of $100 million. It was nominated for
Best Animated Feature at the
80th Academy Awards. A sequel, titled ''
Surf's Up 2: WaveMania'', was released
direct-to-video
Direct-to-video or straight-to-video refers to the release of a film, television series, short or special to the public immediately on home video formats rather than an initial theatrical release or television premiere. This distribution strat ...
in the United States on January 17, 2017, and theatrical in select countries.
Plot
A documentary crew arrives in the penguin community of Shiverpool,
Antarctica
Antarctica () is Earth's southernmost and least-populated continent. Situated almost entirely south of the Antarctic Circle and surrounded by the Southern Ocean (also known as the Antarctic Ocean), it contains the geographic South Pole. ...
to document the life of teenage
northern rockhopper penguin Cody Maverick, living with his mother Edna and his older brother Glen. Cody has dreamed of becoming a professional
surfer ever since meeting the famous surfer
emperor penguin
The emperor penguin (''Aptenodytes forsteri'') is the tallest and heaviest of all living penguin species and is Endemism in birds, endemic to Antarctica. The male and female are similar in plumage and size, reaching in length and weighing fr ...
Zeke “Big Z” Topanga many years ago. When talent scout
shorebird Michael Abromowitz arrives to find entrants for the Big Z Memorial surfing competition on Pen-Gu Island, Cody manages to prove his skills to enlist in the competition. En route to Pen-Gu Island, Cody befriends another entrant, Chicken Joe, a cheerful but slow-witted
rooster surfer from
Sheboygan, Wisconsin
Sheboygan () is a city in Sheboygan County, Wisconsin, United States, and its county seat. The population was 49,929 at the 2020 census. It is the principal city of the Sheboygan Metropolitan statistical area, metropolitan area, which has a pop ...
.
The entrants arrive at Pen-Gu Island, where Cody meets and immediately falls in love with Lani Aliikai, a female
gentoo penguin who is a
lifeguard
A lifeguard is a rescuer who supervises the safety and rescue of swimmers, surfers, and other water sports participants such as in a swimming pool, water park, beach, spa, river and lake. Lifeguards are trained in swimming and Cardiopulmonary ...
. He also meets the mean-spirited
king penguin Tank "The Shredder" Evans, who has won the competition nine times since its creation after Big Z's death a decade ago. Cody sees Tank vandalizing Big Z's memorial and furiously challenges him to a duel. Tank wins, while Cody nearly drowns and is stung by a
sea urchin
Sea urchins or urchins () are echinoderms in the class (biology), class Echinoidea. About 950 species live on the seabed, inhabiting all oceans and depth zones from the intertidal zone to deep seas of . They typically have a globular body cove ...
named Ivan, getting a poisonous spine stuck in his foot. Lani rescues him and takes him to her uncle Geek to help Cody recover from his injuries. Cody wakes up, but cannot find the souvenir necklace given to him by Big Z when he was young. Geek then finds it in his hut, hesitant on returning the accessory.
While returning the necklace, Geek finds Cody sitting on a
koa log and offers to help him make a surfboard. They attempt to take the log back to Geek's house, only to lose control of it and end up on a beach far away from the house. When Cody gets to the beach, he discovers a shack full of old trophies and
surfboards, which used to belong to Big Z. After observing Geek walking solemnly into the shack, he realizes that Geek is Big Z himself. Excited, Cody asks him to teach him how to surf. Big Z reluctantly agrees, but tells Cody he has to make his own board first.
The attempt goes disastrously, however, as an eager Cody refuses to listen to Big Z's advice and crafts a rough and unstable board that shatters upon hitting the water. Exasperated, Cody storms off and runs into Lani, who eventually persuades him to return. Cody spends the night working patiently on a new board.
Big Z compliments Cody on his new board, and Cody is ready to start training. Big Z instead has him do menial tasks seemingly unrelated to surfing. Finally, when Cody starts having fun, Big Z and Lani teach him how to surf the waves. Afterward, Cody asks Big Z if he will come to watch the competition, but he refuses, revealing that he faked his death because he realized he couldn't compete with his then-new rival Tank, and that he had become too focused on winning. Angry that his own idol gave up, Cody throws the necklace into the sea, meets up with Joe, and gets back to the competition just as it begins.
Tank makes it to the finals, as do Cody and Joe. In the semifinals, Tank battles with Cody, with Tank trying to knock him off his board, but Tank falls off his own board and loses. During the finals, however, Tank appears and tries to throw Joe off his board. Cody intervenes at the last minute, sending himself and Tank into an area of the beach known as the Boneyards, which consists of dangerously sharp rock outcroppings and has killed many surfers who have ventured there.
Tank punches Cody off his board before crashing and is rescued by Lani. Big Z, who had secretly been watching Cody's performance, rescues Cody from a gigantic wave and helps him get back to the beach safely.
Big Z and Cody find out that Joe won by default since Tank and Cody were disqualified. However, Cody accepts the loss, having decided he would rather just have fun instead. Big Z reveals himself to the spectators and invites all of them to surf at his beach, where he joins Cody in tube-riding. Cody finishes his interview with a reflection of the past events and then joins the rest of his friends in the water.
Cast
*
Shia LaBeouf as Cody Maverick, a 17-year old
rockhopper penguin who dreams of being a
surfer.
*
Jeff Bridges
Jeffrey Leon Bridges (born December 4, 1949) is an American actor. He is known for his Leading actor, leading man roles in film and television. In a career spanning over seven decades, he has received List of awards and nominations received by ...
as Zeke "Big Z/Geek" Topanga, Cody's idol and a famous surfer
emperor penguin
The emperor penguin (''Aptenodytes forsteri'') is the tallest and heaviest of all living penguin species and is Endemism in birds, endemic to Antarctica. The male and female are similar in plumage and size, reaching in length and weighing fr ...
.
*
Zooey Deschanel as Lani Aliikai, a
Gentoo penguin lifeguard, Big Z's niece, and Cody's love interest.
*
Jon Heder as Chicken Joe, a friendly, airheaded
rooster from
Wisconsin
Wisconsin ( ) is a U.S. state, state in the Great Lakes region, Great Lakes region of the Upper Midwest of the United States. It borders Minnesota to the west, Iowa to the southwest, Illinois to the south, Lake Michigan to the east, Michig ...
.
*
Mario Cantone
Mario Cantone (born December 9, 1959) is an American comedian, writer, actor, singer, and television host. He is best known for his numerous stage shows. He played Anthony Marentino in '' Sex and the City'' and Terri in '' Men in Trees'' (2006– ...
as Mikey Abromowitz, a talent scout
shorebird.
*
James Woods as Reggie Belafonte, an arrogant
sea otter, the competition promoter.
*
Diedrich Bader as Tank "The Shredder" Evans, a
king penguin and Cody's rival.
*
Dana Belben as Edna Maverick, Cody's mother.
*
Brian Posehn as Glen Maverick, Cody's older brother.
*
Kelly Slater as the penguin version of himself
*
Rob Machado as the penguin version of himself
*
Ash Brannon as himself
*
Chris Buck as himself
*
Sal Masekela as himself
* Reed Buck as Arnold
* Reese Elowe as Kate
* Jack P. Ranjo as Smudge
*
Maddie Taylor as Ivan, a
sea urchin
Sea urchins or urchins () are echinoderms in the class (biology), class Echinoidea. About 950 species live on the seabed, inhabiting all oceans and depth zones from the intertidal zone to deep seas of . They typically have a globular body cove ...
Production
The idea for ''Surf's Up'' goes back to at least 2002. The movie was a concept "four and a half years" before other penguin movies like ''Happy Feet'' came out. There was already a surfing penguin project in development at Sony, described as ''
West Side Story'' meets ''
Romeo + Juliet''. Chris Jenkins said it wasn't a good idea, so the project died. He then re-presented the idea, but with a documentary angle.
In 2004, Brannon and Buck were announced to be directing the movie, with
Quiksilver on board as a creative consultant. Kelly Slater and Rob Machado also gave the animators feedback on how the waves were animated. To add to the mockumentary feel, the voice actors were asked to do improv.
Music
''Surf's Up: Music from the Motion Picture'' was released on June 5, 2007. The following 14 songs are on the Sony's official film soundtrack.
According to the film's end credits, the version of "Wipe Out" heard in the film is performed by the punk band
The Queers. The official soundtrack includes this version under the
pseudonym
A pseudonym (; ) or alias () is a fictitious name that a person assumes for a particular purpose, which differs from their original or true meaning ( orthonym). This also differs from a new name that entirely or legally replaces an individual's o ...
"Big Nose", presumably for marketing purposes. Two songs by
Green Day
Green Day is an American Rock music, rock band formed in Rodeo, California, in 1987 by lead vocalist and guitarist Billie Joe Armstrong and bassist and backing vocalist Mike Dirnt, with drummer Tré Cool joining in 1990. In 1994, their majo ...
, "
Welcome to Paradise" (the version from the album “
Dookie”) and "
Holiday
A holiday is a day or other period of time set aside for festivals or recreation. ''Public holidays'' are set by public authorities and vary by state or region. Religious holidays are set by religious organisations for their members and are often ...
" in an instrumental version, are used for background music in the film. Neither song appears on the official soundtrack album. In the primary teaser trailer, the song "
Get on Top" by the
Red Hot Chili Peppers
The Red Hot Chili Peppers are an American rock band formed in Los Angeles in 1982, consisting of Anthony Kiedis (vocals), Flea (musician), Flea (bass), John Frusciante (guitar), and Chad Smith (drums). Their music incorporates elements of a ...
can be heard in the background. "
Welcome to Paradise" was also used in the second trailer promoting ''Surf's Up,'' as well as "
Three Little Birds" by
Sean Paul
Sean Paul Ryan Francis Henriques (born 9 January 1973) is a Jamaican dancehall musician. Paul's first album, ''Stage One'', was released in 2000. He gained international fame with his second album, ''Dutty Rock'', in 2002. Its single "Get Busy ...
featuring
Ziggy Marley. The DVD and Blu-ray behind-the-scenes featurette entitled "Making Waves" features the song "The Water", performed by
Venice
Venice ( ; ; , formerly ) is a city in northeastern Italy and the capital of the Veneto Regions of Italy, region. It is built on a group of 118 islands that are separated by expanses of open water and by canals; portions of the city are li ...
. This also does not appear on the "Surf's Up" soundtrack but can be found on Venice's "Garage Demos Part 2: Fast Stuff" CD.
''Surf's Up: Original Ocean Picture Score'' was composed for the film by
Mychael Danna and it was released on a limited edition (of a thousand units) 23-track CD.
Release
Marketing
To promote the film's release, surfboard wax bearing the film's logo and a rendering of Cody was given out at the 2006
San Diego Comic-Con
San Diego Comic-Con is a comic book convention and multi-genre entertainment event held annually in San Diego, California, at the San Diego Convention Center. Founded in 1970, originally showcasing primarily comic books and science fiction/fant ...
. A trailer was attached to ''
Open Season'', which was released on September 29, 2006. On June 8, 2007,
McDonald's
McDonald's Corporation, doing business as McDonald's, is an American Multinational corporation, multinational fast food chain store, chain. As of 2024, it is the second largest by number of locations in the world, behind only the Chinese ch ...
issued eight ''Surf's Up'' toys in their
Happy Meals for one month. In the Australian market, a few small
plush characters of Cody, Lani, Chicken Joe, and Geek replace some of the toys in the US lineup. There was also a tie-in with the candy
Airheads which introduces a "New Wave" flavor (pineapple) and four collectible
lenticular motion surfboard-shaped pieces.
Build-A-Bear stores sold plush toys of the film's protagonist, Cody Maverick. Patrons could "build" their own Cody as well as dress him up in an array of surf-themed clothing and other accessories in Build-A-Bear workshops. They could also purchase Cody and accessories at the official site. Several plushies from Nanco intended for claw machines can also be found and purchased in varying sizes (from 6 inches to 11 inches to 17 inches). Characters available: Cody, Lani, Tank, Geek, Big Z, Chicken Joe, and Reggie Belefonte. A rare set of larger (Geek measures 15 inches) and higher quality plushes had been made available at the premiere's after party. These were won through available games or given away with gift sets for attendees. Cody, Lani, Arnold, and Geek were also created and there are no plans for the dolls to be sold commercially. A series of children's 100-piece puzzles are available as well depicting various characters and setups. Five-inch waterproof plush tub toys were released by
Jakks Pacific in minimal quantities to most major retailers. Five characters were produced, including Cody, Tank, Big Z, Arnold, and Chicken Joe. Each character has an attached washcloth/surfboard. Along with the release of the film, a companion
''Surf's Up'' video game was released by
Ubisoft
Ubisoft Entertainment SA (; ; formerly Ubi Soft Entertainment SA) is a French video game publisher headquartered in Saint-Mandé with development studios across the world. Its video game franchises include '' Anno'', '' Assassin's Creed'', ' ...
for Windows, Mac OS X, PlayStation 2 and 3, Xbox 360, as well as the Nintendo GameCube and Wii. All versions of the game are the same with mild graphical differences, with only the
Nintendo DS
The is a foldable handheld game console produced by Nintendo, released globally across 2004 and 2005. The DS, an initialism for "Developers' System" or "Dual Screen", introduced distinctive new features to handheld games: two LCD screens worki ...
version changing the overall format.
Home media
''Surf's Up'' was released on
Blu-ray
Blu-ray (Blu-ray Disc or BD) is a digital optical disc data storage format designed to supersede the DVD format. It was invented and developed in 2005 and released worldwide on June 20, 2006, capable of storing several hours of high-defin ...
,
UMD Video and
DVD in the
United States
The United States of America (USA), also known as the United States (U.S.) or America, is a country primarily located in North America. It is a federal republic of 50 U.S. state, states and a federal capital district, Washington, D.C. The 48 ...
on October 9, 2007. The DVD and Blu-ray included two animated short films: ''
The ChubbChubbs!'' and ''The ChubbChubbs Save Xmas'', the latter of which premiered with this release.
Reception
Critical response
''Surf's Up'' has a 79% approval rating on
Rotten Tomatoes
Rotten Tomatoes is an American review aggregator, review-aggregation website for film and television. The company was launched in August 1998 by three undergraduate students at the University of California, Berkeley: Senh Duong, Patrick Y. Lee ...
based on 147 reviews; the average rating is 6.67/10. The site's consensus reads: "''Surf's Up'' is a laid-back, visually stunning animated movie that brings a fresh twist to some familiar conventions. Its witty mockumentary format is fun and inventive, and the CGI is breathtakingly realistic."
Metacritic
Metacritic is an American website that aggregates reviews of films, television shows, music albums, video games, and formerly books. For each product, the scores from each review are averaged (a weighted average). Metacritic was created ...
gave the film a score of 64 out of 100 based on 26 reviews. Audiences surveyed by
CinemaScore
CinemaScore is an American market research firm based in Las Vegas. It surveys film audiences to rate their viewing experiences with letter grades, reports the results, and forecasts box office receipts from the data.
Background
Ed Mintz, who ...
gave the film a grade "A−" on scale of A+ to F.
Some reviews noted that in spite of it coming so soon after many films featuring penguins (''
March of the Penguins'', ''
Madagascar
Madagascar, officially the Republic of Madagascar, is an island country that includes the island of Madagascar and numerous smaller peripheral islands. Lying off the southeastern coast of Africa, it is the world's List of islands by area, f ...
'', and ''
Happy Feet''), ''Surf's Up'' was able to stand out on its own. Teresa Budasi of the ''
Chicago Sun-Times
The ''Chicago Sun-Times'' is a daily nonprofit newspaper published in Chicago, Illinois, United States. Since 2022, it is the flagship paper of Chicago Public Media, and has long held the second largest circulation among Chicago newspaper ...
'' reviewed: "The originality of the documentary format coupled with the splendid CGI effects qualifies ''Surf's Up'' as not just another penguin movie." ''
The Dallas Morning News
''The Dallas Morning News'' is a daily newspaper serving the Dallas–Fort Worth area of Texas, with an average print circulation in 2022 of 65,369. It was founded on October 1, 1885, by Alfred Horatio Belo as a satellite publication of the ' ...
'' critic Nancy Churnin agreed: "Sorry, cynics, ''Surf's Up'' is a charmer. And if the birds look somewhat familiar, they have something fresh to say about friendship and what winning is all about." While
James Berardinelli of ReelViews said: "If you have to see one penguin movie, this is it", Roger Moore of
Orlando Sentinel
The ''Orlando Sentinel'' is the primary newspaper of Orlando, Florida, and the Central Florida region, in the United States. It was founded in 1876 and is currently owned by Tribune Publishing Company.
The ''Orlando Sentinel'' is owned by pare ...
gave the film a positive score, noting that it was "beautifully animated, terrifically acted and edited in a way that hilariously mimics those ''
Endless Summer'' surf documentaries." Conversely, Bill Muller, ''
The Arizona Republic
''The Arizona Republic'' is an American daily newspaper published in Phoenix. Circulated throughout Arizona, it is the state's largest newspaper. Since 2000, it has been owned by the Gannett newspaper chain.
History
Early years
The newspap ...
s critic, disliked almost everything: "From the nondescript voices to routine animation to an over-written story, this movie spends much of its time gasping for air."
Box office
The film opened at number four and grossed $5,804,772 at the box office on its opening day in North America. It grossed $17,640,249 in its opening weekend. The film grossed $58,867,694 in North America, and $93,138,019 in the other territories, making the total worldwide gross $152,005,713.
Accolades
Sequel
A direct-to-video sequel, titled ''
Surf's Up 2: WaveMania'', was released on January 17, 2017. The film stars
WWE superstars
John Cena,
Triple H
Paul Michael Levesque (; born July 27, 1969), also known by the ring name Triple H, is an American business executive and former professional wrestler. He is signed to WWE, where he serves as its chief content officer.
Levesque began his wres ...
,
The Undertaker
Mark William Calaway (born March 24, 1965), better known by his ring name the Undertaker, is an American retired Professional wrestling, professional wrestler. Widely regarded as one of the greatest professional wrestlers of all time, Calaway ...
,
Vince McMahon
Vincent Kennedy McMahon ( ; born August 24, 1945) is an American businessman and former professional wrestling promoter. McMahon, along with his later-estranged wife Linda McMahon, Linda, is a co-founder of the modern WWE, the world's largest ...
, and
Paige.
References
External links
*
*
*
*
* - articles about the film production, mostly technical
{{Authority control
2007 films
2007 comedy films
2007 computer-animated films
2007 American animated films
2000s children's comedy films
2000s children's animated films
2000s sports comedy films
2000s English-language films
American computer-animated films
American children's animated comedy films
American sports comedy films
American surfing films
American mockumentary films
Animated sports films
Annie Award–winning films
Animated films about birds
Animated films about chickens
Animated films about otters
Animated films about penguins
Animated films about talking animals
Animated films set in Antarctica
Animated films set on islands
Animated films set on beaches
Films directed by Chris Buck
Films directed by Ash Brannon
Films produced by Chris Jenkins (film producer)
Films scored by Mychael Danna
Columbia Pictures films
Columbia Pictures animated films
Sony Pictures Animation films
Films using motion capture
English-language sports comedy films
Films with screenplays by Chris Buck
Films with screenplays by Chris Jenkins (film producer)