It's easy to dismiss this Malibu surfing saga as pretentious nonsense, with beach bums Jan-Michael Vincent, William Katt and Gary Busey forever seeking the great Californian wave that will give meaning to their lives. However, director John Milius - who went on to script Apocalypse Now - shows a personal commitment to all the mystical bonding. The result rises above the pseudo-intellectual twaddle to make a poignant statement about the lack of purpose in the 1960s, and the way Vietnam forced even infantile hunks such as these to take on responsibility.

Three 1960s California surfers fool around, drift apart and reunite years later to ride epic waves.