Point Break

It would seem Kathryn Bigelow came into her own with 1991's Point Break, which is exhilaratingly entertaining and survives one of Keanu Reeve's criminally wooden performances. I've heard a lot of good things about it over the years but can finally say that the hype was justified. It's not a great work of art, but damn if it isn't fun.

The plot hinges on the delicious idea that a band of surfers are robbing banks, using rubber masks of ex-presidents (given that it's 1991, the commanders in chief depicted are Reagan, Carter, Nixon and LBJ, the latter of whom probably wouldn't be recognized today). An FBI agent (Reeves), fresh out of Quantico, teams with a grizzled vet (Gary Busey), and the former goes undercover as a lawyer looking to learn how to surf. His way in is a young woman (Lori Petty), who introduces him to Bodhi, the guru of the beach.

If Reeves is a stiff, its more than made up for by Patrick Swayze as Bodhi at his best, a leonine, sun-dappled surf god who practices Buddhism but also knocks off banks. It takes Reeves a while to figure that out (he targets a different group of surfers first, in an exciting and well-executed raid scene) but then is on to Swayze's gang and almost catches them in the act, resulting in a terrific foot chase through the alleys and houses of Los Angeles. I have to stop and think and I can't come up with a better foot race in any movie--it's really a rarity, and this one is so well-done, cutting from the point of view of both pursuer and pursued, that it ranks as one of the better action scenes of the last generation.

The film also has some spectacular scenes involving skydiving (these surfers like to ramp up the adrenaline any way they can). This does lead to the most ludicrous moment of the film, when Reeves jumps out of a plane without a chute, but the film has built up so much good will by then that it can be overlooked (barely). There is also, of course, some brilliant and breathtaking surfing footage. This was done in the days before the technology allowed digital replacement of actors' faces, and it's amazing how seamless it was all done.

Point Break certainly doesn't have the gravitas of The Hurt Locker, but as far as pulse-pounding action, it stands right there with it. It was a gas to watch.