Big Wednesday

In 1978 John Milius set out to tell the story of his own youth, and paid for it. The film follows three California surfers across twelve years: Matt, played by Jan-Michael Vincent, Leroy, played by Gary Busey, and Jack, played by William Katt. In between come Vietnam, marriages, drink, and at last the swell they have been waiting for. Expectations ran high. Before their films opened, George Lucas and Steven Spielberg traded percentage points between Big Wednesday, Star Wars and Close Encounters of the Third Kind, with Spielberg convinced this one would be American Graffiti crossed with Jaws. It went the other way: against an eleven million dollar budget it took four and a half million. The trade made Milius millions while his own picture sank. Home video reversed the verdict. It is now regarded as the most honest account of sixties and seventies Californian surf culture on film, and as one of the founding texts of the surf movie. Who it is for: viewers who want a solemn elegy that mythologises male friendship, passing time and the sea. Who it is not for: anyone expecting an action or sports picture, since the pace is slow and the mood heavy.