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Big Wednesday (1978)
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Overview
User Rating:
Release Date:
May 1978 (USA) moreTagline:
Three friends. Twelve Turbulent Years. And One Day We All Must Face. morePlot:
The lives of some California surfers from the early '60s to the '70s. | full synopsisAwards:
1 nomination moreNewsDesk:
(3 articles)
Busey And Conaway Bust-Up On Rehab Show (From WENN. 19 November 2008, 3:57 AM, PST)
Busey Snorted Cocaine Off His Dog
(From WENN. 22 October 2008, 12:14 AM, PDT)
User Comments:
Spectacular surfing sequences and very hazy 60s lives more (50 total)Cast
(Cast overview, first billed only)| Jan-Michael Vincent | ... | Matt Johnson | |
| William Katt | ... | Jack Barlow | |
| Gary Busey | ... | Leroy Smith | |
| Patti D'Arbanville | ... | Sally Jacobson | |
| Lee Purcell | ... | Peggy Gordon | |
| Sam Melville | ... | Bear | |
| Darrell Fetty | ... | Jim 'Waxer' King | |
| Gerry Lopez | ... | Himself | |
| Hank Worden | ... | Shopping Cart Fisherman (as Hank Warden) | |
| Joe Spinell | ... | Army Psychologist | |
| Steve Kanaly | ... | Jacobson - Sally's Husband | |
| Barbara Hale | ... | Mrs. Barlow | |
| Fran Ryan | ... | Lucy | |
| Dennis Aaberg | ... | Slick | |
| Reb Brown | ... | Enforcer |
Additional Details
Parents Guide:
Add content advisory for parentsRuntime:
120 minCountry:
USALanguage:
EnglishColor:
Color (Metrocolor)Aspect Ratio:
2.35 : 1 moreSound Mix:
DolbyCertification:
Australia:M | Finland:K-16 | USA:PG | Singapore:PG | Norway:16 | UK:A | UK:PG | Iceland:12Fun Stuff
Trivia:
The role of the "Enforcer" was loosely based on longtime Malibu icon and waterman Ray Kunze who looked out for John Milus (director) and Dennis Aaberg (co-writer) in the late 50's. moreGoofs:
Errors made by characters (possibly deliberate errors by the filmmakers): During the party scene a girl screams "Waxer, no!" when another character, Crusher, not Waxer, attacks her. moreQuotes:
Matt Johnson: I don't wanna be a star. Have my picture in magazines, have a bunch of kids looking up to me. I'm a drunk, Bear, a screw up. I just surf cause its good to go out and ride with your friends. I don't even have that anymore. moreSoundtrack:
Three Friends Theme moreFAQ
This FAQ is empty. Add the first question.more (50 total)
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The surfing sequences are what make this movie, some of the waves on Big Wednesday at the end look too huge and powerful to be real, and the sight of these men standing at the foot of them on their puny little boards, battling to outrun the awesome power of the water crashing down, is real heart-gripping stuff. The tale of a group of friends drifting through the sixties and seventies, getting into scrapes, having parties, trying to avoid Vietnam and doing all that stuff sixties movies live for, is well enough done, though the script gets a bit cliche-heavy at some points. The episodic format, a series of brief snapshots taken from various moments over a spread of ten years or so, helps capture the rambling nature of these people's lives, and gives an insight on how much things change and yet stay the same between a gang of old friends as the times move on and the world turns. Katt fares well as the narrator and core, as is Stringfellow Hawk as the former champ surfer, and Busey gives his normal crazy shouty brilliance, but the surf takes the honours.