Revisiting “Point Break” (1991), 26 years after the making

Wow, 26 years… That’s a LONG time – a quarter of a century! “Point Break” (1991) is one of those movies that you keep watching over and over again, and each time you feel exhilarated by its energy and the endorphin rush it produces. It arguably shaped Keanu’s career as an action superstar, and it is my second favorite Keanu movie after “Devil’s Advocate”.

             

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“Point Break” came out at a critical juncture, 2 years after Keanu’s first breakout role in the hit “Bill and Ted’s Excellent Adventure”. Keanu was so convincing in the role of a slacker Valley teenager in this adorable time traveling romp that he faced the danger of being pigeonholed. Who came to the rescue? No other than an acclaimed director in the making, Kathryn Bigelow (she went on to make “Hurt Locker” and “Zero Dark Thirty”). She was the one who insisted on casting Keanu, despite studio executives’ fierce opposition. She undoubtedly saw the spark and potential of this special up-and-coming star! And Keanu was the one who pushed to cast Lori Petty as his love interest in the film. He recounted in a recent ‘Ask Me Anything’ Reddit post, that he said “that’s the actress”, after seeing her roll up to the casting interview in a beatup old Cadillac! This movie was all about kismet, apparently. That must be why it’s so perfect!

The main character, Johnny Utah (Keanu), is a rookie agent fresh out of Quantico FBI academy. He is assigned to the bank robbery division in Los Angeles, LA being the bank robbery capital of the country. He is partnered with a veteran agent, Angelo Pappas (the delightful Gary Busey), to capture a band of bank robbers that had eluded law enforcement agents for years. The modus operandi of the robbers is that they wear masks depicting the faces of past U.S. Presidents (Reagan, Nixon, Johnson, Carter), and they call themselves “The Ex-Presidents”. In one scene, they tell the bank robbery victims they should not mind the heist since “we [the Presidents] have been screwing you for years.” How droll!

The Ex-Presidents

Johnny goes undercover, to investigate Angelo’s theory that the robbers are surfers pilfering to fund their trips to catch seasonal waves around the world (those devils!). While infiltrating the world of LA beach bums, he meets a tough surfer chick named Tyler (Lori Petty), who unwittingly connects him to the bank robber gang, led by Bodhi (the venerable Patrick Swayze). Tyler and Bodhi both show Johnny the thrill and freedom of riding the waves, which touches Johnny in a profoundly spiritual way, connecting him to the power of the ocean. When everyone finds out the secret identities of each other, a vicious cat-and-mouse game ensues, packed with action!

My favorite scene in the movie is when Johnny chased Bodhi through the streets of LA, right after catching him the in the act of a bank robbery. The way that Keanu looked running with a gun in hand = PERFECTION itself. MUAH! ::doing the ‘delicious’ Italian fingertips kissing motion:: Also when he could not bring himself to shoot the masked robber, realizing that it was Bodhi, Johnny shot all of his rounds into the air, screaming with agony (mental and physical) – really touching and well-acted.