“Big Wednesday” is a coming-of-age sports drama about three friends whose passion for surfing seems to surpass everything else in life. Director John Milius (“The Wind and the Lion” 1975) had focused direction in putting together this two-hour movie. He co-wrote the screenplay with Dennis Aaberg, with both of them using their years of experiences of surfing at Malibu for the basis of the storylines.
The actors turned in good performances, including Jan-Michael Vincent, William Katt, and Gary Busey as the three friends. The supporting cast includes Patti D’Arbanville, Lee Purcell, Sam Melville, Darrell Fetty, Robert Englund, Fran Ryan, Reb Brown, Joe Spinell, Gary Frederickson, Steve Kanaly, and professional surfer Gerry Lopez as himself. Barbara Hale also had a role in the film, playing the mother of William Katt, who is her son in real life. She was famous for playing the secretary of “Perry Mason” (1957-1966). This was her final film role, although she made many television appearances before her passing 2017 at the age of 94.
The cinematography by Bruce Surtees was quite well done. Unfortunately, the watchable “Big Wednesday” was not successful in theatrical release for A-Team Productions and Warner Bros. Pictures.
Big Wednesday (1978)
cinema
My Review
“Big Wednesday” is a coming-of-age sports drama about three friends whose passion for surfing seems to surpass everything else in life. Director John Milius (“The Wind and the Lion” 1975) had focused direction in putting together this two-hour movie. He co-wrote the screenplay with Dennis Aaberg, with both of them using their years of experiences of surfing at Malibu for the basis of the storylines.
The actors turned in good performances, including Jan-Michael Vincent, William Katt, and Gary Busey as the three friends. The supporting cast includes Patti D’Arbanville, Lee Purcell, Sam Melville, Darrell Fetty, Robert Englund, Fran Ryan, Reb Brown, Joe Spinell, Gary Frederickson, Steve Kanaly, and professional surfer Gerry Lopez as himself. Barbara Hale also had a role in the film, playing the mother of William Katt, who is her son in real life. She was famous for playing the secretary of “Perry Mason” (1957-1966). This was her final film role, although she made many television appearances before her passing 2017 at the age of 94.
The cinematography by Bruce Surtees was quite well done. Unfortunately, the watchable “Big Wednesday” was not successful in theatrical release for A-Team Productions and Warner Bros. Pictures.