Sipping Jetstreams is travel meets surf meets art in Taylor Steeles high-budget opus.
Most Helpful Customer Reviews
By FemFoison (USA)
5.0 out of 5 stars Lush, vivid cinematography
I first heard mention of this film a year and a half ago, in a "preview" blurb in some magazine in a waiting room. Suffice to say I was thrilled to finally get my copy. I was expecting something along the lines of Step Into Liquid, so it took me about 20 minutes to really get into it. If you're a fan of Baraka, or any of the Qatsi films, you'll probably enjoy this film, but the lack of narration, commentary, or dialogue might put some viewers off. If you can look past that, though, it becomes a photo-documentary (to music) about our relationship with nature and with each other. I can't say I fell in love with the soundtrack right away, but nevertheless it warrants a solid 5-star rating. Despite all odds the directors succeed brilliantly, conveying beauty, the human connection, and even humor, and everything I felt was "missing" could be found in the Bonus features (director commentary, behind the scenes, etc).
Point of interest: The segment in Cuba is particularly demonstrative of the perfect juxtaposition of music and imagery.
By Rob Nesta "big island underground"
4.0 out of 5 stars Sipping Heaven
"Sipping Jetstreams" embodies the fantasy of every surfer - the surf trip.
With stunningly beautiful cinematography, the film chronicles pro surfers in line-ups across the world, as well as the people who inhabit each specific part of the globe. Much of the non-surfing footage is of subject matter usually captured in photos - sunsets and sunrises, locals sitting and smiling, flowers blooming, and the like - but instead of feeling that Taylor Steele missed the entire point of video, I found myself in love with each of the places the surfers travel. In a surprising twist on the typical surf film - which usually has at least some monologues by surfers, talking about the line-up or psyche - "SJ" is completely dialog free save for an introduction about the appeal of travel. That being said, the movie plays almost like a 36-minute long music video, featuring some of the best music and footage synchronization that I've ever seen in a surf movie - or music video, for that matter.
However, those looking for a more straightforward surf video (a la "Billabong - Frothing" or "Absolute Mexico", etc.) will be disappointed, since the film is by my estimates half surf footage, half about the locals. If I had one serious beef with the film (and this is nitpicking, at best), it's that some of the waves that are surfed are marginal at best: Egypt, and part of the Japan trip. It was almost as if they had filmed there just for the scenery shots, then said "well, we're here, get in the water!"
My favorite part? In a surreal sequence, a blonde shaggy-haired skateboarder (he's probably famous) manuals down a Cuban street as 1960s-era Cuban cars drive past, set to the Buena Vista Social Club. I found myself fascinated by the contradictions, and somewhat alarmed as he kept skating and clearly startled several Cuban drivers coming around corners (do they not dislike us enough already?!) But in a nice shot later on, we see the same skater watching as kids shred with his board, and later him laughing with two Cuban kids on some steps. (The Jamaican sessions were also good, too - I like a little reggae with my surf.)
Without a doubt, this is a film I will be watching over again - just not as much for the surf, as for the surf escapism.
By steveirwin "steveirwin" (Seattle, WA United States)
4.0 out of 5 stars Beautifully filmed
This is a gorgeous film to watch. The DVD comes with a book of photographs and the packaging is very high quality. The scenery and travel shots in this movie are worthy of hanging on a wall. The surfing locations are more exotic than the norm, which is a nice change - and the music is also paired well and in fact, I hope they release a cd as I'd purchase it. It really is a unique surfing film from the many others I've seen. However, the one big disappointment was there's no narrative, and I personally would've liked to know where they were during each session, what beaches, who was surfing etc, along with the usual entertaining travel tales expected from such a journey. There is a DVD option for "director's commentary" that gives some background - but interviews with the surfers and more on the why/what/where/when/how and especially, how interacting with locals, was something I really wanted to know more about to. (and i know this is a surf film first, but I think those extras would've really enhanced this film) Still, it's worth watching and makes a really nice gift to any surfing enthusiast - and anyone who enjoys travel photography.
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