Christian Review Magazine Issue 3 - March 2015 | Page 24

MOVIE
REVIEW

Title:

THE PERFECT WAVE
Rating:

Starring:

Scott Eastwood, Rachel
Hendrix, Cheryl Ladd
Written by:

Roger Hawkins, William A.
Wood III, Billy Wood
Directed by:

Bruce Macdonald

A

bout 20 years ago I attended a
church event in which an
international speaker shared his
story and how he came to know the love
and grace of God. The speaker was Ian
McCormick, and he told of how in 1980 he
was fatally stung by Box Jellyfish. He talked
about the moment he died, what he saw
and experienced post mortem, and his
return to life.
The Perfect Wave is based on McCormick’s
testimony, and is basically a retelling of
Ian’s story. At the beginning of the movie
Ian is a young man who loves to surf and
has a thirst for adventure. So together with
a buddy he leaves his home and travels the
globe searching for the perfect wave.

Genre:

Drama
Running Time:

91 minutes

MPAA Rating:

PG

Production Company:

Divine Inspiration
Reviewed by:

Christian St John
Release Date:

Out Now : DVD, Blu-ray,
VOD
24 > CHRISTIAN REVIEW MAGAZINE

On his travels he falls in love for the first
time and begins to discover who he truly is
as he visits some of the most beautiful
places on earth… to surf their waves. Then
one fateful night, Ian discovers the love of
God, a love he had rejected in his youth,
and is faced with making a life changing
decision that will forever affect not only his
own life, but potentially the lives of
countless others.
The Perfect Wave is a well made movie. The
cinematography is breathtaking, especially
the scenery and surfing shots. The music

score is excellent and the songs that play
throughout the film were well chosen. First
time director, Bruce MacDonald, does a
great job behind the camera, truly
capturing the vision of the movie.
As far as I can tell, the screenplay sticks
closely to the actual events that led up to
McCormick’s life’s defining moment; to be
honest, it should do as the movie was
produced in part by the church that the real
life Ian McCormick pastors in.
As for the acting - Scott Eastwood (Fury)
stars as McCormick. Eastwood was a good
choice to play McCormick, playing him very
convincingly. Co-stars Rachel Hendrix
(October Baby) and Cheryl Ladd (TV’s Las
Vegas) also do well in their respective roles
as McCormick’s first love and mother. The
rest of the cast do just fine.
The Perfect Wave would be a great choice
for youth audiences as it has some
brilliantly filmed surfing sequences as well
as a powerful message. Saying that, I’m no
spring chicken and I thoroughly enjoyed
this movie. It’s a powerful story and I am
not ashamed to admit that I was moved by
the events that unfolded in the last 20 or so
minutes of the movie.