Surfing, there’s nothing cooler. Catching waves, tanning skin, hair lightening, a cool tropical breeze… admit it, nothing’s gnarlier. During a grim and cold winter, it’s easy to yearn for the simpler, more joyous times. Nothing brings back that warm feeling of summer like a good 2000’s surf movie. Blue Crush, the 2002 cheesy surf romance has the kind of vibe that’ll make you want to book a one-way flight to the islands just to learn how to shred.

Based in Hawaii, Anne Marie (played by Kate Bosworth) lives in a rugged beach shack with her two best friends, Lena and Eden along with her rebellious younger sister, Penny. Living on O’ahu’s iconic north shore, Anne Marie and her girls live for the morning swell. It’s a fast-paced hustle: shredding waves at dawn, school drop-off for Penny, and then straight to their jobs as maids in the town’s luxury hotel. There she meets pro quater-back Matt Tollman (played by Mathew Davis), who throws a wrench in her preparation for the Rip Masters surf competition. Anne Marie’s conflicts with Penny, her new romance and Rip Masters introduces themes of sisterhood, love and ambition, self-discovery, overcoming fear and drama, and female empowerment.  

Blue Crush is a fun, feel-good movie. Though it might not be as profound as movies like, Goodwill Hunting or Intersteller, or as action-packed as Mission: Impossible, Blue Crush still gets the job done. You can find yourself laughing, or even cringing when caught up in the cheesy love story or at the below-par acting. Matt’s corny pickup lines, “Just be the girl I met on the beach… The kind of girl who wouldn’t ask a guy what to do.” and Anne Marie’s irrational dreams “I want a girl to be on the cover of Surf magazine. It would be great if that girl were me, but any girl would do” can bark out a good laugh. If you’re not looking for a life changing, brain-altering, cinematic masterpiece but an easy 2000’s cheese-fest, Blue Crush is the perfect movie for you.