Peninsula Mitre: A Forgotten Land

How far will one go to surf the perfect wave…with an eye towards preserving the environment? Bruce Brown's famous 1966 feature documentary The Endless Summer set the bar high at the get-go for adventure sports but today seems rather quaint in the era of extreme sports in which some leave a shameful carbon footprint (and other signs of excess) in order to fulfill a purely personal goal. Here, the filmmaker brothers Julián and Joaquín Azulay featured in Gauchos del Mar (VL-7/15) strap their bulky, air-catching surfboards onto their backs for a 53-day, 250-mile trek over Argentina's remote and rugged Tierra del Fuego (located on the southern tip of South America), leaving digital communications behind and embracing the hardships that crop up (including light injuries). Along the way, the siblings remain conscious of their surrounding environment, at one point repairing a ramshackle shelter (which is sure to be a welcome sight for the next set of trekkers). As for the surfing, the water looks cold (in one spot it's even snowing) and the surfers are wrapped in neoprene suits (head to toe) as they search for perfect aqua curls. An entertaining sports adventure film featuring eco-minded surfers, this is highly recommended. Aud: P. (C. Block)