The Adrenal Safari

Ever wonder what it's like to wrap a piece of cord around your foot and dive headfirst off a bridge? Me neither. But some young people do, and today's youngsters--so-called Generation Xers--are a rather different breed from our generation. Instead of driving endlessly in a VW bus to an outdoor concert where everybody sat on the grass and inhaled same, today's kids are into activity: at concerts they like to enter the "moshing pit" (basically a place where people hurt one another); in the great outdoors, they like to bungie jump, snowboard, surf, and go cliff diving. The Adrenal Safari follows a group of kids led by Aaron Moore, Nate Moore, and Chris Anderson, to various locations in Washington State "in search of the pure stoke and the true rush of the adrenaline power"--the kind of feeling that the rest of us can get by just opening up our monthly bills. The video quality isn't the best (though it's passable), but the editing is pretty slick, and the action-packed footage is backed by a high-powered soundtrack comprised of alternative and rap tunes with mildly Christian lyrics. In short, the tape is a little rough around the edges, but I think these kids deserve come credit, and I'm pretty sure that YA's will watch it. Recommended, with reservations. (R. Pitman)