Bra Boys (2007)

Directors:

Sunny Abberton
Macario De Souza (co-director)

Writers:

Sunny Abberton (written by) and
Stuart Beattie (writer)

Release Date:

15 March 2007 (Australia)

Genre:

Documentary

Tagline:

Blood is thicker than water

Plot:

A film about the cultural evolution of the Sydney beach side suburb of Maroubra and the social struggle faced by it's youth - the notorious surf gang known as the Bra Boys.

Plot Keywords:

Surfing | Male Nudity | Sydney Australia | Gang Culture | Gang Violence

Cast

Russell Crowe	...	Himself - Narrator (voice)
Kelly Slater	...	Himself
Cheyne Horan	...	Himself
Jack Kingsley	...	Himself
Sean Doherty	...	Himself
Koby Abberton	...	Himself
Sunny Abberton	...	Himself
Jai Abberton	...	Himself
Wayne Cleveland	...	Himself
Maurice Cole	...	Himself
John Gannon	...	Himself
Mark Matthews	...	Himself
Wayne Bartholomew	...	Himself (as Wayne 'Rabbit' Bartholomew)
Nick Carroll	...	Himself
Derek Hynd	...	Himself

MPAA:

Rated R for language, some violent content and reckless behavior.

Runtime:

90 min

Country:

Australia

Language:

English

Colour:

Colour

Certification:

Australia:M | USA:R

Filming Locations:

Maroubra, Sydney, New South Wales, Australia

Company:

Bradahood Productions

Goofs:

Factual errors: Narrator Russell Crowe says "In 1780 after passing through the Pacific Islands, Captain James Cook sailed into Botany Bay" This should of course be 1770, as Captain James Cook died in 1779 in Hawaii.

Soundtrack:

Anasis (Xenophontis)

Questionable objectivity though not without interest

Just a little ways east of Sydney lies a place called Marouba Beach, home to the Bra Boys, a band of hooligan surfers founded by the Abberton Brothers in the 1990s, now made famous courtesy of a documentary entitled "Bra Boys: Blood is Thicker Than Water." When they're not out hanging ten or catching a monster wave, the boys are busy duking it out with rival gangs and even the local police.

The film, directed by Sunny Abberton himself, makes for reasonably interesting viewing, though one wonders whether the material itself truly merits a full-length documentary. It starts off painting the gang as a bunch of out-of-control hellions, then spends the rest of the time making the case that they are really just poor, misunderstood fellows at their core. The movie does a fairly convincing job in that respect - not surprising given the director's close personal ties to the subject - but the real stars of the film are the beautifully photographed curls the boys tackle in between bouts of anti-social behavior and revisionist self-reflection.