Movies Similar to Adventures in Paradise

Peninsula(2014)

This documentary explores the tranquil history of Italian surfing along with the passion and dedication of the pioneers who shaped it.

Being Captain Zero(2009)

This is a dynamic documentary about two 1970s era marijuana smugglers who were forced to separate when they got too successful. Nothing could prepare them for what they saw when they reunited 20 years later. Based on the best selling book 'In search of Captain Zero'. Shot in 3 countries with beautiful production value.

Billabong Odyssey(2003)

Action sports documentary that follows the industry's best big wave surfers as they travel the world searching for the largest waves that nature has to offer.

The Endless Summer II(1994)

Bruce Brown, king of surfing documentaries, returns after nearly thirty years to trace the steps of two young surfers to top surfing spots around the world. Along the way we see many of the people and locales Bruce visited during the filming of Endless Summer (1966).

Shaka(2018)

Showcasing breathtaking footage of mountains and waves around the world, Shaka follows snowboarding world champion and renowned athlete Mathieu Crepel as he faces the biggest challenge of his life: to surf the legendary waves of Jaws Beach, Hawaii.

Sons of the Surf(1926)

Surfing at Waikiki Beach, Hawaii, on the island of Oahu. Most surfers are human, one is a dog. The educational documentary is part of the Bruce Scenic Novelties series.

Riding Giants(2004)

Riding Giants is story about big wave surfers who have become heroes and legends in their sport. Directed by the skateboard guru Stacy Peralta.

The Beach Boys - California Surfin(2004)

The Endless Summer(1966)

Bruce Brown's The Endless Summer is one of the first and most influential surf movies of all time. The film documents American surfers Mike Hynson and Robert August as they travel the world during California’s winter (which, back in 1965 was off-season for surfing) in search of the perfect wave and ultimately, an endless summer.

You Should Have Been Here Yesterday(2024)

You Should Have Been Here Yesterday combines hundreds of hours of lovingly restored 16mm footage with a salt-infused soundscape by Headland. This cinematic poem tells the story of a wild community who took off up the coast and discovered a whole new way to live. Going back to the never-before-seen camera reels to ask the question – what do we keep and what do we leave behind? Featuring Tim Winton, Wayne Lynch, Bob McTavish, Albe Falzon, Evelyn Rich, Maurice Cole and many more. Inspired by Moonage Daydream and Jen Peedom’s Mountain.

Step Into Liquid(2003)

No special effects. No stuntmen. No stereotypes. No other feeling comes close. Surfers and secret spots from around the world are profiled in this documentary.

The Longest Wave(2019)

Oscar-nominated filmmaker Joe Berlinger travels the globe with legendary windsurfer and pioneering waterman Robby Naish, a 24-time world champion whose quest to master the world's longest waves unexpectedly reveals his vulnerabilities as a competitor, mentor and father. THE LONGEST WAVE transcends the action sports genre by capturing obstacles outside of the legendary athlete's professional life in an intimate, cinéma-vérité style, revealing Naish balancing the pursuit of excellence at sea with the demands of life's complications on land.

Bustin' Down the Door(2008)

During the winter of 1975 in Hawaii, surfing was shaken to its core. A group of young surfers from Australia and South Africa sacrificed everything and put it all on the line to create a sport, a culture, and an industry that is today worth billions of dollars and has captured the imagination of the world. With a radical new approach and a brash colonial attitude, these surfers crashed headlong into a culture that was not ready for revolution. Surfing was never to be the same again.

Morning of the Earth(1972)

In the early ‘70s, founding member of Australian surf magazine Tracks, Albert Falzon, began filming off the North Coast of New South Wales, Hawaii, and Indonesia. He set out to make a film “that was a reflection of the spirit of surfing at the time” and the end result, Morning of the Earth, proved its worth as a vital document of surf culture and a powerful nature film.

Resurface(2017)

A suicidal war veteran finds like-minded souls in a surf therapy program that helps traumatized soldiers heal while riding the waves.

Waveriders(2008)

Previously untold story of the unlikely Irish roots of the worldwide surfing phenomenom

Follow Me(1969)

Documentary about two boys and a girl who travel to surfing spots around the world.

Mondo Hollywood(1967)

Long considered a cult classic, "Mondo Hollywood" captures the underside of Hollywood by documenting a moment in time (1965-67), when an inquisitive trust in the unknown was paramount, hope for the future was tangible and life was worth living on the fringe. An interior monologue narrative approach is used throughout the film, where each principal person shown not only decided on what they wanted to be filmed doing, but also narrated their own scenes. The film opens with Gypsy Boots (the original hippie vegan - desert hopping blender salesman), and stripper Jennie Lee, working out 'Watusi-style' beneath the 'Hollywood' sign -- leading into the 'sustainable community' insight of Lewis Beach Marvin III, the S&H Green Stamp heir, who lived in a $10 a month garage while owning a mountain retreat in Malibu.

Fantasea(1980)

This true classic from 1980 features the incredible surfing performances of Australia's Simon Anderson, Chris Byrne, Terry Fitzgerald, Wayne Lynch, Mark Warren, Col Smith and Mark Richards. Plus heavyweight Hawaii talent Dane Kealoha, Bobby Owens, Larry Bertlemann, Mark Liddell, Mark Foo, Buzzy Kerbox, Rory Russell, Reno Abellira and South Africa's Shaun Tomson. Fantasea opens with a powerful animated sequence that dissolves into one of Greenough's tube shots filmed from a camera mounted on his back and sets the mood for a full-on surfing epic covering Australia, South Africa and Hawaii.

Andy Irons: Kissed by God(2018)

A film about bipolar disorder and opioid addiction as seen through the life of three-time world champion surfer Andy Irons. He was the pride of Hawaii and revered around the world for his blue collar rise to fame and success. However, many were unaware of his internal battles that led to his demise. As the opioid crisis rises to a national emergency in the United States, the untold story of Andy’s life serves to tear down the myths associated with these two ferocious diseases.