The Surfer may not be the most coherent critique of our unfortunate current social conditions, but it’s a primal scream which feels apt for the moment.

| Mar 27, 2025

The Surfer is a strange, salty brew with exploitation vibes aimed at bullheaded toxic masculinity.

| Original Score: 3/5 | Mar 26, 2025

Rich with thematic material and even richer in performances and aesthetic flourishes, Nicolas Cage’s streak of choosing interesting projects that push him as a performer continues.

| Mar 18, 2025

It’s a very strong film visually, but those hoping for a fun Nic Cage homage to exploitation films will likely be frustrated by how repetitive and grating this can be.

| Original Score: 5/10 | Mar 18, 2025

The Surfer undergoes torment after torment, slowly losing his grip on reality as what could initially be written off as cruel gaslighting soon begins to look a lot more like divine intervention.

| Original Score: 6/10 | Mar 16, 2025

fans of Cage, Australian dramas, and a B-movie’s relish for the extreme will find it lives up to the promise of its premise with aplomb.

| Mar 14, 2025

Though it briefly plumbs greater depths in regards to toxic masculinity and identity, The Surfer is, first and foremost, an exploitation B-movie to the utmost. It’s nasty, it’s mean, and it’s really, really gross.

| Mar 13, 2025

Regardless of how I felt about the story at any given moment — confusion, unease, anger at the surfer bullies — I also couldn’t tear my eyes away.

| Original Score: 6/10 | Mar 13, 2025

Overall, The Surfer falls into one of Cage’s more iconic of films and it is an interesting retrospective of his career in the last few years. But be warned, you will want to fight people on his behalf.

| Original Score: 4/5 | Mar 12, 2025

Cage is no stranger to stories of descents into madness, and he brings all of his experience and acting chops to this role, which is as gripping as it is fun to watch.

| Original Score: 8/10 | Mar 12, 2025

Nicolas Cage delivers yet another unforgettable performance in a film that had my blood boiling (which seems to be the intention).

| Mar 11, 2025

An atmospheric thriller with good performances from Nicolas Cage and Julian McMahon

| Mar 11, 2025

The heat is omnipresent, rippling through the air, distorting what we see, distorting time and identity.

| Original Score: 4.5/5 | Mar 7, 2025

As The Surfer, Cage is larger than life in the way that only he can be, but there is a human level of desperation that adds poignancy to his slide into lunacy, even as the script doesn’t serve him well when it comes to character depth.

| Original Score: 5.8/10 | Mar 4, 2025

When The Surfer does break out of the sun-addled fugue state that marks its midsection, it delivers a gonzo finale that lets Nicolas Cage rev himself up into his most manic, meme-able self.

| Original Score: 2.5/4 | Mar 2, 2025

As alluring as The Surfer’s ideas of hybridising toxic masculinity with gentrification are, and the groovy surf rock score is a real vibe, the film has a cruel, alienating edge to it that wears thin

| Feb 26, 2025

This has cult classics written all over it, and it gives us yet another stunning turn from Cage.

| Original Score: 10/10 | Dec 24, 2024

‘The Surfer’ features Nicolas Cage’s best performance of the year.

| Original Score: 3/5 | Oct 25, 2024

There is a definite sense of disorientation created and an entertaining horrific experience at the core. But there is still a feeling of an opportunity missed.

| Original Score: 2/5 | Oct 24, 2024

Everything about The Surfer's one-line pitch sounds ridiculous, but the film itself is a haunting set piece about localism, repressed memory, and toxic masculinity, boasting the wild ride we've come to associate with Cage.

| Oct 13, 2024