Movies Like The Endless Summer (1966)

The Endless Summer is a 1966 documentary film from Bruce Brown with a MovieMagicScore of 7.1/10. Here are 20 similar films, ranked by real viewer ratings — starting with The Endless Summer II and Riding Giants.

Documentary

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).

7.5

MagicScore

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.

7.6

MagicScore

Barbie in A Mermaid Tale

2010

Barbie stars as Merliah, a surfer who learns a shocking secret: she's a mermaid! She and her dolphin friend set out for an undersea adventure to rescue her mother, the queen of Oceana.

7.2

MagicScore

Soul Surfer

2011

The true story of teen surfer Bethany Hamilton, who lost her arm in a shark attack and courageously overcame all odds to become a champion again, through her sheer determination and unwavering faith.

7.0

MagicScore

The Surfer

2025

A man returns to the idyllic beach of his childhood to surf with his son. When he is humiliated by a group of locals, the man is drawn into a conflict that keeps rising and pushes him to his breaking point.

5.8

MagicScore

Given

2017

A young family leaves their home on Kauai. It is time to return to the itinerant path from which all things in their uncommon lives come; beginning and ending on a remote dot in the Pacific. They nomadically trace continents to places where waves meet their edges, envoys of aloha. It is what they will learn, what they bring others, what they will pass on to their children in the hyper-expanded classroom, the lab of direct being; a legacy passed from a father to his family.

7.4

MagicScore

The Brice Man

2005

A wannabe surfer parties on the French Riviera while awaiting the perfect wave.

5.5

MagicScore

Surf's Up

2007

A young surfer enters his first contest, hoping a win will earn him respect. But an encounter with a laid-back local forces him to rethink his values.

6.5

MagicScore

Surf Ninjas

1993

Two Asian-American "surfer-dude" brothers discover they are the long lost princes from a China Sea Island. Part of their inheritance includes magically-induced martial arts prowess and seeing the future. Using their new powers, they act to overthrow the island's current dictator, a despotic madman with a metal face!

4.9

MagicScore

#10

National Lampoon Presents: Endless Bummer

2009

From National Lampoon, the masters of raunchy comedy, comes a summer tale of beers, babes, and bros! In the surf town of Ventura, California, JD's surf board is stolen by a surfer from Los Angeles...a crime that cannot go unpunished. Gathering his friends and the local surf hero, Mike Mooney, they take a road trip to LA to get the surfboard back, then return to Ventura for the wildest summer party ever!

5.0

MagicScore

#11

Surf School

2006

A rag-tag bunch of seniors, complete outsiders at their surf-crazed Laguna Beach High School, decide to crash the biggest team surf contest. In order to prevail, however, they must do one important thing...learn to surf! We're taking your classic Cinderella story into the world of surfing, complete with hi-jinx and the aesthetic beauty of surf mecca Costa Rica, our spectacular set location

2.7

MagicScore

#12

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.

7.2

MagicScore

#13

Point Break

1991

In Los Angeles, a gang of bank robbers who call themselves The Ex-Presidents commit their crimes while wearing masks of Reagan, Carter, Nixon and Johnson. Believing that the members of the gang could be surfers, the F.B.I. sends young agent Johnny Utah to the beach undercover to mix with the surfers and gather information.

7.2

MagicScore

#14

The Shallows

2016

While surfing on a secluded beach, Nancy finds herself in the feeding grounds of a great white shark. Though stranded only 200 yards from shore, survival proves to be the ultimate test of wills, requiring all of her ingenuity, resourcefulness, and fortitude.

6.3

MagicScore

#15

Blue Crush

2002

Nothing gets between Anne Marie and her board. Living in a beach shack with three roommates, she is up before dawn every morning to conquer the waves and count the days until the Pipe Masters competition. Having transplanted herself to Hawaii with no one's blessing but her own, Anne Marie finds all she needs in the adrenaline-charged surf scene - until pro quarterback Matt Tollman comes along...

6.0

MagicScore

#16

Blue Crush 2

2011

Haunted by the memory of her deceased mother, Dana leaves Malibu behind and heads to South Africa to fulfill her mother's dream of surfing Jefferys Bay.

5.8

MagicScore

#17

Ride

2014

Overbearing mom, Jackie, travels cross-country to be with her son, Angelo, after he drops out of college to become a surfer. She meets a surf instructor who convinces her to try to accept her son's wishes and allow him to follow his dreams.

5.7

MagicScore

#18

The Burial of Kojo

2018

A man is trapped in a mine shaft by his vengeful brother while his daughter embarks on a magical journey to rescue him.

6.6

MagicScore

#19

Sans Soleil

1983

A woman narrates the thoughts of a world traveler, meditations on time and memory expressed in words and images from places as far-flung as Japan, Guinea-Bissau, Iceland, and San Francisco.

7.4

MagicScore

#20

Valparaiso

1964

In 1962 Joris Ivens was invited to Chile for teaching and filmmaking. Together with students he made …A Valparaíso, one of his most poetic films. Contrasting the prestigious history of the seaport with the present the film sketches a portrait of the city, built on 42 hills, with its wealth and poverty, its daily life on the streets, the stairs, the rack railways and in the bars. Although the port has lost its importance, the rich past is still present in the impoverished city. The film echoes this ambiguous situation in its dialectical poetic style, interweaving the daily life reality (of 1963) with the history of the city and changing from black and white to colour, finally leaving us with hopeful perspective for the children who are playing on the stairs and hills of this beautiful town.

7.0

MagicScore

Frequently asked

What are the best movies like The Endless Summer?

The top films similar to The Endless Summer by MovieMagicScore are The Endless Summer II (7.5), Riding Giants (7.6), Barbie in A Mermaid Tale (7.2). Each shares documentary themes and is ranked by real viewer ratings, not critics or studios.

Is The Endless Summer worth watching?

The Endless Summer holds a MovieMagicScore of 7.1/10 from 129 viewer ratings, putting it among the better-reviewed titles in its genre.

What kind of movie is The Endless Summer?

The Endless Summer (1966) is a documentary film directed by Bruce Brown, starring Michael Hynson, Robert August, Lord James Blears.

Where can I find more recommendations like The Endless Summer?

Browse the full ranked list above, or explore more documentary recommendations on MovieMagicScore, where every list is ordered by genuine viewer ratings.

Keep exploring

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About movies like The Endless Summer

This ranked list pairs The Endless Summer (1966), a documentary film from Bruce Brown, with similar titles by genre, theme and cast overlap (fans of Michael Hynson take note). Unlike critic-driven sites, every position here is ordered by MovieMagicScore — a rating built only from real viewers, with no studio marketing or paid placement. Scores update as more people rate, so the list stays current.

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