As we learned in TSJ 33.5’s “Child of the Bomb,” penned by Peter Maguire, director John Milius had a gift for writing badass dialogue that was often tapped by his Hollywood contemporaries. In our current issue, the origins of Milius’ talent are presented in his 1967 piece of fiction, “The Ride,” a nearly 8,000-word short story told from the point of view of a surfer named Barlow (yes, readers will recognize the piece as part of the foundation for Milius’ 1978 film, Big Wednesday).
“You see,” Barlow narrates, “you might look at the blond surfer in the Volkswagen bus and say, “Does he need it on a cold winter day?” He doesn’t. He’s not like me. He doesn’t need a wave—he just wants one. He looks like it. He rides waves, but he does this at a beach. It’s not the same for those of us who go ‘down to the sea on boards.’ We’re insane. And so, whenever I’m in the middle of a department store and I see myself in the mirror, a grubby stump in a forest of sophistication, or whenever I can no longer give audible responses to cocktail conversation, or when it requires a strong moral principle to stop me from crashing headlong into the rush-hour freeway, or when I find myself jealously reading the evening paper about another mass killing, or when I can’t stand rock and roll, then it’s high time I got a wave. Some noisily puff the Indian weed or devour the sugar cube. I go quietly to the reef.”
Here are five more scenes written, influenced, or partially sculpted by the auteur throughout his film career, some credited and some not. For more of Milius’ writing, pick up TSJ 35.3. Also, click here to read “Child of the Bomb,” his full profile.
Dirty Harry, directed by Don Siegel, 1971
Jaws, directed by Steven Spielberg, 1975
Big Wednesday, directed by John Milius, 1978
Apocalypse Now, directed by Francis Ford Coppola, 1979
Conan the Barbarian, directed by John Milius, 1982
