Entertainment

Splinters

Surf’s up in the troubled nation of Papua New Guinea. According to Adam Pesce’s documentary “Splinters,” the sport got its start there when an Australian pilot left a surfboard behind in the 1980s. Today, surfing is an obsession for many of the residents, male and female. “The ocean is my church,” says one man. “We’re too busy surfing to fix the house,” adds another.

The film is set in the lazy village of Vanimo in the run-up to the first national surfing competition in the South Pacific island, where cannibalism was practiced into the early 20th century. For the young locals, the competition is seen as a way out — the winner gets to go to Australia to train with pro surfers.

Pesce concentrates on several people, including a top surfer who could be disqualified for not paying his alimony, and two sisters whose participation has rankled many in the male-dominated society in which a husband is allowed to beat his wife as long as he “buys” her first.

“Splinters” is an interesting debut for director Pesce, although it isn’t worth running out to see. Wait for it to hit the small screen.