Lords of Dogtown

Huh.

So um, I guess Lords of Dogtown turned out to be pretty good, albeit a bit bizarre at times. There were several moments in the movie when I questioned whether the filmmakers were perhaps high themselves as they shot certain scenes. But, marijuana-induced filming techniques aside, the drug and homemade-movie vibe of the film made it seem that much more authentic.

Lords of Dogtown chronicles and is based on the rise of skateboarding in the late 70’s, helmed by Skip (Heath Ledger…supposedly anyway) and his teenage Z-boys, Stacy Peralta (John Robinson), Jay Adams (Emile Hirsch), and Tony Alva (Victor Rasuk). Skip owns and operates Zephyr, the local surf shop, and starts the skateboarding team that, comprised of these three stars, goes on to revolutionize the sport. With the help of new polyurethane wheels (which, as we're reminded ten thousand times, can GRIP), the boys are able to invent new stunts and maneuvers that had never been done on skateboards before. But, you know, with the help of the super grip wheels, not some new superpowered ability to defy gravity. Once the three gain high stature in the skateboarding community, however, they become caught up in the sponsorship offers and begin to question their loyalty to the perpetually stoned Skip.

The movie has some admittedly interesting and visually appealing skateboarding scenes, but I felt at times as though the filmmakers had about an hour’s worth of story stretched into almost two hours of film. It follows a very strict pattern of: boys go skateboarding, boys get high, boys go surfing, boys go over to Skip’s shop and get high, boys win some skateboarding competitions, boys get stoned and generally misbehave. Once in a while, Tony Alva’s father pops his head in just to remind his son that he better stop messin’ around on that damn fool skateboard or he will become a ditch digger. That’s just good parenting right there.

I confess that I know little about the sport of skateboarding, nor did I do much research into the actual history of Zephyr skating; nevertheless, I have no doubt that both surfing and skating enthusiasts alike will thoroughly enjoy this movie. I liked Lords of Dogtown from a general observer point-of-view, and it really is an interesting story to watch. I definitely recommend that you see it, but you can just as easily wait for the DVD to come out.