Lords of Dogtown
Dogtown and Z-Boys is a great documentary that came out a few years ago, about California's skateboard pioneers, made by one of them, Stacy Peralta. These were kids who basically invented skateboarding and went on to various degrees of success showing the world just what they could do. The doco had all the elements for a great feature film, so it was only a matter of time before something like Lords of Dogtown arrived.
The young guys who serve as the three leads are all pretty solid, however they do feel a little like caricatures at times, which was always a possibility considering the diverse paths the characters took. You have the underdog quiet achiever, the showy kid who comes from poverty and gets seduced by fame and cash, and the delinquent who turns his back on the whole scene after it becomes less of a rebellion and more of a business. The real standout here is Heath Ledger as Skip Engblom, the surf/skate shop owner that took all these kids are formed the legendary Z-Boys skate team. Sorry, I meant to say “our own” Heath Ledger. It's compulsory to say that when mentioning Aussie celebs who come good overseas, or such is my understanding. He is great here, quirky as hell and somehow simultaneously over-the-top and yet nicely underplayed. The guy seems to be channelling Val Kilmer's portrayal of Jim Morrison – which sounds odd, I know, but it is the only means of comparison I can think of. It's worth watching just for this performance.
The skateboarding is pretty cool, a lot of it shot from someone actually on a skateboard trailing the gang as they tear up streets and empty swimming pools, but it's not as great as seeing what these kids could really do. Obviously, if you only watch one, go with Stacy Peralta's affecting personal film. Lords of Dogtown, also written by Peralta, does however serve as a good companion piece. The doco had an astonishing amount of skate footage of the boys but obviously was restricted in footage of their personal lives, so, as strange as it is to say, it's cool to watch these guys come to life in film in ways they never really could in the documentary.