Genres

Visitors Review

Rich Cline 2012-05-23 07:53:55

Despite the usual difficulty of people scripting their own stories, the film has an energetic fighting spirit.

Otto98125 2012-05-22 21:19:52

Underrated, beautifully made movie!!!

This is a very entertaining movie which gives us entrée into a worldthat we haven't seen before in 1000 other films...With an excellentcast, including a near-Oscar caliber performance by Emile Hirsch as JayAdams. The script doesn't go into a lot of depth into each of theskater's individual lives, but enough is suggested for the viewer tounderstand the background of Peralta, Adams and Alva. These three youngactors do an amazing job, and the skating is integrated into the storyand never feels like it goes on too long. Give this movie a chance,even if you're not into skate boarding at all, and if you are, it is anabsolute MUST. Unrated version is just slightly bawdier in places, nonudity.

2012-05-19 17:49:53

Lords of something, but I am not so sure about Dogtown...

That's right. I do things in pairs. After doubly watching the regular version of "Dogtown and Z-Boys" as well as listening to the audio commentary, I decided to watch the Catherine Hardwicke full-fledged Hollywood version of Peralta's voice. With two audio commentaries, plenty of behind the scenes information, as well as a cornucopia of in-your-face skateboarding, I believe I have seen every angle of this film - from Catherine's vision to the completely misrepresented time frame for these three young friends that changed history. This is the "unleashed/unrated" version, and you are in for a treat. Catherine and team left no stone unturned and brought us the Z-Boys with loud 70s music, tween issues, and a story that was connected with the feeblest of string. For those reading this review, I am going to compare the two films - why? Not only because I can, but because these two - both "Lords of Dogtown" and "Dogtown and Z-Boys" are companion films. All due in part to an issue in Rolling Stone magazine, these two films were allowed a green light - one was made with heart, passion, and a sense of nostalgia, while the other (still using the same scribe), was made with the green of the dollar deeply in mind. It isn't the fact that I disliked "Lords of Dogtown", I just finished watching it three times, it was the fact that I think it over amplifies the truth and dissolves the passion that Peralta created with his documentary.Hardwicke, whom many of you remember as the brain child behind the fabulously gritty drama "thirteen", helms this project with the same gumption that she enlisted for her prior film. Using some of the same crew, same filming technique, and an overhyped budget this film demonstrates that even the dirtiest of teen struggles can be glossed over to Hollywood standards. Egos aside, we are handed a Hardwicke special which includes (but is not limited to) shirtless tween hunks, a sense of invincibility over adults, a rockin' good soundtrack, a time frame that breaks all borders, and finally two actual stars that would be used to introduce an older audience that may not be familiar with teen main characters to pack theaters and make sure someone's child gets a college tuition. I am harsh with this film - again, why? - because this was supposed to be a group that was anti-establishment, anti-normality, anti-boundaries, yet seemed to fit well within this Hollywood box. I witnessed the innovators of a generation, sans Jay Adams, sell their souls for corporate glory. Sure, they may have wanted their story to be told for a new generation of skaters, but there could have been a better way to portray this creativity, struggle, and eventual breakdown of friendships. This was supposed to be like the grittier "Stand by Me", when instead it felt like Disney was an independent benefactor.I thought Hardwicke's choice of cinematography, camera angle, and story placement seemed dated. She did this already in "thirteen", I wanted her to explore more boundaries, stronger moments, and really define herself as a director. Instead, I watched three times (two audio commentaries plague this disc) a director mimic their already golden film - even the choice of casting some of the same actors from "thirteen". After watching "Dogtown and Z-Boys", I was prepared to see a better side to their story. I wanted Hardwicke to take me places that Peralta's minimal budget couldn't. With Peralta writing the story, I didn't think he would allow anything to slip by. I was wrong. His choice to create small, more insignificant characters to help build credibility in our central three characters was pathetic. I wanted Peralta to interact with everyone from the Zephyr skate team, not just Jay, Tony, and himself. This was a collaborative effort from everyone, and not giving everyone their moment in the spotlight just seemed to make me grumpy. I loved hearing everyone's voice during the "Dogtown and Z-Boys" film, and it hurt to just be focused on three while others were equally as successful. If this were the case, we should have had only one story - instead of trying to intermingle everything together. Stories were dropped, players were disrespected, and the true story became a muddled mess of semi-truth and Hollywood truth. Our actors did what they could, but were shaky as the main characters. John Robinson felt like he was back filming "Elephant 2", I just couldn't see him as any other character. Emile Hirsch was goofy, while I realized that Jay Adams was crazy (as we all know someone from our past like him), he just came off as arrogant and acting like he was a tormented teen. His scene on the burned pier with Heath was laughable at best. Victor, as Tony Alva, didn't carry the weight he was supposed to. He wasn't the best of the group, but he was the strongest, but Victor couldn't put any strength behind him. The three players did a decent job, but it was obvious from the opening scene that they weren't going to win awards for their portrayals.I must compliment Hardwicke for her choice of Heath Ledger as Skip. From the documentary to the silver screen, Ledger did an amazing job of bringing this pivotal character to life. His voice, his mannerisms, his taut demeanor was exactly like watching the documentary. I loved it. It gave me faith that Heath could pull off The Joker in the upcoming "Batman" film. Alas, I cannot say the same for Rebecca De Mornay (who needs to do some independent work to get back into the business) and Johnny Knoxville. He is growing into an actor, but this was not the right character for him to tackle. Tony's financier needed to be meaner, pushier, and darker - none of which came from funnyman Knoxville. Everyone else involved seemed to hit their stride, as I enjoyed seeing some of my favorites playing cameo roles throughout the film. I must give credit to Hardwicke here as well for really bringing some (not all) of these guys into the project - I just wish she would have listened to them more when developing her style. She should have at least used all of them in the commentary, by just using Peralta and Alva, we knew who her favorites were. Where was Skip's side of the story?Overall, I cannot say that this film compares in anyway, shape, or form to the documentary that Peralta created. I know that he wrote this film too, but it was obvious that one was written with the soul and the other was developed for the money. "Dogtown and Z-Boys" spoke for itself, giving us a raw taste of what life was like back in the 70s on Venice Beach and in innovation that the surfers had for bringing a new style of sport into the limelight. I loved the music again, "Maggie May" near the end really struck a chord for me and developed Skip into this true player. I cannot suggest this film to friends because I will be devoting my time to suggesting the more impassioned "Dogtown and Z-Boys" - especially the audio commentary - to them. I say watch the documentary, unless you like your stories with glossier endings.Grade: ** ½ out of *****

Y. T. 2012-05-19 12:45:07

Thought this movie was as much fun as first seeing Star Wars in 1977

Just like "A New Hope", "Lords of Dogtown" is breathless andexhilarating and manages to be poignant in its conclusion. It takes acadre of talented filmmakers to make a fictional feature film seemnearly as real as its documentary predecessor (which I saw during itstheatrical run). I would like to refute the review of the "UnemployedCritic" who seems to carry a "gravitas" of his own and is NOT afilmmaker. The feminine touches added by director Catherine Hardwickeare a great counterpoint to Stacy Peralta's story and are not lost onthe women in the audience. Not all movies are "cinema" - some of themare "films" and they bring some joy into your life. I believe this onewill.

2012-05-14 20:24:19

Lords of Dogtown review

This review is from: Lords of Dogtown (Unrated Extended Cut) (DVD) A very good film about how skateboarding evolved. Good writing. Good acting. Just good filmaking.

slender_swimmer 2012-05-14 07:59:25

Not quite total trash

Unfortunately, IMDb requires a minimum of 10 lines. In this case, thelast line of this review is all you need to know.Meanwhile, we need 9 more lines.Let's see...I'm thinking....I have it!If you like to see teenage boy chests in action, this is your flick.Otherwise (potential spoiler alert!), it's the tale of a group ofjuvenile delinquents exploited by a white-trash con-artist. Badly told.Boring, sociopathic crap.

chineselampgrl 2012-05-10 09:06:49

Not to shabby.

I went into the movie theater expecting shabby skate scenes and tidbitsof sexual innuendos. I was very surprised. Though the portrayal of"Skip" was a little over done, it was still some what believable.Though I was sad they had to keep it at PG-13 for reasons to sell tothe little 12 year skaters everywhere, it was much better than Iexpected. The thing that surprised me most was the cinematography. Irecommend the movie just on that. But then when you get to spend atleast a million dollars on your movie you better dam* well have a greatDP. The portrayals by the young actors was pretty excellent. But as Isaid before the cinematography was unbelievable.The skate scenes weremuch better than expected, kudos to the "skactors". And I left thetheater with a rush.

rscyogi 2012-05-09 21:01:13

loved it

Okay, I dragged my mom to go see this movie! she said she disliked itbut I could tell that she liked some of it. Even though I don'tskateboard I loved it. It doesn't matter if you skate or don't the cuteguys will keep your attention! I love the '70s and the music eventhough I didn't live in that time period. So if you lived in the '70sor not you'll love it. So go see it, you won't be disappointed! Ipromise. Go see it. Also the way it was filmed was awesome. Thedirector did an excellent job. The actors were a great chose some ofthem actually looked like some of Z-boys in the '70s.If you really liked this movie you should see the documentary "DOGTOWNAND Z-BOYS." It will give you and even better look on what the Z-boysdid. So go see it!

statedawg416 2012-05-06 17:57:56

This movie is horrible...

This movie has absolutely no plot, and is horrible. Don't waste yourmoney going to see this movie. Unless of course, you want to fallasleep in the movie, or you just want to go to the movie theater to getpopcorn or something.. Anyway, it was horrible and a waste of my money.Many of the people who went to see the movie with me, fell asleep. Ithink that making this movie was a waste of time, and a waste ofmoney.... someone ought to tell the movie theaters not to get thismovie, because all it is, is a waste of money, and a waste of atheater. So, if you are trying to decide to go to this movie or not,take it from me, don't go.

theblairwitch 2012-05-06 14:10:11

Spooky's Review

This is Spooky's review for Lords of Dogtown.Lords Of Dogtown is a true story about three nobody Zephyr kids and howthey rise to the top and become rich and famous. They encounter a fewproblems, but remain friends to the end no matter what. With amazingperformances by Heath Ledger, Johnny Knoxville, and Emile Hirsch(

Jack Garner 2012-05-02 06:13:30

Demonstrates enough narrative style, grit and artistry to latch onto plenty of viewers with absolutely zero interest in skateboarding.

2012-05-01 10:48:45

Brings back Memories

This was a very good story, and brought back a lot of childhood memories of the times when we use to skateboard in empty pools. The young actors do a remarkable job at portraying that nostalgic and rebellious time when BMX and skateboarding began to blow up. The story depicts how youth from different backgrounds can turn their talents into greatness, and how easy it is to fall down into despair if your priorities are not in tact. From beginning to end the story kept me entertained, and once again, the young actors were incredible. It took me back to the 70's for the duration of the movie, and that Tony Hawk cameo was hilarious. A++++

Gabriel Shanks 2012-04-27 01:03:01

Reaches beyond the cinematic frame as far as it can to catch big air, giving its audience a you-are-there viscerality.

goodjobrob 2012-04-26 09:51:59

This movie RULES!

Not only is this movie a BLAST, it is also very grounded in someamazing performances. Emile Hirsch as Jay Adams is cooler than Iggy Popand just as tormented. Heath Ledger finally realizes his comedicpotential and still plays the drama well. The direction andcinematography are kinetic and the movie's tone is just right.This is going to be one of those movies where every member of the castbecomes a major star in like 10 years, like American Graffiti, onlycool. This is THE MOVIE OF THE SUMMER...all ages will enjoy!Keep your eyes open for Tony Hawk! He plays an Astronaut (!)BRING YOUR SKATEBOARD!!!!

rocks-in-a-coffee-can 2012-04-26 10:08:13

Good movie if you take it for what it is-fiction.

I really enjoyed this movie. I thought it was a good story, thoughrather loosely based on the actual events. Heath Ledger did an amazingjob as Skip, especially with his accent. The sets were also recreatedvery nicely, giving the movie a good vibe. If you want the real storyof the zboys get the documentary, the movie is very dramatic andoverexagerates the characters. The movie had it's flaws, the charactersaren't completely rounded and at times the transitions feel a littlechoppy. Despite it's downfalls, I still found the movie to beentertaining and able to evoke some emotion from the viewer. If you canlook at the movie as a good story and not go searching for facts it'smuch more enjoyable. If you're looking for more fact than fiction watchthe documentary.

Robin_Goose 2012-04-25 16:58:59

its "bring it on" for skaters

i gave this heap a vote of 3. this movie sucked. it tries to be deepand have sad parts. they tried that crap in "you got served" and it wasjust stupid. i mean the directors of these crappy teen movies aregetting cleaver and making it hard to tell how corny they are, but itdoesn't get past me. seriously this movie is "bring it on" for skatersor sk8ers or what ever these idiots call it. i actually wish this moviewas more like grind. at least that was funny. i mean ill give it thefact that its got some surprising people playing in it but i just don'tbuy this. they take crappy ideas and try making it deep or meanigfull.who cares about abunch of punks? this movie is bad influence of kids,thats all.

snorkleburgers 2012-04-20 03:45:54

See This Movie!

I have heard a lot of people say that this movie was a very biddisappointment and a terrible follow-up to Stacy Peralta's documentary(Dogtown and Z-Boys). But I would have to say I disagree. There aredefinitely differences in the two, but Lords of Dogtown was not meantto be a copy of Dogtown and Z-Boys. I have heard people say that thestory isn't exactly what happened. But does that really matter? Can'twe appreciate that Peralta added in some twists and turns for hischaracter, or love troubles? This movie is incredibly good.But, it doesn't hurt to do some research on the Z-Boys or see Dogtownand Z-Boys as well as Lords of Dogtown. That way both movies (and bothstories) can be appriciated for what they are.

Chris Knipp 2012-04-19 05:58:20

Gnarly live

Movies of this kind aren't usually this good. They tend to look cheesyand have corny plots that slink toward clichéd payoffs. "Lords ofDogtown" instead has compelling cinematography and staging, a dynamic,non-stop physicality, and consistently fine acting. In the end, don'texpect profundity or perfection, but do look for the strong evocationof a lifestyle and an era. In the Seventies when skateboarding firstexuded magic and became a maverick sport with stars, a whole school ofwide angle photography grew up to do justice to their gravity-defyingfeats for skateboard magazines, and this film is shot with wide anglelenses to evoke that look and capture the feats appropriately.Front and center there's a cast that delivers. As Skip, the gnarly,drunken surfboard shop owner who starts the Venice Zephyrs team on thepath to skateboard greatness, Heath Ledger, out of chain mail and awayfrom romantic lighting, is deep into his character and evidently havinglots of fun. In fact it's clear everybody working on the picture had aball. Emile Hirsch, playing badboy spark to the whole sport Jay Adams,shows again what a gifted actor he is: his pouting, sensuousperformance is something to watch. John Robinson, the poster boy forVan Sant's Elephant, is Stacy Peralta, the straight-arrow of the trioof stars who emerge, whose real life counterpart wrote the film scriptand made the earlier documentary "Dogtown and Z Boys." With hisgorgeous long straight blond hair, peaches-and-cream cheeks, andColgate smile, he's a perfect skateboarding valedictorian and acommanding and deft physical presence in what is totally a movie aboutballs, individualism, and grace. Victor Rasuk, who starred in thelovely little coming of age film "Raising Victor Vargas," rises to thevery different task here of being the bold, commercial, flashy MexicanAmerican Tony Alva, skateboarding's first world champion. As Jay's sadsurf sister burnout mom, Rebecca de Mornay is brave and believable.Ledger and Hirsch walk away with the acting prizes but John Robinsonand the other principals are striking presences. These strong,distinctive performances are part of an energetic ensemble piece withmany minor unnamed characters seamlessly filling in the background.In her debut Thirteen, director Catherine Hardwicke showed her abilityto eavesdrop realistically on at-risk teenagers and theirmaturity-challenged parents. Dogtown isn't such a different milieu, butit's also a history of how skateboarding became popular and, for some,worth a lot of money.Hardwicke famously did a literal headbanger in an empty swimming poolwhile directing the movie and was out for several minutes, scaringskateboarding crew members, who afterward declared, "Now you're one ofus." "Lords of Dogtown" is a direct companion piece to Peralta'sdocumentary, whose story it brings to vivid life. The decaying Venicepier looms over the early scenes. It's a kind of off limits surfingslum where the boys and their chicks dash to ride waves between pylonsand rocks. They jump off a roof, stop traffic, and skateboard down tothe ocean in the first high-kinetic shots with long Seventiessurfboards in hand. Only Peralta, excluded from the Zephyrs at firstfor having a job, drives his own car. Their parents are alcoholicburnouts and they come from sleezy little surfside broken homes exceptfor young Sid, a baby-faced poor little rich boy and "maggot," thededicated dogbody and punching bag at the surfboard shop, with an innerear problem, a camp follower who turns into the "family's" belovedmascot and martyr.Once they enter competitions with an earthy new style of skateboardingand athletic gifts that blow away the crowds and turn on the girls, oneby one the Zephyr's stars are lured away from the "family" by wellfunded promoters. Jay rejected that path. One day Jay shaves off hisbleach-blond tresses and becomes a punk. Ultimately he went to jaillike later skateboard stars Mark Anthony 'Gator' Ragowski, who wasdocumented in Helen Sickler's "Rise and Fall of Gator," and the oncedashing Christian Hosoi. Jay lures away Stacy's foxy Latina girlfriendin a stunning sequence of coy playfulness and sinuous movements: thedudes' physicality flows out of their derring-do on wheels into theirmoves with the girls.There are accidents, beatings, triumphs, and a tragic death. Through itall Heath Ledger as Skip is a buzzing obligato, crazy, stoned, funnybut also threatening. Another thread in the film is the raids on richpeople's empty pools to skate them in long, flowing, interwoveninfinity signs, till little lookouts yell "pig" or "dog" and they allflee, knocking down cops in their path. These bold dangerous runs,worth it for the thrill of the concrete curves and the challenge toexplore new shapes, are a badge of the Z Boys' "pirate" outlaw identityand Tony Alva, a closing title declares, continues to raid pools todayas an enduring star and amazing lifelong athlete.I don't know if the actors do a lot of their own skateboarding but ifthey don't Hardwicke sure makes it look like they do. She also has away of jumping into sequences already in progress, thus avoiding clumsyexposition, except for a few titles for landmark competitions. Themovie escapes the stilted flavor of its genre and gets in a lot ofreal-sounding dialogue and facial expressions instead. The finalsequence is a touching reunion that's both funny and sad.

Terry Lawson 2012-04-19 01:32:43

Lords of Dogtown is one of those films that makes everyone who is not a citizen of the realm feel hopelessly disconnected.

Eric Lurio 2012-04-18 21:36:27

One of the flaws of Paralta's script is that he wants us to feel SORRY for those poor kids who made all that money. Awwwwwwwww....