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Doesn't Do The Era Justice This is the (pretty much) true story of the birth of skateboarding culture in America. Anyone who have ever read anything about those days in Dogtown have most certainly heard the names Stacy Peralta, Jay Adams and Tony Alva. Personally, I had read a lot about Peralta, being that he is a filmmaker now, and I knew that he was involved in this moment in history, but I didn't know this much about those days. The film follows these three boys from their early days in Venice Beach through becoming 'Z Boyz' to the quickly aquired fame that they each found. It takes place from 1975-1978 and was written by Peralta, thus offering a certain bias, and directed by Catherine Hardwicke (2003's 'Thirteen'). The film has an interesting story, certainly, but it too often gets caught up in the fairly dull personal lives of the boys. Yet despite the seeming fixation on their troubled home lives, etc, you never really find a connection with any of the characters. Emile Hirsch plays Adams like the young Brando he wishes he was, but instead of seeming macho and hell-bent he comes across as a teenager trying on his big brother's badass clothing. John Robinson plays Stacy with the same still blandness he brought to his debut in 2003's 'Elephant', however where it was intended and needed there, here he proves himself to be nowhere near the actor we all wish he was. Finally Victor Rasuk (2002's 'Raising Victor Vargas') does well enough with an underwritten part that calls for him to play an over-sexed ego maniac. The smaller roles make the film a bit more tolerable. Rebecca De Mornay uglies up to play Adams' trashy mom and she has some nice moments, she also looks like the most realistic character to the era. Where the boys are tied down with silly hair extensions, she fits the decade nicely. 'Sky High' (2005) star Michael Angarano does a good turn as Sid, a lesser talented Z-Boy who ties the three estranged stars back together. He may be a little too sweet and innocent, but it a nice change with all the macho bravado going on here. Without a doubt, the performance of the film goes to Heath Ledger as Skip the surfer guru who creates the Z-Boyz and is always down for a party. Ledger is almost unrecognizable under a mop of hair and strange false teeth, but he totally captures the essence of the culture that the rest of the film tends to gloss over. He is the rebellion personified and it is a great chance for Ledger to step outside of the roles he is normally offered. All in all, it is an all right film that is certainly interesting to reflect upon the revolution, but perhaps you are better off viewing 'Dogtown and Z-Boys' (2001), the documentary as that would give you a better and more realistic look. This film never really connects with the subjects, which is especially sad considering it was written by one of them. Oh, and may I end by saying, I really could have done without the stupid and badly acted cameo by Tony Hawk. Does that dude really need to be everywhere? email this review to a friend
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