A cool, fun movie without foul language

Rating: 7/10 (8 June 2005)

I think some people take movies so seriously and expect to see an Academy Award contender each time they plunk down their 8 to 12 bucks. A movie can be entertaining, fun and a great time and not be considered high art. No, Lords of Dogtown won't be up for movie of the year, but that doesn't mean it won't deliver the goods. The movie is a step into 70s Venice/Santa Monica/Los Angeles during a time that was mostly filled with disco and bad clothes and drugs and thankfully, the movie is not. When you watch the movie, you're really there. It doesn't feel forced or fake and you're back in time without even noticing it until afterwords.
Some people have commented that the skate scenes aren't good. Well, this isn't Fuel TV, it's movie and the skate scenes to me aren't meant to be the centerpiece of the film, the characters are. The skate scenes are shot honestly and let's face it, really wild and insane skate moves weren't invented yet back then. I don't know what some people are expecting to see.
Heath Ledger is memorable as Skip Engblom and I gotta say Rebecca DeMornay still has a hot body. Her worn out face in the movie is courtesy of the makeup department. She's great! The stars of the film who are relative unknowns (good idea) do a fine job bringing the people they portray to life all those years ago and they even skate pretty damn good. Sure, they had stunt doubles, but thanks to the Tony Alva training camp those guys learned to skate pretty well and it shows.
If you want a little escape during the summer and enjoy watching movies about real people and events that really happened then you'll enjoy the movie. If you haven't been to L.A. and always wanted to visit, it's a nice little vacation and you'll learn a little bit of history behind the sport.
In the end, if you're open minded and like to have a good time and are not expecting the moon, you'll appreciate the movie for what it is, a little slice of the sun and fun in the 70s with a few guys who changed the world of skating forever without even meaning to do so.