Three years ago, Stacy Peralta scored with the Sundance Festival-fave documentary “Dogtown and Z Boys,” a true, though somewhat objectivity-challenged recounting of how he and a group of penniless teen-aged surf rats from Venice, California, took their clunky skateboards onto asphalt-banked school playgrounds and empty swimming pools and inadvertently inspired a pop culture phenomenon back in the mid-1970s. On the heels of that success, Peralta penned the fictionalized version, “Lords of Dogtown,” and teamed up with director Catherine Hardwicke, whose girls-gone-wild drama, “thirteen,” was also an indie hit a few years back (actually, Hardwicke was brought on board after David Fincher, who is credited as a producer, opted out of the director’s chair). While not quite as upbeat and engaging as the sun-stroked documentary, the gritty “Lords of Dogtown” succeeds thanks to a creative team that possesses a keen understanding of the ways and means of rebellious teens, an ass-kicking Hendrix-heavy soundtrack, and some revelatory performances.
Kudos to the casting director for lining up John Robinson (“Elephant”), Victor Rasuk (“Raising Victor Vargas”) and Emile Hirsch (“Imaginary Heroes”), all of whom are spot-on as Peralta, Tony Alva and Jay Adams, the shirtless standard-bearers of the skateboard revolution who, within a year of their first public appearance at a national competition, became international superstars. Heath Ledger explores the outer limits of koo-koo-cool as Skip Engblom, the stoner-guru surf shop owner who reigns in, but ultimately loses control of the skateboard prodigies. A barely recognizable Rebecca De Mornay (as Adams’ loving but damaged mom) and a pimped-out Johnny Knoxville round out the stellar assemblage of thespian talent. Another convincing “character” here is San Pedro, California, standing in as the rundown coastal community that was Dogtown. (Rated PG-13 for drug and alcohol content, sexuality, violence, language and reckless behavior - all involving teens. Running time: 110 minutes)
Originally published in the Santa Monica Daily Press print edition on June 3, 2005. Read the original PDF.