Rainey Dawn To be fair about this: I skimmed though the film and it not my "style". BUT the film looks like a good film for those that like surfing, skateboarding, biographies or for a fan of Heath Ledger (RIP).From what I saw of this film - I think it's a good biography if you are interested in the story of these guys, the Z-Boys. I for one am not interested in surfing or skateboarding but that does not mean this film is bad - that just mean it's not a film for me.I acquired this film in a Heath Ledger film pack and I have nothing against the film, the cast, the Z-Boys or anything else - it's just not my my type film.5/10

Maniac-9 Prior to the Z Boys skateboarding team in the Dogtown part of Santa Monica it wasn't even considered a sport with most of the tricks being more related towards gymnastics. The Z Boys one of the first teams to use polyurethane wheels which allowed them to take their skateboarding to a whole other level then anyone else. They were able to make skateboarding into more of a fast paced and daredevil artform that it's today. Being able to stay on their boards on more types of terrain then ever before. They invented skating empty swimming pools which eventually lead to vert skating being invented. All of the skateboarders of the 1980's like Tony Hawk, Christian Hosoi, Mike McGill, Lance Mountain and s on wouldn't have been able to do what they did if it wasn't for Stacy Peralta, Jay Adams and Tony Alva. They were truly the forefathers of modern skateboarding.

Baron Ronan Doyle The kind of person not even remotely enticed by the idea of a film about skateboarding, Lords of Dogtown was something I lazily opted to watch on television because of a name: Emile Hirsch in this case.Exploring the shift in early-70s California from surfboards to skateboards, Lords of Dogtown follows primarily three young characters associated with the sport's beginnings. Recruited by local surf/skate shop owner Skip to his new team, the trio—along with others—begin to ascend the ranks and eventually find themselves besieged by offers from other, more financially appealing teams.The opening credit sequence of Lords of Dogtown bears that most unfortunate of addendums: based on a true story. Such real life ensemble dramas are as rocky a territory as one can encounter in script terms, often only worthy of attention by those already interested in the subject matter. Such was my feeling as I began to watch this, the film focused, as you may well argue it should be, upon the skateboarding itself. Flittering glimpses of human drama are seen at various points: the splitting up of Jay's mother and her boyfriend; the relationship between Stacy and his girlfriend. These are mostly superfluous and perfunctory; surface skimming of something from which you feel the film could, and should, make more. This aside, the humour is plentiful, laughter making its presence felt regularly and appropriately. Be it the casual dismissiveness of Skip to his inner-ear-problem-besotted volunteer employee Sid, the scenes of manic teenage activity, or the athletic alacrity with which the characters throw themselves around the screen, the entertainment value is consistent for all. Problematic are the less friendly aspects of the team's wildness, such insignificant instances as their theft of an old man's hat and shouting vulgarities at nearby septuagenarians a deterrent factor in getting to like the characters. Nevertheless, they are at least partially endearing, their ascension an enjoyable spectacle. The film bears nothing of technical noteworthiness, save for some interesting shots from between the skateboard wheels as its respective riders take it for a test drive. An interesting concept, and one which perhaps might have benefited from some additional exploration. Hirsch's performance, it being my reason for sitting before the film, is amiable and solid, though undeniably outweighed by that of Ledger. An odd character is created between Ledger's drunken rants, meddlesome mischief, and disorganised handling of something which explodes beyond what he ever thought it might. Oddly handled to say the least, the performance elevates a background character to the foreground, bringing us to wonder what ever did become of Skip when the ending gives us—in rather frustrating text-over-still-image format we've seen so oft before—the future of these characters.Despite portraying a subject in which I couldn't be less interested, Lords of Dogtown manages to keep things entertaining for most of its running time. Though it touches lightly upon a number of subjects without ever exploring any of them particularly deeply, the central and simple friendship story at its heart is sufficient to warrant its watching, being as it is more the kind of thing you watch when it happens to come on than one you actively seek out.

mejason2005 Follows the skateboarding trend at it's rising!C.Hardwicke takes a great and romantic idea and does the best she can!The agonising constant camera tilting IS probably the best way to portray a movie about Skate and Surf at the 70's. Grunge feel and the beautiful weirdos of Venice beach as your background.It has the feeling('s),the looks and the ideas of that era so well displayed by its cast. It would be the first movie I would recommend to someone who has even the slightest idea about this culture. Not to necessarily if they care about the sport but to see how much this kids changed the way ''it was supposed to be''.My high rating is a sin I'll not regret. Also the music is superb.