Lords of Dogtown (2005)

Director:

Catherine Hardwicke

Writer (WGA):

Stacy Peralta (written by)

Release Date:

3 June 2005 (USA)

Genre:

Biography | Drama | Sport

Tagline:

They came from nothing to change everything.

Plot:

The film follows the surf and skateboarding trends that originated in Venice, California during the 1970's.

Plot Keywords:

Surf | Swimming Pool | 1970s | Skateboarder | Skateboarding

Awards:

1 win & 7 nominations

Cast

Emile Hirsch	...	Jay
Victor Rasuk	...	Tony Alva
Rebecca De Mornay	...	Philaine
John Robinson	...	Stacy
Michael Angarano	...	Sid
Nikki Reed	...	Kathy Alva
Johnny Knoxville	...	Topper Burks
Heath Ledger	...	Skip
Vincent Laresca	...	Chino
William Mapother	...	Donnie
Julio Oscar Mechoso	...	Mr. Alva
Brian Zarate	...	Montoya
Pablo Schreiber	...	Stecyk
Elden Henson	...	Billy Z
Mitch Hedberg	...	Urethane Wheels Guy

Also Known As:

American Knights (Philippines: English title)
Dogtown Boys (Germany)

MPAA:

Rated PG-13 for drug and alcohol content, sexuality, violence, language and reckless behavior - all involving teens.

Runtime:

107 min

Country:

USA | Germany

Language:

English | Spanish

Color:

Color

Aspect Ratio:

1.85 : 1

Sound Mix:

DTS | Dolby Digital | SDDS

Certification:

Sweden:7 | Philippines:R-13 | Ireland:15A | USA:Unrated (unrated DVD version) | Brazil:16 | UK:15 (extended version) | Australia:M | Argentina:16 | Iceland:16 | Malaysia:18PL | Malaysia:U (cut version) | USA:PG-13 (certificate #40754) | Norway:11 | Singapore:PG | UK:12A | Czech Republic:U | Switzerland:14 (canton of Geneva) | Switzerland:14 (canton of Vaud) | Germany:12 | Finland:K-11

Filming Locations:

Imperial Beach, California, USA

Company:

Columbia Pictures Corporation

Trivia:

Many parts of the dilapidated pier set (e.g. the big dipper) were added using CGI to keep costs down. However, the derelict ferris wheel was real and had been purchased on eBay for a few thousand dollars.

Goofs:

Continuity: In the opening sequence of the Boyz making their way to the beach, Jay goes from bare feet, to white slip on shoes, to bare feet again.

Quotes:

Sid: [smoking medicinal marijuana] I, uh, get it prescribed legally now.
[hands him the joint]
Sid: Heard you were sick, too.
Jay: Hell, yeah.

Movie Connections:

Spoofed in Lords of Doggie Style Town (2006) (V)

Soundtrack:

Half Breed

it's a movie, not a documentary

I understand why you might want to compare Lords of Dogtown to Peralta's documentary Dogtown and Z-boys, but I feel the need to point out that Lords of Dogtown is a movie, not a documentary. It's not the movie version of the documentary; it's simply a movie, and it should stand alone as one. That being said, I found it moving, artful, and entertaining. I grew up watching my brother's skateboard videos, and they never held my attention for long. I stumbled upon Lords of Dogtown while flipping through the channels and couldn't look away. The structure has been called too messy and abrupt, but that didn't bother me at all. It lent itself to the messy and abrupt turn of events in the lives of the boys, especially after their "discovery." The movie also took care to chronicle their emotional development while keeping its distance, which kept it from becoming sappy or contrived. The skateboarding clips were "cool" to me, and the acting was spectacular, especially Emile Hirsch. Heath Ledger was obviously asked to take his accent a little too far, but he was playing a pretty eccentric character. All in all, as a movie, it's fantastic.