First Descent (2005)

Five of the world's best snowboarders are taken to the mountains of Alaska for some outrageous "Big Mountain" rides.

Directors:

Kemp Curly, Kevin Harrison

Stars:

Shawn Farmer, Terje Haakonsen, Nick Perata

Cast

Credited cast:
Shawn Farmer	...	Himself
Terje Haakonsen	...	Himself
Nick Perata	...	Himself
Travis Rice	...	Himself
Hannah Teter	...	Herself
Shaun White	...	Himself

Storyline

Five of the world's best snowboarders are taken to the mountains of Alaska for some outrageous "Big Mountain" rides.

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Plot Keywords:

alaska | snowboarding

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Taglines:

The story of the snowboarding revolution.

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Genres:

Documentary | Sport

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Motion Picture Rating (MPAA)

Rated PG-13 for brief strong language and a momentary drug reference

Details

Official Sites:

Official site

Country:

USA

Language:

English

Release Date:

2 December 2005 (USA)

Also Known As:

Descenso Final

Box Office

Opening Weekend:

$438,615 (USA) (2 December 2005)

Gross:

$739,690 (USA) (16 December 2005)

Company Credits

Production Co:

MD Films, Transition Productions

Technical Specs

Runtime:

110 min

Sound Mix:

Dolby Digital

Color:

Color

Aspect Ratio:

2.35 : 1

Did You Know?

Soundtracks

"In The Fade"
Written by Joshua Homme & Mark Lanegan
Performed by Queens of the Stone Age

User Reviews

A good documentary on snowboarding, the history, and Alaskan back-country

First Descent is not just a snowboard movie, but a great look at the history of snowboarding and beautiful look at heli-boarding, and the great land of Alaska. Not be confused with a Teton Gravity Research, which has a little bit of story, and a lot of riding; this movie has a good amount of riding, and a lot of history.

The history is intermixed with the present Alaska shoot, and the 3 decades preceding today. I would say they picked some great boarders, namely Terje Haakonsen, and the young Shaun White. They show what a seasoned rider and a back-country neophyte can do.

The history is great, it has a great humorous look at the old school boards and antics of snowboards of the 80's and 90's, both of which is laughable. The interviews are great with snowboarding pioneers, and even the CEO of Aspen.

Now unlike the TGR and Warren Miller films, the film is evenly divided between the history and the new footage, but don't fret, the footage is great. I think the filming could crew could have used the experience of the TGR and WM crew, but they do a good job, and the visuals are fantastic. It is a great ride right to the end.