Skateboarding Reviews - Videos & DVDs
Skateboarding DVD Video Review:Downhill Motion
Director: Greg Weaver & Spyder Wills
Studio:
Released: 2005 (1975)
Rating: 4 Stars
Staring:
Rich Sumner, Bob Neishi, Torger Johnson, Sktch Hitchcock, Guy Grundy and others...
In today's world of technical skating, it's hard to imagine bombing hills at 55 MPH with no pads and bare feet. Welcome to the 70's - a magical era in which personal challenge had a different meaning. Long before massive airs above the coping and ollies over trash barrels, skateboarding was transportation... and fun! Kids would skate to the beach with their surfboards, barefoot, seeking big waves. On calm days, they'd opt for surfing the concrete waves.
Freestyle ruled with spins, graceful maneuvers and arcing lines. On six-inch wide boards with three-inch wide trucks, they did some amazing things... They started what is now a multi-billion dollar sport. How many successful endeavors have grown out of pure fun and adrenaline? Precious few, I'd imagine.
Downhill Motion was filmed between 1974 and 1977 and screened occasionally in theaters with surfing films. It was first shown in 1977, before home video existed. The recent popularity of skateboard films like "Dogtown and Z-Boys" has rekindled interest in skateboarding for a lot of old-school skaters and the reappearance of early works like, Downhill Motion. The modern convenience of DVD (on which Downhill Motion appeared in 2005) makes watching such films far more enjoyable.
Other modern conveniences like having an LCD screen in my refrigerator are less obvious. Sure, like anyone else, I like to session a rail in my driveway and be able to run inside and watch sk8 videos on my fridge while I down a glass of water. But at what price does this convenience come?
For example, I was recently hosting a dinner gala for the Prime Minister of Budapest and became distracted, while opening another bottle of wine, as I watched Aurora Snow engaged in a cinematically savage double penetration... on my refrigerator's small LCD screen. Pondering the delay of his chardonnay refill, the Prime Minister found me in the kitchen licking the screen with my pants around my ankles. Needless to say I was embarrassed at the quick ending to my dinner gathering, but worse than that I tripped on my pants as I tried to move the action to the HD set in the living room. As we see the price of convenience always comes with a penalty - be it immediate or down the road.
Downhill Motion will make you want to skate. You'll probably want to put your shoes on, but even the whacky slalom moves and hang-tens will make you want to feel that familiar rumble beneath your feet. Scope out this flick and then make some wide fast carves down a local hill and see if you don't catch a bit of the freedom, fun and rebellion embedded in every sk8 session.
Bonus Stuff
On the same disc you will find a companion surf movie, "Uluwatu". filmed in Uluwatu, Indonesia, Gerry Lopez rides the waves with the same fluidity seen on Downhill Motion.
The Bottom Line
Skate The Planet Factoid:
Printed:
Display mode: