Bones Brigade: An Autobiography

Bones Brigade: An Autobiography (Stacy Peralta, 2012)

When six teenage boys came together as a skateboarding team in the 1980s, they reinvented not only their chosen sport but themselves too - as they evolved from insecure outsiders to the most influential athletes in the field.

STOKED : The Rise and Fall of Gator

STOKED : The Rise and Fall of Gator (Helen Stickler, 2002)

Following Dogtown and Z-Boys, this other documentary about the subculture of skateboarding reveals one of its darkest sides. The rise of Mark « Gator » Rogowsky as one of the most well paid Vert skater of his time; the 1980’s. And then, its fall into depression, huge egomaniacal, and inviction for rape and murder at the first degree.

Dogtown and Z-Boys

Dogtown and Z-Boys (Stacy Peralta, 2001)

Just as a bunch of The Beach Boys songs reminds us, California and surfing is the real thing. The History of skateboarding has everything to owe to surfing and its invention is in most part due to a derived product from the wave riding movement. In California a bunch of kids wanted to be the next champions of surfing but had to compensate for the lack of waves in their area with another standing sideways item. It was natural that they go to the four wheeled wood planks to fulfill their needs of sensations.

The Last Gladiators

The Last Gladiators (Alex Gibney, 2011)

In Ice Hockey no one is tougher than the "goon". Those players have one mission: to protect the star players at any price.

Recently, the fine folks at Phase 4 Films have provided me a review copy of this Documentary about Hockey player Chris “Knuckles” Nilan. An in depth observation of his career in professional Hockey as a “goon” but also in his life and how he now manages to live with the scars of his career of violent Hockey player. In thirteen years in the NHL, he played for the Montreal Canadiens, the New York Rangers, and the Boston Bruins. He amassed more penalty minutes than any other player and fought over 300 fights. This resulted in thirty operations on his body. He is a physically broken man and the documentary brings the light on the fact that what he had to deal has hurt him in a very profound manner.

Directed by Academy Award Winner, Alex Gibney, this human portrait is presented in a very conventional way; with head shot interviews and a voice over. We have the commentaries of Nilan’s parents, his ex-wife, ex-teammates, childhood friends, and many other NHL enforcers. While the NHL puts the light on players like Wayne Gretzky and Sidney Crosby, we tend to forget that players like Marty McSorley or Nilan were the guys who defended and protected the star players. Giving the mic and the spotlight to the “goons” isn’t what the sport has been selling. It is very interesting to discover how these key players in the success of a team had to deal with their post career.

Chris Nilan

Sadly, the point about concussions isn’t even addressed in the documentary, a plague that is making the sport look bad these days. It also brings up how the players are on their own and they must be advised to help them find a job when they retire. Most of these men don’t have much education and their lives have been about Hockey and about almost nothing else. It is difficult for them to get into the real world and live a decent life.

Despite the fact that The Last Gladiators is a very traditional documentary, the subject matter is still very actual. In 2010, three players of the NHL died and they were also goons. At 54 years old, Chris Nilan has fought from his childhood in the streets of Boston, he is still struggling very hard to get his head over the water and be a sober man and have a life with his new life partner. For every Hockey fan and even Sports Fan there is a lesson to learn because even if what the Leagues and Associations are selling, the players are all humans after all. I’ll paraphrase Nilan himself: they are all just men just like us.

Nilan with the Habs in the 1980's.

 Note: I was invited to interview Mr. Nilan in a press conference this month, but I had to decline the offer because I didn’t had the time to drive three hours back and forth. However, I’d like to personally thank Chris for his dedication and to have the courage to show his true personality on the camera.

The Man Who Souled the World

The Man Who Souled the World (Mike Hill, 2008)

THE MAN WHO SOULED THE WORLD tells the story of Steve Rocco, the irreverent genius who transformed the skateboard industry from corporate to skater owned with a do-it-yourself punk attitude.

For those who are regulars on this film oriented blog you know how I like to digress to my other interests. And boy, do I have lots of interest: Cinema & Films, History, Snowboarding, Skateboarding, Graphic Novels, Music, Drums, etc.  Well, this review combines three of my main interests this summer. Mostly Skateboarding, History, and films more specifically documentaries. This very fun documentary narrated by Jackass’ very own Jason Acuna aka Wee Man. Brought me back to my high school days when I was skipping classes to go skate, until dawn and destroy shoes, decks, wheels, etc. Not being a big fan of documentaries, except when they treat about subjects I have in heart might be a flaw for this review but I think it is interesting to still review The Man Who Souled the World.

Centering on Steve Rocco a pro skater who decided to found his own skateboard company and get the actual money into his pockets and the skater’s instead of letting the big guys behind their desks who owned the companies back then. He founded World Industries and it became one of the bestselling brands of skateboards in the 1990’s. However, in the process Rocco didn’t only made money and friends. He attacked the other companies directly in the publicities and always kept a “fuck it all” “do it yourself” attitude towards the business. Using the mottos of Punk Rockers he built an empire by crossing every rules of his enemies.

World Industries' Logo

 The format of the documentary is pretty standard letting the people involved at the time getting full expressions and punning each other in response. Besides Rocco’s interviews one of the most supernatural skaters Rodney Mullen has a lot of air time. We also see Steve Berra, Jason Lee, Mike Carroll, and many other skating legends.

Rocco crossed so many lines that he had to create his own magazine to run his publicities and it was the genesis to Jackass. He also gave film director Spike Jonze first directing job to shot a skate video.

At the end we feel that the community of skate has respect and hate towards Rocco. He publicized and made a whole bunch of money because of the sport but also pissed so many of his friends in the same time. This is a very good documentary on the coming of a sport that was considered as counter culture but that is now available in shopping malls and skate shops are as frequent as clothes shops. This is a character that can be as interesting as Mark Zuckerberg who revolutionized another aspect of our 21^st century lives. Recommended.