Tony Hawk Movies

In the mid-'70s, skateboarding was widely seen as a fad of the 1960s that had all but died out, except for a handful of committed fans in California. But that began to change with the emerge of the Z-Boys, a team of teenaged skateboarders who emerged from a decaying urban community in Santa Monica, CA. Hard-core surfers who sought to translate the hot-dogging stunts of world-class wave riders onto their skateboards began hanging out at the Zephyr Productions Surf Shop, a store that stocked top-grade equipment for local surfers and skaters, and with the help of the store's owner Jeff Ho, twelve of the skaters organized themselves into a team to compete at local skate events. Soon the radical moves and scruffy-streetwise style of the Zephyr Skate Team -- the Z-Boys for short -- upended public preconceptions of skateboarding as a sport and a lifestyle, and the wild style of Z-Boy skaters such as Tony Alva, Jim Muir, and Jay Adams made them celebrities who blazed the trail for the extreme sports movement. But while the Z-Boys' success brought them a measure of fame and fortune -- lucrative endorsement contracts, deals to manufacture their own custom skateboards, and even movie roles (Tony Alva starred opposite Leif Garrett in Skateboard, while Z-Boy Stacy Peralta was top-billed in Freewheelin') -- their fame proved to be fleeting, and several of the Z-Boys fell prey to drugs, crime, and ego. Dogtown and Z-Boys is a documentary by former Z-Boy Stacy Peralta that chronicles the glory days of the Z-Boys through footage of the skaters in their prime and interviews with the pioneers of the Southern California skate scene. Rock musicians and noted skate enthusiasts Ian MacKaye, Henry Rollins, and Jeff Ament also appear to discuss the importance of the Z-Boys' legacy; Sean Penn narrates. ~ Mark Deming, Rovi

The founding father of competitive skateboarding, Tony Hawk, and other professional skaters' performances at the 1999 Gravity Games are captured on this highlight video. The Gravity Games, an Olympic-style competition for extreme sports, were originally broadcast by NBC Sports as a response to the popularity of ESPN's X-Games. Held in Providence, Rhode Island, the 1999 competition had three skateboarding competitions: the vert competition, where skaters attempt to top each other and gain the highest point above the halfpipe rail; the halfpipe competition, judged much like gymnastics, where skaters perform difficult aerial tricks; and the downhill race, where skaters compete on a course much like a bobsled course, racing downhill against one another. Though the style of the video could be described as MTV-like with its editing cuts and modern rock music, the influence of the NBC Sports production style is undeniable in the overall presentation. The skater interviews are much like postgame questions presented to football players and the overall flow of the video moves like what one would expect from NBC's coverage of the traditional Olympics. The prime reason for watching the video remains the top-notch camera work and thrilling skateboard action! Several other competitions from the Gravity Games have also been released on video, including Gravity Games: Motocross and Gravity Games: Snowboarding. ~ Ed Atkinson, Rovi

A pair of skateboarders cut a swath across America in this short action feature. Heath Kirchart and Jeremy Klein are a pair of skaters just looking to have a good time as they travel cross-country, stopping at skate spots along the way. However, after they're involved in a serious accident, they get on the bad side of a cop (Erik Estrada) who is determined to put them behind bars through whatever means necessary. A follow-up to The End, one of the best-selling skating videos ever produced, Destroying America also features a number of top skaters and martial arts stars in cameo appearances, including Tony Hawk, Willy Santos, Ming Tran, and the Hook-Ups Destruction Squad. ~ Mark Deming, Rovi

Segments include "The Pink Motel Expression Session," the Japan Slam Jam, and the NSA Van's Pro-Ramp contest. ~ Rovi

The fourth tape in a series which shows skateboarding as a vital and exciting sport. Features Hawk, Caballero, Guerrero, Harris, Hountain, McGill, Barbee, Mullen, Powell, and Peralta. ~ Rovi

Skating competition set to music featuring such greats as Hosoi, Schroeder, and Alba. ~ Rovi

In the third sequel to the hit comedy Police Academy, Commandant Lassard (George Gaynes) decides that the police force is overworked and understaffed, and he comes up with the idea of recruiting civilian volunteers to work side-by-side with his officers. Of course, with the hapless Carey Mahoney (Steve Guttenberg) in charge of training the new Neighborhood Watch groups, one might reasonably expect things will not go smoothly; meanwhile, the duplicitous Capt. Harris (G.W. Bailey) sets his sights on Lassard's job, and he schemes to get his aging boss out of the way. Series regulars Bubba Smith, Michael Winslow, Bob Goldthwait, and Tim Kazurinsky are on board, as is Sharon Stone, who moved on to bigger and better things a few years later. ~ Mark Deming, Rovi

Valley boys take on the punk rockers in this teen-age adventure. This time they use skateboards instead of zip guns, knives and fists. The rich Valley kids, "The Ramp Locals," are led by Corey Webster, while the leather-clad, street-wise punks follow Tommy Hook. The trouble begins when Corey falls in love with Tommy's little sister who has come from Indiana for a visit. The rivalry between the gangs culminates during the grueling "LA Massacre," a 20-mile downhill skateboarding race. The winning team will earn a corporate sponsor. For the final race, the filmmakers strapped a camera in front of a skateboard to give viewers a sense of the thrills experienced by the daring "thrashers." ~ Sandra Brennan, Rovi