Put simply, this documentary is very pro-Tony Hawk. Obviously, right? Which is cool, since I do believe...yes, even considering one of the top grossing gaming franchises of all time is named after him...a lot of people don't really know what role he REALLY played in the history of skateboarding. So, I get it, and I enjoyed it, and I do recommend it to anyone with any interest in the subject. Good stuff.
In short, Until the Wheels Fall Off solves that problem. It covers, extensively, Hawk's influence on skateboarding, and basically WHY he, among so many others, was the one that had the aforementioned game franchise named after him.
Having said that...that's pretty much all it does. If you were expecting a documentary to learn more about the REAL Tony Hawk...this ain't it. It touches on some sensitive subjects, but it's more or less just a summation of his role in the skateboarding world...
I'm fine with this. I'm not mad. It was cool to see some of the old stock footage from competitions and skate parks, as well as all the interviews with legendary names. But I was hoping to FINALLY learn more about Tony Hawk the person, and not Tony Hawk the skateboarder, since most of this can be learned via a Google search.
So, this is basically a cool, nicely done compilation of what you'd find googling "why is Tony Hawk important to skateboarding," but as a documentary.
I really only have two complaints. I do wish we learned more about who Tony Hawk is as a person. There are stories out there, and they aren't all glory and dedication, and I think he needs to address these more openly. It's important people know legends can be flawed too. Including his past relationships. Which I OF COURSE understand wanting to be a private issue, none of us have any right to know "what really happened," but, the rumors persist, and this doesn't do much to address them, when I was hoping it would. Understandable, but still a bit disappointing.
It does touch on some of his non-skateboarding life, as well as his intensity in training, which by all accounts is VERY intense, and how he clearly has internal struggles that he tried to cover up with skateboarding, as well as his parents.... But it kind of glosses over all of this to focus more on talking about how great of a skateboarder Tony Hawk is. Which is fair, but the title very much suggests this is going to be a deep dive into Tony Hawk, when in reality it's more of just an overall retelling of his career.
I also couldn't notice how severely downplayed the Activision games are. Which, on one hand, I get. They're video games. This is a documentary for skateboarders, not gamers. They are briefly mentioned, but when I say briefly, I do mean briefly.
That said...
And I've said this for years, but I don't think Tony Hawk gives the games enough credit for "reviving" skateboarding, which the documentary does admit was a dying sport in the mid to late 90s. It was very underground and nobody outside of the parks really cared about it. Tony Hawk on PlayStation in 1999 changed that completely, and introduced the sport of skateboarding to a broad audience and a whole new generation of kids who then played it, thought it was cool, decided to pick up a skateboard, and are now some of the top skaters in the world.
It kind of suggests it was mostly the "street" efforts of Tony Hawk that gave skateboarding new life...and I'm just not entirely sure that's true. It definitely is part of it, don't get me wrong. And like, it also is, since the games are named after him...but it almost implies it was through his hard work and dedication to keep competing that skateboarding was able to then grow into an Olympic sport, and as nice as that sounds, it was only a piece of the puzzle. In my opinion.
I truly believe the games were a key part of the "history" of skateboarding to get it where it is today, and I don't think this documentary appreciates that, even though they do come up and Hawk had a chance to finally do so...but instead more or less said "I did the motion capture, but had no idea they were so popular. Now, back to me."
Missed opportunity, in my humble opinion.
Still, it is a great watch, with TONS of great footage. I absolutely loved the interviews with greats such as Mullens, Caballero, Mountain, McDonald, McGill, Peters, and so many others. I recommend this to pretty much everyone, but especially to those with an interest in skateboarding. It is really well put together, very informative, and has an 'amazing' soundtrack
Watch this documentary, but just watch it knowing 95% of it is just the history of Tony Hawk's skateboarding life, which is still a fascinating, highly entertaining, wild ride worthy of its own documentary.
PS As another reviewer said...yes, everyone deserves a friend like Rodney Mullens. What a cool dude.
In short, Until the Wheels Fall Off solves that problem. It covers, extensively, Hawk's influence on skateboarding, and basically WHY he, among so many others, was the one that had the aforementioned game franchise named after him.
Having said that...that's pretty much all it does. If you were expecting a documentary to learn more about the REAL Tony Hawk...this ain't it. It touches on some sensitive subjects, but it's more or less just a summation of his role in the skateboarding world...
I'm fine with this. I'm not mad. It was cool to see some of the old stock footage from competitions and skate parks, as well as all the interviews with legendary names. But I was hoping to FINALLY learn more about Tony Hawk the person, and not Tony Hawk the skateboarder, since most of this can be learned via a Google search.
So, this is basically a cool, nicely done compilation of what you'd find googling "why is Tony Hawk important to skateboarding," but as a documentary.
I really only have two complaints. I do wish we learned more about who Tony Hawk is as a person. There are stories out there, and they aren't all glory and dedication, and I think he needs to address these more openly. It's important people know legends can be flawed too. Including his past relationships. Which I OF COURSE understand wanting to be a private issue, none of us have any right to know "what really happened," but, the rumors persist, and this doesn't do much to address them, when I was hoping it would. Understandable, but still a bit disappointing.
It does touch on some of his non-skateboarding life, as well as his intensity in training, which by all accounts is VERY intense, and how he clearly has internal struggles that he tried to cover up with skateboarding, as well as his parents.... But it kind of glosses over all of this to focus more on talking about how great of a skateboarder Tony Hawk is. Which is fair, but the title very much suggests this is going to be a deep dive into Tony Hawk, when in reality it's more of just an overall retelling of his career.
I also couldn't notice how severely downplayed the Activision games are. Which, on one hand, I get. They're video games. This is a documentary for skateboarders, not gamers. They are briefly mentioned, but when I say briefly, I do mean briefly.
That said...
And I've said this for years, but I don't think Tony Hawk gives the games enough credit for "reviving" skateboarding, which the documentary does admit was a dying sport in the mid to late 90s. It was very underground and nobody outside of the parks really cared about it. Tony Hawk on PlayStation in 1999 changed that completely, and introduced the sport of skateboarding to a broad audience and a whole new generation of kids who then played it, thought it was cool, decided to pick up a skateboard, and are now some of the top skaters in the world.
It kind of suggests it was mostly the "street" efforts of Tony Hawk that gave skateboarding new life...and I'm just not entirely sure that's true. It definitely is part of it, don't get me wrong. And like, it also is, since the games are named after him...but it almost implies it was through his hard work and dedication to keep competing that skateboarding was able to then grow into an Olympic sport, and as nice as that sounds, it was only a piece of the puzzle. In my opinion.
I truly believe the games were a key part of the "history" of skateboarding to get it where it is today, and I don't think this documentary appreciates that, even though they do come up and Hawk had a chance to finally do so...but instead more or less said "I did the motion capture, but had no idea they were so popular. Now, back to me."
Missed opportunity, in my humble opinion.
Still, it is a great watch, with TONS of great footage. I absolutely loved the interviews with greats such as Mullens, Caballero, Mountain, McDonald, McGill, Peters, and so many others. I recommend this to pretty much everyone, but especially to those with an interest in skateboarding. It is really well put together, very informative, and has an 'amazing' soundtrack
Watch this documentary, but just watch it knowing 95% of it is just the history of Tony Hawk's skateboarding life, which is still a fascinating, highly entertaining, wild ride worthy of its own documentary.
PS As another reviewer said...yes, everyone deserves a friend like Rodney Mullens. What a cool dude.