This is a fascinating documentary about the life of Tony Hawk, wunderkind skateboarder extraordinaire. A passionate, persevering pioneer of over 100 tricks, there is a reason he was the National Skateboard Association world champion for twelve years. The film follows Hawk back to childhood with amazing footage of the beginning of his career, his entry into The Bones Brigade, his father's managerial involvement in the sport, early struggles, landing the 900, his success at the X Games, the risks, sheer compulsion, and punishment his body takes, as well as his personal development. This film is so well produced. Tony and his fellow skaters including Stacy Peralta, Duane Peters, Rodney Mullen, Lance Mountain, Mike McGill, Steve Cabellero, and Christian Hosoi and more are interviewed, as well as Hawk's sister and brother. I enjoyed listening to them all, especially his brother, The Bones Brigade founder Peralta, and Rodney Mullen who is mesmerizing to listen to.

I'm slightly older than Tony Hawk, and I have never once skateboarded. Why watch this Tony Hawk documentary (or any skateboarding one)? Because I like to watch documentaries about the cultures and subcultures that I'm not a part of, mostly to try to gain a better understanding of them and their adherents. In this very good one from The Duplass Brothers, we get an up-close and almost too-inside look at the cross-cultural and multi-generational skateboarding icon, Tony Hawk. From the earliest footage of youthful, skinny Tony becoming more and more obsessed with the sport as his mother and father express more or less unwavering support, all the way through his amazing pro career, and up until he has a nasty fall and concussion (just one of his nearly countless concussions over the period of nearly 45 years) at a reunion he organized with his skateboard friends and rivals, we see how his non-stop, can-do, never-say-die attitude about perfecting (and in many cases, inventing) his tricks makes him both unmatched in his field, as well as helping also to make him emotionally & psychologically stunted, costing him intimate relationships including with his own children, as he laments here more than once. Like all that he does, he's continuing to work on these things, with his understanding wife and youngest kids. I wish him good luck, especially with these latter goals, but he does need to get a grip before he winds up in permanent traction in the hospital!

This is what skate is all about... recently he broke his leg skating, 3 weeks later he was walking to present an Oscar. He just wont quit, he's already skating again because he has set himself to this demo. This Man is is over 50! He should be in the MCU!