the audience applauded

A Masterpiece!

I like movies that are aware of what they are selling... without [any] greater aspirations than to make people laugh and that's it.

The story, direction, characters, and writing/dialogue is akin to taking a tranquilizer shot to the neck, but everything else was so well done.

The blurb on the back of the box caught my eye "It's 'American Graffiti' for the generation baptized in 'Star Wars'.". Hey, that's me! Let me just say that it's no 'American Graffiti', though there are certainly some similarities. Like 'Graffiti', 'Skateland' takes place right in the middle of a transition in eras (Here 70s to 80s), and you have that unique blending of those two aesthetics and mindsets. And it's about young people in a small town trying to figure out who and what they want to be. It's all been done before, and much better. The performances are good, and the soundtrack is killer, but it's a fairly bland film that isn't nearly as profound as it thinks it is.

I saw this movie (well most of it) at the SXSW Film Festival and was hoping to thoroughly enjoy it as I, too, was a teenager during the 80's. I thought the acting was very good, costumes were great and right on target, and the music and skating scenes definitely took me back. However, the editing was all over the place. There were too many plot lines and not enough threads to connect the importance of them. Without spoiling anything, there is a scene where the main female character is wearing a necklace before it has been given to her.The way females were characterized in this movie really struck me as tragic. With the exception of the main character's younger sister all of the female characters were portrayed as beautiful, clueless, only good for one thing, young women. In one line a girl is actually referred to as 'property.' I rarely leave a movie before it is finished (especially when the creators are in attendance and I'm sitting in the front row), but during the pool playing scene at Skateland I just couldn't take it any longer and left.I really feel the movie had potential, it just wasn't edited well at all. And to make matters worse the Director sent a LOT of kudos out to the editor before the movie started and quite frankly, they were undeserved.

The eighties music was wonderful in addition to a solid production design team and a good cast. The film had some very charming and humorous moments. I believe the film would have benefited by sticking to its comic explorations of the era and interpersonal dynamics of its main characters and sub characters.The dramatic essence of the film did not work for me. I did not feel vested in the characters enough to care about several of the "tragic" circumstances explored by the filmmakers. At one point the soundtrack explodes before and during a chase sequence that I found out of sorts.I feel with some additional sound and visual editing this charming film can be made ready for a larger distribution.

I sat in the packed theater house. Eagerly awaiting this film. Why? Well, I remember 1983 and how it felt. The sights, the sounds, the emotions. It was my age of innocence. And a decadent time for many. And now I was going to visit that time for 90 minutes.The film takes place in North Eastern Texas town. The year is 1983. Ritchie (Shiloh Fernandez) is a 19 year kid. Not sure where his life is going to go. And quite content working at Skateland for his life. Ritchie's choices. Only include. Not making a choice. With the closure of Skateland and his parents looming divorce. Ritchie is confronted with the question all 19 year olds hear. "What you going to do with yourself".For a directorial debut. Anthony Burns held his own. However, we have all seen this film before. Nothing new here. A John Hughes throwback. Great music with very few great scenes. Ashley Greene of "Twilight" fame also stars in "Skateland". So, now I have watched 3 films with her that were "Ehhh" Wait for DVD. Or rent "Dazed & Confused".