Skateboard Madness

Yes, I was a skater, and back in the mid 80's while perusing the late night TV listings I see "Skateboard Madness" scheduled to air at 3 in the morning. Since the film had "skateboard" in the title I stayed up until 3am, and recorded the movie on VHS. Over the years I wore out the tape watching Skateboard Madness again and again. Here's why the film deserves a better rating than a 4:

-this movie represents one of the first feature length films devoted entirely to skateboarding and showcased the skating boom in the late 70's/early 80's when skateparks were being built all over Southern California.

-skaters destined to revolutionize the sport are featured -Peralta, Rector, etc.

-there are some really cool montages with (as mentioned above) ice skates mounted on skateboards, windboarding? (sail mounted on board with big wheels in the desert), some crazy fiberglass bowl that looks like a gigantic gerbil wheel.

-other random stuff like the cartoons, surf punks, roller skating in Venice, etc.

Okay, maybe you do have to be a skater to appreciate the film, but for those of us who grew up on urethane wheels, this move is an important piece of history and captures an important time in the development of the sport. Plus, young Phil Hartman's voice-over is funny.