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Dog Town and Z-Boys 2002 movie directed by skateboarding legend Stacy Peralta about the birth of skateboarding. There is another film, Lords of Dogtown, which dramatizes the story, but this film is a documentary. Peralta weaves past footage and present interviews to chronicle not only the rise of skateboarding as an 'alternative' sport, but also to show what happens to people who rocket to stardom in their teens doing a sport with a retirement age of 24! Really exciting movie, featuring Peralta, Jay Adams, Tony Alva, and other members of the Zephyr Surf Shop team from Santa Monica. Sean Penn narrates, but refrains from any Fast Times at Ridgemont High-esque expressions. This movie can be watched by the whole family safely, and it is cool enough to entertain teenagers.
Thumbsucker This movie was made in 2005 (from a 1999 novel) and directed by Mike Mills. Lou Pucci plays Justin who is trying to survive high school through escapism and oral self-stimulation. His parents, Tilda Swinton and Vincent D'Onofrio, eventually give him Ritalin, which make him a great debater, but a real asshole--though the Ritalin addicted scenes are some of the funniest and realistic commentary on the use of the medication yet. Vince Vaughn plays the debating coach perfectly, and Keanu Reeves plays his best comedic role since Bill and Ted's Excellent Adventure (NO--the sequel to Bill and Ted's does NOT count).
Team America: World Police Finally, we are safe from the French and the rest of the terrorists thanks to a bunch of puppets spawned from the sick minds of Trey Parker and Matt Stone (of South Park fame) for this 2004 movie. Done in style of the Thunderbirds cartoon, Parker and Stone take on terrorists, the Bush Administration, Hollywood, North Korea, and any other institution (like country music) that gets in the way of their puppet driven mission to mock everything stupid about America. Believe me, that is a lot of material! Even though this movie is made with puppets, it is not a family movie. Of course your kids will try to watch it, so you'll have to decide what kind of unspeakable acts and words (?!?) performed by puppets you are willing to let your kids observe.
Crash This is one of those movies that actually should of won the 2005 Academy Award (and it did!). The film is well acted (Don Cheadle, Matt Dillon, Thandie Newton, Ryan Phillipe, Ludacris, Larenz Tate, etc.) and well directed by Paul Haggis (especially for his first time!). The story is too real and too current to make all watchers comfortable. This is gritty, true life drama, about racism, power, crime, and life in Southern California. That sounds pretty heavy, but the film remains compelling and gripping. You are not dissappointed when there are no neat wrap-ups or happy endings. This movie reminds us not to expect any. This is a non-Hollywood like film made in Hollywood.
Junebug 2005 Directed by Phil Morrison and starring Embeth Davidtz, Amy Adams, Allesandro Nivola, Celia Weston. Junebug is about a Southern man returning to his family and his town with his new, cosmopolitan bride. This is a really annoying movie because you never know why the characters do what they do. What is even more annoying is that you can't stop thinking about their behavior and wonder about their motivations. I actually only made it through this movie 1 1/2 times, but I kept thinking about it for days. Why didn't George's Dad give Madeline the bird he carved for her? Why is Johnny so mad at George all the time? Why does Madeline keep touching Johnny? See, it sticks with you!
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