Transgression Movie Review
04/02/08 15:58
Over the past few
years, Wakeboard films have made several leaps
towards becoming some of the best extreme sports film
around. The last 6 months has been some of the most
progressive of all, and at the top of the list has to
be the new Gator team video, Transgression.
Before we get into the details of the film, lets talk technicalities first. The producer of the film was Ronn Seidenglanz from Sidewayz, and a 16mm film one at that. Some of you may have heard of the term 16mm and not know entirely what it is, and you should know a little about it before we talk about the film. Its part of the reason that the film is so epic. . . .
16mm is one step down from 35mm - the stuff they use to make your hollywood blockbusters. Some of those big hollywood films are also done with 16mm, like 'Leaving Las Vegas' and 90% of the 'O.C' series. So why is this such a big deal? Well it comes down to the quality of the end product, and that 'Film Look' - you can spot real film a mile off compared to raw High Definition and DV formats. One more thing before we begin - you know when you shoot your riding with your personal camcorder, you go watch it back at the end of the day. Well with 16mm you can't - apart from what you see through the lens or on a monitor at the time of shooting, you have to wait until your film comes back from the development lab - think about that, ever missed a shot?
Right, lets get down to the film. . . . .
I remember back to the time when Jeff Weatherall gave a shout from the kitchen of the house to say he had a pre-release version of this new film called Transgression. So there we sat in front of the TV with the film about to start, with the usual anticipation you get before a riding film. We had already heard a few rumors about the film, and with most Wakeboarding films there is one section or rail that makes the film famous and gets talked about. So after the intro from Ronn, the intro film started - the same as the trailer that been floating around the net.
There is something that you will notice about this film from the very start. It looks and sounds different from every other wake film ever made. What i mean by the look, is that the colors are deeply saturated (meaning strong and positive) and has such a soft feel to every shot. There have been 16mm films before - like the ground breaking Sean Kilgus films - but the colors in Transgression really catch your attention. What i mean by the sound, is that the music is also very different from any other wake film out there - it has the most talked about soundtrack of any riding film i can remember. Its early for big review points, but thats what makes the film so different, the atmosphere that is created by the look and sound of the film. . . . and personally i love it.
This film has something else, Randall Harris. If you have never seen a section of Randy Riding, then i would strongly urge you to at least get the film for his sections alone. I say sections, as he features in three throughout the film - and for good reason. Randall has recently come back to the sport after some time away - so many of you younger riders out there may only be starting to hear about him over the last 6 months. Well what a film to bring him back to life people.
His first section starts off with a brief interview with him on how long he has been away from riding. This is followed by a section of one of his first sections back riding - and getting absolutely hammered in the process. Apart from making you sick that he can still land so much after such a long time away, the way it is filmed and especially the music, almost sets a story in motion for the rest of the film.
So once you close your mouth from the intro to the film, it starts with the rest of the Gator Team. A rider worth a real mention in all this is Keith Lidburg, a rider who is known for his ability on rails. Transgression is no different for him, and shows some crazy sliding and land gaps. Parts that stand out include Keith getting onto a rail thats pretty much the height of his shoulder, and gapping 30ft over land, eating it a bunch before nailing it. If you didn't know who Keith was, you will after watching this.
That sort of theme runs through the whole film. Riders you might not have heard of, landing some pretty sick stuff. Matt Manzari will also give you goose bumps with his wakeskating. Double Kick Flips, some crazy rails and some amazing scenery finish it off as good as any other section. The locations also add to this film. They went off the beaten track a little, going to some places that are not your usual riding destinations. Dominican Republic and Thailand provide the backdrop for lots of the film, and add to that dirty 16mm look.
Ricky Gonzales also has a nice and chilled section in the film. Well, chilled in that fact that the music is calm and his riding is in slow motion. Apart from that, Ricky goes as big as ever. His section is short as he comes short himself on a gap rail and luckily catches the bottom of his board on the second rail. After doing a backflip at lightning speed from catching the rail, the next shot is him in the hospital with a collar on.
As the film winds on, you are taken to the final section with the Vandall himself. Now after all the other sections in the film, it all suddenly up a gear and gets crazy good. Its because you have that look and atmosphere to the film, the music and now riding from Randall to bring it all together. Overall, this section is one of the best riding sections i have seen. No other section has ever made me want to get my board out for a set more than this one. The huge double ups, massive grabs and just the smoothness of the riding will make most of you shake your head with jealously. In one part, there are two boats going along about 15ft apart from each other. Randall takes off from the first boats wake, and lands into the flats of the SECOND boats wake - we're talking maybe 50ft of distance. The section is full of things like this, along with some of the most consistent blind tricks i've seen. But all of it is summed up in the final shot, where he is approaching a double up. Its a helicopter shot and lets say its flying at something like 30ft high. Well after the pop off the wake, the camera keeps panning up til Randall is pretty much the same height as the helicopter itself. It just makes you say, 'what the hell. . . . how did he' - and thats the film done.
So i've highlighted the parts that stood out for me. Its the same as every other film in the sense that different parts will appeal to different people. But you will leave with a sense that you have seen something a little more special than just another wakeboard film. As a filmmaker myself, i feel that many of the films we see today rely on the names and ability of the riders rather than good cinematography to make them good films. Transgression raises the bar for me on what we should expect from a wakeboard film. I've always thought that snowboard films were way ahead of us water lovers, but Transgression evens up the game that much more than other wake films in 2007. So much so, that it just won an award for best Cinematography at the X-Dance film festival - the extreme sports version of the Sundance Festival, overall a very big deal!
Transgression is a must have for any and all riders out there. Its the sort of film that you could show people not interested in wakeboarding and they would enjoy it. The combination of 16mm film, the music, the riding and just the sheer vision that the film team had in production - put the film at the top of the tree. You just have to go see it to fully appreciate what its made of.
Our film of the year for 2007 - Transgression.
Before we get into the details of the film, lets talk technicalities first. The producer of the film was Ronn Seidenglanz from Sidewayz, and a 16mm film one at that. Some of you may have heard of the term 16mm and not know entirely what it is, and you should know a little about it before we talk about the film. Its part of the reason that the film is so epic. . . .
16mm is one step down from 35mm - the stuff they use to make your hollywood blockbusters. Some of those big hollywood films are also done with 16mm, like 'Leaving Las Vegas' and 90% of the 'O.C' series. So why is this such a big deal? Well it comes down to the quality of the end product, and that 'Film Look' - you can spot real film a mile off compared to raw High Definition and DV formats. One more thing before we begin - you know when you shoot your riding with your personal camcorder, you go watch it back at the end of the day. Well with 16mm you can't - apart from what you see through the lens or on a monitor at the time of shooting, you have to wait until your film comes back from the development lab - think about that, ever missed a shot?
Right, lets get down to the film. . . . .
I remember back to the time when Jeff Weatherall gave a shout from the kitchen of the house to say he had a pre-release version of this new film called Transgression. So there we sat in front of the TV with the film about to start, with the usual anticipation you get before a riding film. We had already heard a few rumors about the film, and with most Wakeboarding films there is one section or rail that makes the film famous and gets talked about. So after the intro from Ronn, the intro film started - the same as the trailer that been floating around the net.
There is something that you will notice about this film from the very start. It looks and sounds different from every other wake film ever made. What i mean by the look, is that the colors are deeply saturated (meaning strong and positive) and has such a soft feel to every shot. There have been 16mm films before - like the ground breaking Sean Kilgus films - but the colors in Transgression really catch your attention. What i mean by the sound, is that the music is also very different from any other wake film out there - it has the most talked about soundtrack of any riding film i can remember. Its early for big review points, but thats what makes the film so different, the atmosphere that is created by the look and sound of the film. . . . and personally i love it.
This film has something else, Randall Harris. If you have never seen a section of Randy Riding, then i would strongly urge you to at least get the film for his sections alone. I say sections, as he features in three throughout the film - and for good reason. Randall has recently come back to the sport after some time away - so many of you younger riders out there may only be starting to hear about him over the last 6 months. Well what a film to bring him back to life people.
His first section starts off with a brief interview with him on how long he has been away from riding. This is followed by a section of one of his first sections back riding - and getting absolutely hammered in the process. Apart from making you sick that he can still land so much after such a long time away, the way it is filmed and especially the music, almost sets a story in motion for the rest of the film.
So once you close your mouth from the intro to the film, it starts with the rest of the Gator Team. A rider worth a real mention in all this is Keith Lidburg, a rider who is known for his ability on rails. Transgression is no different for him, and shows some crazy sliding and land gaps. Parts that stand out include Keith getting onto a rail thats pretty much the height of his shoulder, and gapping 30ft over land, eating it a bunch before nailing it. If you didn't know who Keith was, you will after watching this.
That sort of theme runs through the whole film. Riders you might not have heard of, landing some pretty sick stuff. Matt Manzari will also give you goose bumps with his wakeskating. Double Kick Flips, some crazy rails and some amazing scenery finish it off as good as any other section. The locations also add to this film. They went off the beaten track a little, going to some places that are not your usual riding destinations. Dominican Republic and Thailand provide the backdrop for lots of the film, and add to that dirty 16mm look.
Ricky Gonzales also has a nice and chilled section in the film. Well, chilled in that fact that the music is calm and his riding is in slow motion. Apart from that, Ricky goes as big as ever. His section is short as he comes short himself on a gap rail and luckily catches the bottom of his board on the second rail. After doing a backflip at lightning speed from catching the rail, the next shot is him in the hospital with a collar on.
As the film winds on, you are taken to the final section with the Vandall himself. Now after all the other sections in the film, it all suddenly up a gear and gets crazy good. Its because you have that look and atmosphere to the film, the music and now riding from Randall to bring it all together. Overall, this section is one of the best riding sections i have seen. No other section has ever made me want to get my board out for a set more than this one. The huge double ups, massive grabs and just the smoothness of the riding will make most of you shake your head with jealously. In one part, there are two boats going along about 15ft apart from each other. Randall takes off from the first boats wake, and lands into the flats of the SECOND boats wake - we're talking maybe 50ft of distance. The section is full of things like this, along with some of the most consistent blind tricks i've seen. But all of it is summed up in the final shot, where he is approaching a double up. Its a helicopter shot and lets say its flying at something like 30ft high. Well after the pop off the wake, the camera keeps panning up til Randall is pretty much the same height as the helicopter itself. It just makes you say, 'what the hell. . . . how did he' - and thats the film done.
So i've highlighted the parts that stood out for me. Its the same as every other film in the sense that different parts will appeal to different people. But you will leave with a sense that you have seen something a little more special than just another wakeboard film. As a filmmaker myself, i feel that many of the films we see today rely on the names and ability of the riders rather than good cinematography to make them good films. Transgression raises the bar for me on what we should expect from a wakeboard film. I've always thought that snowboard films were way ahead of us water lovers, but Transgression evens up the game that much more than other wake films in 2007. So much so, that it just won an award for best Cinematography at the X-Dance film festival - the extreme sports version of the Sundance Festival, overall a very big deal!
Transgression is a must have for any and all riders out there. Its the sort of film that you could show people not interested in wakeboarding and they would enjoy it. The combination of 16mm film, the music, the riding and just the sheer vision that the film team had in production - put the film at the top of the tree. You just have to go see it to fully appreciate what its made of.
Our film of the year for 2007 - Transgression.