Courtesy of Sundance Institute
The sun is high in the sky as a group of girls roll through a gate and into a skate park. They stick out among the majority of male skateboarders, shredding constantly and enjoying themselves as they talk about whatever comes to mind as a joint gets passed around. They sometimes even get into fights with other skaters, defending themselves against skaters who think they shouldn’t shred because they can’t keep up with the guys. This can be seen as a normal day for Skate Kitchen, the all-girl skateboarding crew that director Crystal Moselle has chosen to follow in her first narrative feature “Skate Kitchen.” Three years after her great documentary “The Wolfpack,” Moselle has directed and written a film that truly feels like an authentic experience through the eyes of a female skateboarder.
“Skate Kitchen” follows Rachelle Vinberg’s Camille, a skateboarder from suburban Long Island who is a big fan of Skate Kitchen. When their social media announces that they will be at a specific New York skate park for a meet-up, Camille decides to break her no-skating promise to her mother in order to travel to New York and meet the group. As Camille begins to skate more and more with Skate Kitchen, she becomes an actual member of the group. However, as her relationship with Skate Kitchen develops, other aspects of her life begin to falter as a result...and that’s all I’ll say about the film’s plot. “Skate Kitchen” is the type of film that is more interested in creating a realistic look at a female skateboarder’s life in New York rather than forcing a three-act structure on the girls though it does stick to it. I went into the film almost completely blind and, in my opinion, it was for my benefit because the film’s pacing does a great job of keeping you invested as you try to discover where this story will end.
The film also does a great job when it comes to the camerawork. Skate Kitchen is a real skate group so all the skateboarding is done by them. This leads to shots just lingering on the group and letting them do their thing rather than relying on quick cuts that try to hide the fact that the actor is not the one skating in the scene. It’s all them and it’s a breath of fresh air because of that, especially when there are several moments of great cinematography, awesome fluid camera follows of skateboarding, and impressive shot composition that not only looks good but tells a story as well. The film truly makes you understand why these girls love skateboarding so much, showing their smiling faces as they’re cruising down a populated street or watching them exude frustration when a kickflip goes wrong. The film never fails to truly show the importance of skateboarding for the crew.
Speaking of the crew, surprisingly, they’re great actors for being non-actors. The cast feels very similar to the cast of Bo Burnham’s “Eighth Grade” in that they keep their authentic female skateboarders without letting their lack of an acting background hinder their performance. Rachelle Vinberg is a compelling lead actress and her crew never feel distracting or bad, actually helping to keep the story going as they get to know Vinberg more. They’re even really funny, leading to some of the best moments of the film being the girls just getting to know each other. Even Jaden Smith and Elizabeth Rodriguez, probably the two biggest actors in the film, fit well with the authenticity despite being established actors in other big projects. The film is just so well written and acted to the point that not the even the son of one of the most popular actors in modern film can break the immersion of this skater’s journey of finding herself as she finds a place where she belongs.
However, I do have some nitpicks with the film that can somewhat break the immersion at times. The first is the film’s attempt to characterize Camille’s mom and Jaden Smith’s character. In the film, a variety of characters try to tell the audience that Camille’s mom is a vindictive, controlling woman and that Jaden Smith’s character is a jerk who throws people away when he doesn’t need them anymore. That isn’t the case though because if you watch the film, you never see those two characters act like that at all. Camille’s mom is a sweet, caring woman who only wants the best for her while Jaden Smith’s character actually comes off as a cool guy who is rarely ever a jerk. This type of dissonance between the words and the actions portrayed on-screen is mind-boggling, especially for a film that does a such a good job of developing the other characters in the film.
That is until you get to my second nitpick with the film: the fight between members of Skate Kitchen near the end of the second act. As the film progresses, I could already tell that a specific topic was going to bring discord among Skate Kitchen, especially between two characters in particular. That being said though, what results from it is a fight where everyone is in the wrong, leading to a resolution that doesn’t feel satisfying even as the film winds down to its finale. It’s a mean, disgusting fight where you can’t help but hate everyone involved because no one is being relatable or understanding. It’s an ugly situation and while I like how Camille ends up dealing with it at the end, it’s not enough to completely resolve the bad taste in my mouth I got from such a moment.
In the end though, these are all small issues for a film that excels at bringing this authentic, coming-of-age story to life. The cast is great, the camerawork is stellar, and the story itself never stopped being interesting even when it felt like it was just following the girls until something big happened. I was very surprised by how much I enjoyed this film. It puts you into Camille’s shoes almost perfectly, making you understand that skateboarding isn’t everything for Skate Kitchen yet it is what gives them the drive to get up in the morning. It’s great that Crystal Moselle’s “Skate Kitchen” is a surprise addition to this year’s list of phenomenal coming-of-age films, showing us skateboarding in a light that is unique, fun, and compelling.