- Stoked
"STOKED: the Rise and Fall of Gator", is a feature documentary film by the American filmmaker
Helen Stickler about 1980s professional skateboarding champion Mark “Gator” Rogowski, who is now serving life in prison for rape and murder. Rogowski had one of the most popular signature skateboards in the 1980s, and the most coverage in skateboarding magazines and videos for a period of time in that era."STOKED" follows Gator's life in skateboarding and highlights his rise to fame and problem with alcohol and depression which, through various events in his life, led him to brutally rape and murder an acquaintance,
Jessica Bergsten , his ex-girlfriend's former best friend. Interviews in the movie includeTony Hawk ,Jason Jessee ,Stacy Peralta ,Lance Mountain ,Steve Caballero and Brandi McClain. The film features music from some of the most influential bands of the era and culture, including theButthole Surfers ,Dead Kennedys ,Black Flag andNaked Raygun , and an original score by the talented American composer David Reid.The film had a world premiere at the 2003
Sundance Film Festival and it was released theatrically in more than 70 US cities, as well as in the UK, New Zealand, Australia and Japan. "STOKED" earned critical and popular acclaim, including features in the "New York Times " and "Los Angeles Times ", and an interview onNational Public Radio ’s "Fresh Air ". "LA Times" criticKenneth Turan wrote of film, "Strongly directed and unexpectedly poignant ... An excellent documentary about the compelling dark side of the American dream."The word "stoked" is a popular slang word used by those connected with
surfing ,skateboarding and BMXbiking . It is used to mean pumped up, excited, and ready.External links
* [http://imdb.com/title/tt0271211/combined Stoked on IMDB]
* [http://www.villagevoice.com/film/0334,halter2,46358,20.html Stoked in the Village Voice 2003]
* [http://www.bbc.co.uk/films/2004/06/21/stoked_2004_review.shtml Stoked in BBC 2004]
* [http://www.ocweekly.com/film/film/re-stoked/18909/ Stoked in the Orange County Weekly 2005]
* [http://www.myspace.com/stokedriseandfallofgator Stoked official Myspace]
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