Not A Crime
August 2, 2012 1:18 PM   Subscribe

Montreal Cops Chase Skateboarders

Other classic short films about sport from the National Film Board:

60 Cycles
Soccer
I'll Go Again
Football Story

And as a bonus: Log Driver's Waltz
posted by TheWhiteSkull (20 comments total) 23 users marked this as a favorite
 
Log Driver's Waltz isn't a bonus. It's the main course. Thanks for sharing these. NFB has made some great films over the years.
posted by asnider at 2:01 PM on August 2, 2012 [3 favorites]


You can also stream the entire NFB library using one of their free apps.
posted by maudlin at 2:15 PM on August 2, 2012


That's a great little film - and soundtrack too. Directed by Claude Jutra, in whose honour the annual Quebec film awards are named.
It's somewhat chilling that even though skateboarding back then was apparently something rich kids did down the slopes of upper Westmount, the rambunctious, don't give a fuck skateboarder attitude was already fully formed.
posted by Flashman at 2:27 PM on August 2, 2012


From The Devil's Toy:

"Attacks can be launched on level ground, however, by pushing the apparatus with the foot. Since the ground tends to remain stationary, this results in a forward displacement of the vehicle."

Well I should hope so.
posted by obscurator at 2:37 PM on August 2, 2012 [2 favorites]


I really dig the music.
posted by Ice Cream Socialist at 3:12 PM on August 2, 2012


Well I should hope so.

Earthquakes, man. The ground tends to remain stationary, except in the event of earthquakes.
posted by asnider at 3:15 PM on August 2, 2012




This is a perfect little film, made that much more notable for having been made by Claude Jutra.

Speaking of whom--whoa!--the NFB's got Mon oncle Antoine streaming for free in its entirety! Though it looks like a tragically subpar VHS rip.
posted by Sys Rq at 4:19 PM on August 2, 2012 [2 favorites]


Supercool. I work 100 yards away from the opening shot and it looks exactly the same (but in color).
posted by googly at 5:02 PM on August 2, 2012 [2 favorites]


It's not that the ground really remains stationary in any sense, it's just that skateboarding works best when your inertia is considerably outbalanced by that of the Earth.
posted by Salvor Hardin at 5:05 PM on August 2, 2012 [1 favorite]


Supercool. I work 100 yards away from the opening shot and it looks exactly the same (but in color).

And is the area still filthy with hipsters?
posted by i_have_a_computer at 7:33 PM on August 2, 2012


Years ago, I helped run a film night in the small town I lived in. We were picking the films from the NFB catalogue, and they would lend us the reels of film that we would show to the community. The films were listed in a small print catalogue without a ton of information and "the devil's toy" was a short I thought sounded like a crap shoot. I had zero expectations but showing it was just magic, one of my all time favourite shorts.
posted by jade east at 7:53 PM on August 2, 2012


Ti-Jean Goes Skateboarding.
posted by K'an at 8:14 PM on August 2, 2012


> You can also stream the entire NFB library using one of their free apps.

To pull up this film in your mobile device, note that you have to search for "Claude Jutra"-- for the Android app at any rate. Searching for the title did not work for me. Perhaps this is because my language is set to English in the settings.
posted by christopherious at 8:51 PM on August 2, 2012


great film making. the shots are so good.

in almost 50 years nothing has changed.

what kind of takes me out of is it the scene with the police, it has to be staged.
posted by cupcake1337 at 11:14 PM on August 2, 2012


--it has to be staged--

It's a very weird film. I couldn't -- still can't -- quite work out what level of tongue in cheek or mockery or irony or seriousness one is supposed to read into it. It seems mostly a paean to skateboarding and teen enthusiasm and yeah, the music is really great during those long scenes. It's like two very different points of view are jostling for dominance. How very odd. Thanks TheWhiteSkull!
posted by peacay at 7:45 AM on August 3, 2012


I couldn't -- still can't -- quite work out what level of tongue in cheek or mockery or irony or seriousness one is supposed to read into it.

Really? If the tongue was any farther in cheek, it'd be busting through.
posted by Sys Rq at 8:05 AM on August 3, 2012


Heh. Maybe I'm having a late night attack of the credulities. I guess the age of it adds a level of doubletake too.
posted by peacay at 8:23 AM on August 3, 2012


To pull up this film in your mobile device, note that you have to search for "Claude Jutra"-- for the Android app at any rate.

That's weird. Searching for devil's toy pulled it up immediately in my iPhone, and I'm also using English settings. It also listed several other films with "toy" in the title and a bunch of related films, so the search algorithm seems to go for volume over specificity.
posted by maudlin at 8:25 AM on August 3, 2012


Sonascope previously...
"these kids are disrespectful, arrogant, entitled little feral street rats"

Who grew up to be US bankers and politicians, it would seem.
posted by Twang at 2:31 PM on August 3, 2012


« Older one of those days   |   Cliodynamics Newer »


This thread has been archived and is closed to new comments