SKATELAND takes place in 1983 and follows the life of 19-year-old Ritchie (Shiloh Fernandez) as he spends his time between the local roller rink where he works and hanging out with his friends Brent (Heath Freeman), Brent’s sister Michelle (Ashley Greene), and Kenny (Taylor Handley). Richie is still trying to figuring out what he wants for his future, he’s not sure where his heart lies, never mind where he wants to go to college. Unfortunately, when a tragedy strikes close to home, Richie is faced with growing up faster than he would have liked to and forced to make the decisions he had been delaying.
Skateland is as you have guessed a coming of age story, which had some good moments but was slow at times, especially at the beginning. It seemed to pick up once the big crisis/tragedy happens.

The interesting thing about the movie is that even though the movie is called Skateland, most of the film is spent outside the roller rink. It soon becomes clear that Skateland symbolizes Richie’s journey and the threat of it closing clearly is a metaphor for Richie growing up and moving on, but I wish they had used it a little more in the film. What can I say, it’s fun watching people skate.

Read more: SKATELAND – Sundance Movie Review | Daemon’s Movies