Attack the Doc: Rising Son

Last Updated on August 5, 2021

Welcome to ATTACK THE DOC! A JoBlo.com feature that explores the world of documentaries and picks out the best among the best, among the best. We’ll

back and enjoy a little slice of someone else’s.

RISING SON

RISING SON is a 2006 directed by Cesario Montaño.

It’s not everyday that a person meets their heroes, let alone reside in the same part of the city of said heroes. But for 8 year old

skateboarder Christian “Christ” Hosoi, growing up in the Marina Del Ray skatepark with the legendary Dogtown crew, skating with real life heroes proved to be

a life changing experience. Hosoi developed his skills with the older riders and quickly gained a reputation as an up and comer and a “must see” attraction

with his aggressive and lighting fast style. Hosoi became so engrossed in the scene, winning contest after contest, that he quit school in order to focus on

skating full time, getting his first sponsorship deal at 12 years old with Power Peralta (Stacy Peralta was part of the original Dogtown crew). Hosoi

eventually turned pro at 14 and became one of the top vertical riders in the sport. With his flashy appearance and lifestyle, Hosoi became known as the sport’s

first rock start skater as much as an innovator.

The “spiritual” sequel to the fantastic Dogtown & Z-Boys, RISING SON picks up in tone from its predecessor. Here we get to

see the progression of skating from the more simplistic street skating of old, where a lot of the style was derived from surfing, to half pipe and pool

riding where the objective for someone like Hosoi was to see how high you could get out of the lip of the pool. As a non-skater, I appreciated that the

director took the time to explain this style progression via narration and the multitude of skaters who broke everything down for the layman. Not only is

this vital in informing the viewer about the style transition, but it’s important in the overall story of Christian Hosoi when he finds that as he gets

older, the younger generation has cultivated their own style with street ramps and skating off park benches and tables. This takes Hosoi by suprise, who’s

busy partying and traveling the world, putting on shows with own team of disciples, and comes back to find that the world that held him up in such high

regard, has passed him by. Because we get to follow Hosoi from the beginning, we feel his desperation and anxiety to come up with a new style and try to

keep up with the game. When he starts his dissent into drugs and transporting drugs, we want to reach through the screen and smack him around.

RISING SON is a great counterpart to the aforementioned Dogtown & Z-Boys. You don’t have to be a skater or even follow

skating to become engrossed in the story of a dude who had it all and then fell into that pit of drug addiction, a story that we’ve seen so many times

before. You get interviews with some of the biggest names in skating, and also a sweet interview with known skater and actor Jason Lee, who hung out in Hosoi’s crew all those years ago. There’s also candid interviews with Hosoi’s main rival at the time, Tony Hawk, who’s competing styles mimic that of the Larry Bird/Magic Johnson

rivalry. Only with less 3 pointers and better hair.

Sup. Just a hot girl with a skateboard, ya’ll.

Watch RISING SON

on Amazon here!!!