Who's in It: Shawn Farmer, Terje Haakonsen, Henry Rollins (narrator)
The Basics: It's endless winter for these pro snowboarders as they head off to Alaska to surf down terrifyingly steep mountains.
What's the Deal? I love documentaries about insanely dangerous stuff I wouldn't try in a million years. That way I can front like I know something about it when I finish watching it. Oh, penguins? Yes, they travel far to mate and hatch and stuff. Snowboarding? Awesome. I'm stoked for all their gnarly whatever-it-is. This one follows the best snowboarders in the world as they go around to competitions and then to Alaska, where they jump off mountain cliffs for fun and then surf down avalanches. Not kidding about that last part.
Calm Down, Mr. Narrator Guy: I know he didn't write his own copy, but Henry Rollins is a little barky and exclamation-pointy while he reads the hyperbolic script about how snowboarding history is all about "fighting the establishment" and how snowboarders are engaged in a "battle for [the sport's] soul."
Excellent Vocabulary Word and One Point of History You Can Throw Around After You See It: There was a product in the '60s called the Snurfer — two skis bound together with a rope to steer it — and it more or less evolved into snowboarding.
Terror-o-Meter: Eight out of 10. Just try watching these people ride down active avalanches without squealing in fear. You spend the whole movie waiting for someone to bite it, and your palms are sweaty when it's done. No spoilers on whether someone actually does bite it, though.
Percent of the Movie You'll Spend Wondering How Baked They All Are: 90; this is the sport, after all, that got introduced to the Olympics with a medalist testing positive for marijuana.