Nitro Circus: The Movie

I have to say that I was somewhat intrigued when I first came across this docu-movie. I had mixed thoughts to begin with before I watched it - to be honest extreme sports and stunts have never really been my thing. But I thought - you know, why not - looks interesting.

I absolutely loved it! It gives a good story of the crew, including their past, and has a lot of gob-smacking moments - stunts which will make you laugh, cringe, and admire. From start to finish it was thoroughly enjoyable, even if you aren't in to extreme sports to begin with.

Before I came across this I never even knew who Nitro Circus was, or what they did. Now I know what they do, and how they do it. I simply have one word to describe them... Awesome.

Definitely worth a watch - you won't be bored or disappointed. That's a promise! - Just keep an open mind. My only negative was that I never watched it in 3D to begin with. I wish I had have done, and if you can, maybe you should too. You might even enjoy it more than I did.

Action sports are great, literally death-defying stunts even more so! I've been a lifelong fan of this stuff, so I was hooked right away when Nitro Circus came on the air in the mid 2000s. It was like a more extreme stunt-based version of Jackass made by crazy professionals with unbelievable levels of skill in their field (well at least some of them).

The movie version despite some fun set pieces that gave me vertigo, was a letdown. It just feels like two or three episodes of the show built around advertising their live show, held together by a barrage of talking heads. Hey, it's cool you get to hang out with Channing Tatum and I'm sorry you had to hang out with Rob Dyrdek but as a viewer this is not interesting to watch and it doesn't connect at all to the spectacle. There's this constant focus of how noone believed in their live show and that it couldn't be done, but now they're going to change the world and it's so inspiring blabla. Sorry guys, I'm sure the show is fantastic but there have been stunt shows for decades, air shows with a much higher risk factor starting way back in the early 20th century and even in the action sports world you had the extremely successful (and oddly similar) Boom Boom Huck Jam before that.

All this doesn't kill the movie, it's a nuisance. What ultimately drags it down is the lack of structure, rhythm and creativity. It meanders aimlessly from stunt to stunt and there's too much downtime between them. So much footage of our ragtag team of daredevils just standing there like badly programmed NPCs in an elder scrolls game. The stunts are impressive as ever but nothing you wouldn't see in any random episode of the show and there are too few of them to hold the movie together. There's no noticeable escalation of their ideas that would necessitate the existence of a feature film. Also I always find it really comical when someone tries to be badass, hardcore and ooh so metal and then all curse words are bleeped. I never got America's obsession with that. I understand that you don't want Bambi dropping f-bombs and quoting NWA lyrics but I think a teen can survive it.

One more point, which admittedly comes down to personal taste but I find it important to mention: The Nitro Circus team is highly entertaining when they are doing stunts and completely uninteresting and borderline unlikeable outside of that. The greatest strength of the Jackass members was how distinct and relateable they were. They seemed like a big, weird dysfunctional family. Through their bond you could vicariously live their misadventures like you're hanging out with old friends you rightfully ditched long ago for constantly talking you into doing something stupid. With Nitro Circus they all seem like self-centered dudebros (and one oddly invisible dudette-sis) who love themselves. To be honest I have real trouble telling them apart or noticing any real bonds between them that I could relate to.

This was watchable, but I recommend just skipping everything but the stunts.

Never would I have thought that I could sit through anything that had to do with extreme sports but these guys are amazing. There is a small amount of background given to each personality in the Nitro Circus crew and you quickly become attached to these guys. This raises the excitement factor considerably when they do a major stunt. You can feel the energy, excitement, fear, and even sometimes sadness that's going on at the stunt ___location. I recommend the full 3D experience on as big of screen as possible with volume cranked up. Never thought I would say that at my age. The is mild adult language for a film like this so I would still recommend watching with your teens.

Everyone in my office agrees that Nitro Circus: The Movie was definitely no Jackass, but I had fun with it none the less. I think it would have been a bit more successful if they had put a few more of the familiar gross out Jokes in or perhaps designed a couple of stunts to go wrong on purpose, but this movie is good in it's own right. The stunts performed are truly dangerous and the few bloopers that do get to see are sure to excite sum laughter. I didn't watch the 3D version in theaters since they're always so packed, but since I rented it from Blockbuster at Home through DISH I beat the crowd and it was waiting for me when I got off work.

Nitro Circus: The Movie will likely live on in the hearts of X-Games enthusiasts, who the film is directly geared for, and has likely be evaporated from the minds of the general public since it ended its small theatrical run. I've always managed to find something more interesting and substantial on TV when the X-Games are playing, yet always admire the drive and the heart of the young men that put their life on the line to pull off gravity-defying tricks on a bike.

Before even stating a coherent opinion on this picture I'm issuing a common sense recommendation, as I did with Project X, saying that if the first sentence of the plot of the film appeals to you, then disregard everything I'm about to say. The film continues with the long-running series Nitro Circus, showing the gang of young bloods, lead by noted X-Games winner Travis Pastrana, perform extremely daring stunts such as jumping off a building on a mountain bike, slide along a huge ramp into the water, and so on.

My personal favorite involved a new variation on the tiresome sport of golf. This involves one going down a large ramp, with a heavy slope and and ever-increasing velocity, to hit another ramp, fly off, and then attempt to land in a hole in an inflatable ball. If the person misses the whole, they will likely hit the ball and bounce off on to hard dirt and risk injury. What can I say? I was entertained by that sequence more-so than others.

The entire film runs for about one-hundred and three minutes, including an eleven minute introduction which is just more of the same business. The project's main goal for existing is to show how Nitro Circus went from being small and under the radar to performing live in front of a sold out crowd at the MGM Grand in Las Vegas. This is partially why this film makes for a drab experience. I feel many fans of the series and fans of X-Games will be disheartened at the fact there are so many logos for Red Bull and Muscle Milk featured so prominently, without a doubt trying to grasp the attention of people of who will hopefully go out to purchase those products. They say the most upsetting part about watching something you love is watching it go corporate, and part of the reason Nitro Circus: The Movie feels a bit less enjoyable is we're almost seeing the dreaded mainstream path the series is seemingly taking.

I'm instantly reminded of Jackass (creator Jeff Tremaine and known "Jackass" Johnny Knoxville" serve as producers of the film and creators of the Television programs), which aired on MTV, just like the Nitro Circus Television program, and am reminded of how much more fun and enjoyable that program was. The daredevils weren't just daredevils, but characters and comedians all the more, and had personalities to boot. The characters here are bland and uninteresting. Complete nobodies were no clear distinction. Pastrana seems to be pretty laidback and pleasingly chill, but there's little separating him from the other young faces in this film and, to be honest, the entire world of daredevil stunts.

Watching people go off ramps several times over, challenge gravity, and completely discard logic and common sense (often in slow-motion) can get repetitive if you're not in the direct demographic. Nitro Circus: The Movie will be found and will be cherished by those who have an unquenchable thirst for dangerous human activity. To those with a thirst that's quenchable, this film will make sure you never reach dehydration.

Starring: Travis Pastrana, Andy Bell, Jolene Van Vugt, Greg Powell, Jim DeChamp, Erik Roner, and Tommy Passemante. Directed by: Gregg Godfrey and Jeremy Rawle.