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There's Something About McConkey |
List Price: $19.99
Your Price: $17.99 |
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Reviews |
Features:
Description:
Extreme skier Shane McConkey is the protagonist of this affably oddball documentary that features some suitably spectacular footage of McConkey casually doing what most skiers can only fantasize about. There are interviews with McConkey, who comes off as the laidback dude one might expect, as well as interviews with his mother and a few friends (one of whom tells a funny story proving that "there's something wrong with McConkey"). And a few comic interludes, including McConkey's attempt to star in a music video, pop up. But the real point to this production is the skiing footage, which is uniformly spectacular. McConkey and others (including Olympic champion Jonny Moseley) go rocketing down absurdly steep mountainsides in footage shot from helicopters, and of course they make it all seem so effortless that you can almost forget how insanely dangerous it is. And speaking of bodily peril, McConkey is also seen flying off ski jumping ramps backwards and gleefully sailing through space. As someone quips, "his radness can't be quantified." Keeping with the athlete-as-outlaw theme, there are also segments on BASE jumping, in which McConkey and others are seen parachuting from bridges, tall buildings, and mountainsides. Some of the film's humor is strained, but this is for the most part an entertaining look at a character who just can't get enough downhill excitement. --Robert J. McNamara
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