Future Primitive DVD Review

This is the second of the legendary Bones Brigade Videos – now available on DVD. The first video caught viewers up on what had been going on in the world of skating, and Future Primitive DVD continues the story. Full of some of the top names in skateboarding today (Tony Hawk, Rodney Mullen, Lance Mountain…), the Future Primitive DVD shows how they developed, how they competed, and how they had a great time skating. Whether you’re old school or not, you’ll enjoy this video.

If you skated in the 80s, you probably don’t need to hear anything more about this. Just the fact that you can now get these Bones Brigade videos on DVD is all the news you need to hear. The Future Primitive DVD menus are well done, though there isn’t much for special features and it would have been great if they would have re-mastered the sound. It’s sharp and irritating at times. But, it certainly sounds better than a VHS tape. And as a DVD you can skip around to different chapters easily, and it should last longer than you’ll be around to care. The main feature is 55 minuets long, released in 1985. The DVD only has one extra feature; a video that showcases all of the Stacey Peralta skate videos.

For those of you who aren’t familiar with Future Primitive or the Bones Brigade Videos, let me catch you up. Back in the 80s, skateboarding was making a comeback, and two guys named Powell and Peralta got together to make a series of skate videos that helped launch skateboarding even higher in the public eye. They assembled a team of incredible skaters – a team whose members were destined to make huge impacts in the sport. The team was called the Bones Brigade, and included Tony Hawk, Rodeny Mullen, Lance Mountain, Steve Caballero, Adrian Demain, Richie Dunlap, Tommy Guerrero, Kevin Harris, Chris Iverson, Mike McGill, Eric Sanderson, Steve Steadham, Ray Underhill, and Per Welinder. The soundtrack is hot, featuring The Faction, The Nudes, The Halibuts, The Rad Boys and Johnny Rad, and more. In fact, Powell even offers the Bones Brigade soundtrack on CD. The Future Primitive DVD is a lot more hodge-podge than the first Bones Brigade video. It shows how the team lives, plays, skates, eats… It’s a fun video, showing the guys having a blast shredding ramps and pools, in competitions and parking lots, bombing downhill – anything. The skating is definitely classic 80s – super stylish and low to the ground.

And they all just look like they’re having a great time! There’s a part in the first Bones Brigade video where some of the guys are skating on a ramp behind Lance Mountain’s home, with horribly hokey shots of hot girls watching in awe. In the Future Primitive DVD, during a similar segment with guys shredding the half pipe at the Mountain Manner, Mountain, Caballero and Iverson come out dressed as nasty girls, and ooh and ahh at the skaters. It’s hilarious. In a section called “How They Practice”, the guys are gathered around a sink where they play with what’s probably the first tech deck ever built. Near the end of the video the team is skating through New York, goofing off, doing whatever they want. They skate right through crowds of people, but no one gives them any crap. They never get busted up by cops, and loads of people watch them with big smiles on their faces. The 80s were such a less angry time.

If you’re an old school skateboarder, this DVD is something you simply gotta have. If you didn’t skate in the 80s, you’ll still get plenty out of it – the footage of some of today’s top pros, skating in pink shirts in their teens, is plenty cool. Future Primitive isn’t as technical and hard hitting as the skate videos of today, but it’s not supposed to be. Back then, skating was all about looking cool and stylish, and having a great time doing it. The DVD is 55 minuets long, originally released in 1985. Make sure to check out the reviews of the other Bones Brigade DVDs (, The Search for Animal Chin, and Basic Training Plus). The soundtrack to the Bones Brigade movies is also available.