Hut where Tony Hawk's character works is now a Taco Bell, still standing at 2941 West Imperial Highway in the city of Inglewood. Some introductory scenes were filmed at John Wayne Airport (Orange County, California) before major renovation work on the terminal. The hill scene was filmed on 17th Street between Patton and Leland in San Pedro, California. The car chase scene near the end of the movie was filmed on West Seaside Way between the 500 to 700 block in Long Beach, California. Brian's ferry ride was from Balboa Island to the Balboa Peninsula where on his bike he met his skateboarding friends at the Balboa Fun Zone in Newport Beach. Release Gleaming the Cube was released in the United States on January 13, 1989. In the Philippines, the film was released as Challenge to Win Again in mid-1990. Critical response The film gained mostly negative reviews from critics; only 29% of critics cited on the site Rotten Tomatoes offer a positive review. Legacy Professional skateboarder Stevie Williams has stated in an online interview that Slater's character in the film was his first skateboarding influence. Skateboarding figure Tony Hawk, in a 2008 interview with Slater, revealed that he is continually asked if Slater actually skated in the film. Hawk has remained in contact with Slater well beyond the production of the film. References External links Origin of Gleaming the Cube film title in the December 1983 issue of Thrasher 1989 films 1989 action films 1980s teen films 20th Century Fox films American independent films American teen films Films directed by Graeme Clifford Films set in Orange County, California Films with screenplays by Michael Tolkin Punk films Skateboarding films 1980s English-language films 1980s American films