The story of the Miracle on Ice is displayed in Walt Disney’s Miracle, starring Kurt Russell as Herb Brooks. The plot focuses on the making of the team all the way up to the big game. That’s all I’m willing to tell you. You’ll have to see it yourself, as well you should.
Kurt Russell is phenomenal as Brooks, easily the best performance of his career. He embraces the character and shadow of the famous hockey coach and never wavers from it, bringing in new depths of character in each scene. You get to know him more as the movie develops and learn to appreciate his tough love mentality. His intensity and internal fire are emblazoned into the hearts of the audience throughout, making you feel like you were there for the ride. How Russell wasn’t nominated for a Best Actor award, I have no idea because he certainly deserved it.
The supporting cast is the perfect example of what a supporting cast is supposed to be: one that features numerous characters, all of which share the spotlight equally while allowing the audience to get to know each one. The supporting cast is a team effort and these cast members make it work, bringing it to a whole new level.
If there was anywhere this movie could have gone wrong, it was in the game action, but director Gavin O’Connor hired real hockey players and brought them to acting, believing that would be easier than teaching actors to play hockey. This is probably true, but first-time actors are usually atrocious. With great coaching from O’Connor, these hockey players turned into solid supporting cast members, ones that were able to get us to care about them, ones that went above just doing the basics. The hockey scenes are exhilarating, enticing, and most of all, motivational.
People say sports are just games, but sports can be more than that. The Miracle on Ice was not just a hockey miracle, but an act of excellence, of battling the odds and winning. It was a sign that the U.S. still had something to believe in. At a time in history when many believed the next five years would be worse than the past five years, tough times were a present danger for all. The U.S. morale had been beaten and wounded to an extent that many thought they would not recover from. The Miracle on Ice showed the nation, at a time when it was most vulnerable, to believe. This movie reminds us of that, that we may never forget to believe in not just life, but in ourselves.
Once again, if you’re new to my blog, I’ve always ranked movies on a scale of 0-100 (I don’t know why, I just always have). Here’s the grading scale.
90-100 It’s a great movie and definitely one worth buying. (Iron Man 3, World War Z, 42, Just Go With It, Real Steel)
80-89 It was a pretty good movie and definitely one worth seeing, but it doesn’t quite scratch my top ten percentile. (The Hunger Games, The Hunger Games: Catching Fire, Gangster Squad, Elf, The Hobbit: The Desolation of Smaug)
70-79 It’s okay but I’ve seen better. It has its moments, but it has its flaws, too. (The Usual Suspects, 21 Jump Street, Escape Plan, Captain America: The First Avenger, Dawn of the Dead)
60-69 It’s got plenty wrong with it but I still got enjoyment out of this one. (Pacific Rim, The Long Kiss Goodnight, Disaster Movie)
50-59 This movie isn’t intolerable but it’s not blowing my mind either. I’m trying really hard to get some sort of enjoyment out of this. (Along Came Polly, Aliens, Alien Resurrection, Full Metal Jacket, Thor)
40-49 This movie is just mediocre. It’s not doing anything other than the bare minimal, so morbidly boring that sometimes I’m actually angry I watched this. (Patriot Games, The Great Gatsby, Pitch Black, Alien)
30-39 Definitely worse than mediocre, the 30’s ironically define the 1930’s, full of depression, lack of accomplishments, poverty and just so dumb. (The Contract, Pride and Prejudice)
20-29 What did I just watch? Cliches, stupidity, nothingness, did I mention stupidity? Just…wow. (The Sum of All Fears, Thor: The Dark World)
0-19 Watching this movie resulted in one or more of the following: seizure, loss of brain cells, falling asleep/unconsciousness, feel you wasted your time/day, accomplished nothing for you, left the movie knowing less about it then you did going into it, constantly asking yourself why you came to see this movie, or near-death experience. In short, staring at a wall was just as entertaining as watching this movie. This movie deserved a sticker or a label that said, “WARNING: EXTREME AMOUNT OF SUCKAGE.” (Midnight Cowboy, Dark Fury, Alien 3)
My score for Miracle: 97.
Easily the best sports movie I’ve ever seen, Miracle is a story of the human will, one that establishes an emotional and physical attachment to the audience that makes the audience feel like they were actually there for it. The musical score molds well with the story, the acting is far above average, and the hockey itself, engaging. If you don’t feel anything after watching this movie, you probably have no soul.
*SPOILER ALERT* IF YOU DON’T WANT THE MOVIE SPOILED, STOP READING!!!
*SPOILER’S EDITION*
Nothing to spoil, nor would I. This movie is far too good to ruin.
wordsofwistim 