Drain Bammage

Rating: Null/10 (21 November 2012)

"Goon" stars Seann William Scott as Doug Glatt, a dimwitted bouncer who manages to make his way onto a local hockey team. His role? He's an enforcer, a violent position which requires him to get into bloody fist fights with opposing players. Offering respite from these scenes of violence is a hastily sketched romance between Doug and Eva, played by Alison Phill. She's a hockey fan who, like Doug, views herself as damaged goods.
Though the film's messages - "don't be ashamed of who you are or what you do", "always love your teammates" etc – are saccharine, "Goon's" overall tone is one of hyper-violence. Much of the film consists of Glatt being punched in the face or cracking skulls. Seann William Scott, so good in roles which require him to be an egotistical maverick, is given little to work with here. He's simple and childlike and not much fun, though this also makes the film somewhat interesting.
Some of "Goon's" skating scenes are well shot, but its original premise (a hockey movie about a hockey player who can't play hockey) quickly gives way to sports movie clichés. The film's swearing, which aims to be vulgarly funny, isn't inventive enough. Elsewhere director Michael Dowse lays on some heavy Christ symbolism. He think's he's making the next "Raging Bull".
7.5/10 – Starts well, goes nowhere. Worth one viewing.