Dramatic; Terrific acting; The movie wastes nothing.

Rating: 8/10 (13 February 2004)

This movie is terrific, yet I'm not a hockey fan and I don't watch sports movies. Is it possible that a movie can be all about hockey and not about hockey at the same time? It's not a retrospective of 'the game', it's about people embracing a vision. The worth of this film, and most of the drama, comes from the acting, and from the success of the writer and director in keeping the script tight and the elements of sports, emotion, family, and country balanced. Secondary to this is the drama from the hockey play itself, and this is largely helped by the on-ice cinematography. A successful effort is made to place us in the period, to help us understand the social and political climate of the day; it's important and it's well-executed. Kurt Russell does a fantastic job as coach. Merely seeing a few seconds of his performance in the preview made me want to go see the movie. Each team member gives a top-notch performance. This is not a lovable bunch of misfits, thankfully, but a group of independent young men whose individual characters enhance the film instead of trying to define the film. Patricia Clarkson does a superb job of playing the coach's wife, Patty. First to last her performance was worthy of praise. Overall, nothing in the film went to waste. The dialog was very relevant, the pace was excellent, the content well-balanced, and the cinematography was apparently great because I totally forgot I was looking through someone else's eyes. The cast and crew can look back on this effort with a great deal of pride. I sincerely hope you enjoy this film as much as I did. Thanks for reading.