Happy 25th Anniversary

Rating: 9/10 (25 March 2002)

"Slap Shot" turns 25 on March 25, 2002. So many people have seen this film and can quote lines from it, perhaps more than any other movie. I think the movie is one of the most underrated pictures ever made. There's more to it than the foul language or the violence. It's about a hockey team's last ditch effort to save itself. Reggie Dunlop may con and manipulate his way to the championship, but that's what is great about his character and this movie, and that is the psychology within. There's something in all of us that is like Dunlop and his players...we're all underdogs, we fight for what we believe in and may even be a little underhanded to get to where we need to get. More important, Dunlop has something to prove...that he can be a winner, and he can be successful. It's what he wants for himself, and for his players. Fans of Paul Newman criticized his decision to play this role, but nobody else could have pulled it off. It was one of his best efforts, and in interviews over the years, he has maintained that it was one of his favorite films to work on, and Dunlop was one of his favorite characters.