Miracle Movie Review 2004

Russell stars as coach Herb Brooks, who led the upstart 1980 U.S. Olympic hockey team to victory against the Russians and a gold medal. Brooks, driven by his own failure to capture a medal as an Olympic player, uses aggressive mind-games and innovative strategy to take a squad of college hotshots and turn them into a single unit capable of defeating the Russian powerhouse. Russell is excellent as Minnesotan Brooks, down to his clipped accent and bad pants. O'Connor, directing newcomer Guggenheim's script, manages to push all the right buttons while mostly avoiding heavy-handed cliches. The end result is a solid sports movie. Most of the actors had hockey experience, adding to the realism of the on-ice scenes. Brooks served as an advisor but died during post-production.

Distribution

Buena Vista Home Entertainment, 500 S. Buena Vista St., Burbank, CA 91521-1120, Toll-free: 800-723-4763, URL: http://www.bvhe.com

Available on VHS, DVD
Running time 135 minutes.
Originally from United States.

Cast and Crew

Genres

Sports Dramas, Hockey, True Stories, Period Piece: 1970s, Period Piece: 1980s, Dedicated Teachers, Team Efforts, Biopics: Sports

Screenplay

Eric Guggenheim

Cast

Kurt Russell, Patricia Clarkson, Noah Emmerich, Sean McCann, Kenneth Welsh, Nathan West, Kenneth Mitchell, Eddie Cahill, Patrick O'Brien Demsey, Michael Mantenuto, Eric Peter-Kaiser, Bobby Hanson, Joseph Cure, Billy Schneider, Nate Miller

Cinematography

Dan Stoloff

Director

Gavin O'Connor

Music

Mark Isham

Other

Michael McGee, Brian Ross, John Gilroy, Ross Dempster, Tom Bronson, John Willett

Producer

Mark Ciardi, Gordon Gray, Walt Disney Pictures, Mayhem Pictures, Buena Vista