Rating: 
Summary: In The Tradition Of "The Mighty Ducks"...
Review: I was lucky enough to get a ticket to the sneak preview of "Miracle" because it was a sell out. It's about a coach (Kurt Russel) trying to mold the U.S Olympic team in 1980 into a family unit so they can beat the Russians. You don't have to be a sports fan to love this movie. Apart from the conflict among the team, the coach also faces trouble at home because he is a workaholic. The acting in this film is amazing. What's even more remarkable is that Disney didn't try to flood the film with big name stars, but hired actors for their talent. The woman who plays Kurt Russel's wife steals every scene she is in and you really feel for her. My eleven year old brother liked the film, but it does seem to be more for teens and adults. There's no crude humor, sexual or drug references, but it's just not something I can see kids getting real into. The cinematography was amazing and I wouldn't be surprised if it's nominated in that catagory for next years Oscar's. They invented a new camera for the ice and it is used real creativeley in a scene where it's zooming through all of this action during a game. That shot alone is worth seeing, but this really is an awsome movie.
Rating:
Summary: One Word: Wow!!
Review: I just got back from seeing "Miracle" and all I have to say is wow. It was an absolutely incredible story. It's necessary for every American to see. If anyone has ever felt any sense of pride in being American you must see this movie. The movie means a lot more to ppl who know the story and what these kids did for this country in 1980. I had to do a project on this for my sport class last semester and it was amazing to find out how much the victory over the Soviet Union lifted the spirits of America. It made ppl feel good about being Americans again and this movie captures it perfectly. I've seen a lot of good movies in the past few years and this is definitely one of the best. I hope that you will take the time and money to see this movie because it is well worth it!!!
Rating:
Summary: One word: WOW!!
Review: I got to see the sneak preview of this movie and it was absolutly phenomenal. This is such a great story and it was very well done in the movie. It gave me such a sense of pride in America even though this event happened almost 24 years ago. I don't know why it took this long to make a movie about this, but I'm glad Disney finally decided to do it and they did a wonderful job. The entire cast was great and Kurt Russel was phenomenal. He did a wonderful job playing the legendary coach. I will recommend this movie to any American, even if they aren't sports fans.
Rating:
Summary: Power Play for O4!
Review: I've always hated it when people write reviews before the movie comes out, but now, since I am the first to review the film, I'll take a chance to predict a two thumbs up, 4 star reviews all around. Basically, this is going to be an epic. I've seen two of the trailers and I can feel the hype. To assemble a cast like this, and to build a story around one of the greatest moments in sports is nothing short of a.....miracle.
Rating:
Summary: Maricle on ice
Review: What an amazing event that took place in 1980, and what an amazing story. I was only six years old when the game took place, but was unable to watch it on TV. The Cold War was still at its height. I recall as a kid we sometimes played a war type game and usually the imaginary enemy was the Soviets. I'm sure the kids growing up in the Soviet Union where playing war against the imaginary American enemy too.
This movie shows how Herb Brooks molded this group of young men from different colleges and backgrounds into the US Olympic Hockey Team. Not just a group of men that would play hockey in the Olympics, but a true Team! At the same time the movie gives us a since of what political events where taking place, and the low moral that Americans felt at that time. The action scenes on the rink really made us feel that we are there, not only in the stands watching, but actually on the rink. They used awesome camera shots. Although we know the outcome of the game, watching it can put you on the edge of your seat. And when the final buzzer ends the game, you can really feel the pride and happiness that people at Lake Placid and also people at home watching felt back in 1980. What a moral boost!
Winning a hockey game can seem very trivial, but this win was something we Americans needed. The pride and moral boost that it gave us was a very welcome gift. And maybe, just maybe, this hockey game was what helped start the thaw in the Cold War. Today the Soviet Union is no more, and Russia can be called a friend. Maybe this game did have a small role in that.
Rating:
Summary: The True Cold War
Review: I remember sitting around the television, with members of my family, to watch the USA Olympic Hockey Team defeat the Russians in 1980. At the time, the country was in desparate need of a morale boast, in part because of the Iran hostage crisis. The spirited and hard fought victory in thae pivitol game did just that. As a hockey fan and considering the state of NHL today, I was wondering if Miracle would help recreate that sense of pride I felt at the time.This is the true story of the late coach Herb Brooks (Kurt Russell), who in 1980 had the distinction of having been the last player cut from the U.S. hockey team the last time the team won the Gold at the Olympics (in 1960). Brooks got his chance at being part of a medal-winning team, however, when he led the U.S. hockey team to victory over the Soviets (who had won the medal the last four times: 1976, 1972, 1968, and 1964 since that 1960 U.S. win) at the 1980 Winter Olympics at Lake Placid despite overwhelming odds. Directed by Gavin O'Connor, the film faithfully honors the actual events. As Brooks, who sadly died in a car crash in August 2003, Russell gives yet another great performance. His work here demonstates something that I think few folks realize--just how good an actor he is. He plays Brooks as he truly was, a multi-layered man, whose style and innovation are the stuff of legend. I also enjoyed the performance of actress Patricia Clarkson playing Brooks' wife. She deserves all of her newfound acclaim and success. The film will take you back to that era--right down to the clothes and interesting hairstyles. The hockey footage is staged very well and is almost as exciting to watch as the real thing. The movie takes the David and Goliath aspect to the story and does it justice without going overboard or making it seem artificial. The cast of "players" are very good as well (and they can actually play the game). The 2 disc DVD set has a solid bunch of extras. The audio commentary with O'Connor, editor John Gilroy and director of photography Daniel Stoloff, gives listeners a well rounded discussion on how the film came together. "The Making of Miracle" is a fairly typical featurette..."First Impressions: Herb Brooks with Kurt Russell and the filmmakers" ends up being a fine tribute to Brooks. I also enjoyed the ESPN roundtable with members of the 1980 team, actor Kurt Russell and host Linda Cohn and "From Hockey to Hollywood: The Actors' Journey" featurette, how real life players made the movie teams. Outtakes/deleted scenes and a sound effects/soundtrack featurette rounds out the set. With those in charge of the NHL nattering over the fate of the league's future, Miracle restores my hopes for the game. I think both sides should be required to watch this film.
Rating:
Summary: An Inspirational, Feel Good Film For Everyone
Review: I'm not a big fan of spectator sports. A group of guys batting, kicking and/or hitting a ball around a field doesn't do much for me, usually. But one time when guys, pucks and sticks made me cheer, as I sat riveted to my TV screen, was during the 1980 Olympic "Miracle." 1979-1980 were not good years for the United States. Militant Iranians took US citizens hostage in our embassy in Teheran, the USSR invaded Afghanistan, the Cold War was at below zero temperatures, and at home gas prices were sky high, as were interest rates. The film is set in the context of this period, which makes it even more exciting. Americans really needed something to cheer about. In the summer of 1980, newly hired US Olympic hockey coach Herb Brooks took a group of boys, average age 21, worked them 'til they dropped for seven months, taught them new strategies, made them into a cohesive team, and miraculously led them to unbelievable victory. They beat the pants off the unbeatable champion Soviet hockey team in what has been called the "Miracle on Ice." In a super surprise win, the underdog US team, which had played poorly against the much older Russian veterans a few weeks before at Madison Square Garden, made all the right moves to score success, 4 to 3. The team then went on to win Olympic Gold! The Cold War may be long over, but remembering the moment still feels sweet. The look on the Soviet coach's face alone is worth the price of the rental. And now the "moment" and more can be relived - seen on the big screen, with accurate details and superb characterizations, in director Gavin O'Connor's and screenwriter Eric Guggenheim's "Miracle." Kurt Russell is superb as coach Brooks. He has the Minnesota accent down pat, chews gum like Brooks - 500 chews per minute...and even looks like him. Actual ice hockey players were cast as teammates in O'Connor's quest to make this an authentic sports film. The last 30 minutes of footage are devoted to the US - Soviet match. But the movie is as much a character study as it is a film about Olympic sport. And Russell's understated, intense performance is compelling. Patricia Clarkson is excellent as Brooks' wife Patty, as is Noah Emmerich as assistant coach Craig Patrick. The movie is dedicated to Herb Brooks, who was tragically killed in an auto accident over a year ago. He is portrayed as a complex man who was totally dedicated to his sport and his team, to the detriment, at times, of his family life. This is a wonderful film to see with the entire family. You don't have to be a hockey fan to remember February 22, 1980.
JANA
Rating: 
Summary: A big surprise
Review: I didn't have very high hopes for this one. I expected a stereotypical sports movie with lots of "We're number one!"jingoism and lame little sub-plots about team members who overcome various personal issues at the last moment so they can help their team win the big game. Instead, what I saw was a gripping recreation of a specific moment in U.S. sports history, the 1980 victory over the Soviet Olympic hockey team--the mood of the country, what this particular victory meant to Americans, and how one driven man, coach Herb Brooks (Kurt Russell), forged a team that was capable of pulling it off. In a sense, there are really only two main characters in this film--the coach and his team. Although I came to recognize the players' faces by the end of the film, one of the courageous decisions made by director Gavin O'Connor and screenwriter Eric Guggenheim was to focus on the dynamic between Brooks and his team rather than on individual team players. This choice allows the filmmakers to avoid many of the usual sports film conventions and tell a story that we don't see very often, the story of the coaching style that brought them success and the enormous pressures placed on the coach himself. The cast is wonderfully restrained, but Russell is especially good.
Rating: 
Summary: I'm Not A Big Hockey Fan
Review: Sports movies aren't my thing. REMEMBER THE TITANS was an okay movie, but this didn't do it for me because I'm not much into sports except baseball. This is based on a true story, but it wasn't all that great. I know everyone else just absolutely loved this movie, I wanted to read a book.
~Phantom Master
Rating:
Summary: "Do You Believe in Miracles?"
Review: 1979-1980 was a critical time in U.S. history. In fact, the post-9/11 world in which we now live in many ways resembles the beginning of that fateful decade. The Middle East was in turmoil and terrorists had hijacked a plane with a bunch of American citizens and was holding them hostage. People were afraid of traveling overseas because of the threat and gas shortages and prices caused people to begin carpooling, walking, and biking to work. The Cold War had been going on for almost 35 years without WW III breaking loose, but for the first time since the Cuban Missle Crisis, the Cold War was heating up in a major way and everyone was fearful of world annihilation through a nuclear war. There was talk that the Soviet Union was thinking of boycotting the Winter Olympic Games in Lake Placid as a sign of contempt (something President Carter actually forced the U.S. to do during 1980 Summer Games in Moscow) and the nation was on edge.
But in February of 1980, the nation witnessed something that revived everyone's spirits and united people in a way they hadn't been since the middle of Vietnam. During the Semi-final game of the Olympic hockey game, the amatuer U.S. team beat the mighty Soviet powerhouse in a sport they had dominated for more than 20 years. The chanting of "U-S-A, U-S-A, U-S-A" was first heard during those games and the little team that could went on to win the gold medal by defeating Finnland.
MIRACLE is a movie that recreates those events. The tone, mood, and setting is captured almost perfectly and places the audience right in the midst of what it was like living in America in 1979-1980. Great pains have been taken not only to just physically recreate the events that the members of the U.S. hockey team went through, but the emotions and mentality, too.
The "actors" playing the hockey players in the movie really aren't "actors" but are instead first and foremost real hockey players. This is just one example of many that illustrates the extent the filmmakers went through to get things right.
However, though the movie is thought as being about the 1980 U.S. hockey team, it's really a very personal movie that really isn't about the team, but about the man who led them there, Herb Brooks. Brooks had played on the 1960 team that lost to the Soviets for the first time and since that time had made it his life's ambition to beat the Russians at their own game. The majority of the country had no idea at the time of Brooks' unusual and somewhat controversial training methods and even if they had I don't think most people would have given it much thought. It was Brooks' determination and leadership that formed the team and gave them the opportunity to perform a little "miracle" for all the world to see.
A couple a bits of trivia about the film. The scene in MIRACLE where the players are forced by Brooks to skate back and forth doing drills after their 3-3 tie with Norway was filmed over the course of 3 days, 12 hours a day because the filmmakers wanted the "actors" to look as exhausted as possible. Also, the shot of New York that is seen in the movie with the World Trade Center in the background is actual footage shot for the movie, post 9-11. The Two Towers are seen in the picture were actually digitally recreated, making MIRACLE the first movie to "create" the towers since the terrorist attacks of September 11, 2001.
MIRACLE is a movie sure to stir up some sort of emotion from those who were alive to watch the famous moment of sport live. For those who have only read about the event in history books or watched it on ESPN or on a DVD, the effect isn't quite the same and the movie will probably not have as much significance. Nevertheless, the film is well made and makes for a great sports picture.
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