Miracle

The 1980 Winter Olympics. The United States ice hockey team, built out of college players, meets the Soviet side that has been considered the best in the world for four years. At the centre is how coach Herb Brooks prepared them for that game. Gavin O'Connor directed. Kurt Russell plays Brooks. The most important production decision was in the casting: rather than teaching actors to skate, they cast real hockey players. O'Connor thought it would give the film a raw and accurate feel. There are 133 different hockey plays in it, and the arenas were recreated in rinks in British Columbia. It opened on 6 February 2004 with a PG rating. On a 28 million dollar budget it grossed 64.5 million worldwide. Rotten Tomatoes sits at 80 percent, with an A CinemaScore from audiences. Kenneth Turan in the Los Angeles Times called it a classically well-made studio entertainment. It won the ESPY Award for Best Sports Movie in 2004. Herb Brooks died in a car accident before the film was released. The dedication reads: this film is dedicated to the memory of Herb Brooks, who died shortly following principal photography. Who it is for: viewers who like sports films and stories about coaches. Who it is not for: anyone who thinks knowing the result kills the tension. The film is not interested in the game so much as in the preparation.