Legend No. 17

This has been my favorite movie we have watched this month by far. While I still really liked "Burnt by the Sun" and "Brother," this film is in a league of its own. The plot had action, drama, and it made you think about yourself as a person and not just the main characters. It made you relate to past situations where you never gave up on yourself to reach your ultimate goals. Personally, I love movies like this. I'm a very competitive person and I'm an athlete at Carthage, so this type of genre is right up my alley.

After reflecting on the film, I really admired Tarasov as a coach. When he was running practice, he used some unorthodox training techniques that didn't seem like your typical hockey drills. I'm not a hockey expert by any means, but when a coach orders a player to stand in a hockey goal so his teammates can pelt him with pucks, I don't think that is textbook hockey coaching. Also, I don't think giving piggy back rides up and down hills is very common either while training. Nevertheless, Tarasov constantly said throughout the film that he didn't care what people thought of him. He was going to do what he felt would put his team in a winning situation. Another aspect about Tarazov's coaching is that is was not always meant to make his players physically stronger. I liked that he used certain tactics that targeted each players mental attitude towards hockey and life itself. An example of this is when Tarasov's new national team played a game and did not mesh well. When he put them out on the ice to skate in a circle and told players from previous teams to stop in their tracks, everyone would crash into each other. This was a lesson that was meant to teach the players that they were no longer individuals from other teams. They were on one national team.

Another part of the film that was interesting was the way it depicted the Soviet Union. It almost seemed like it was the protagonist while the Canadians were the enemy. This was strange to me because when I saw the movie "Miracle," I wanted nothing more than the Russians to lose (even though I already knew the outcome of the game). My point is, this film succeeded in wanting me to cheer for the Russians. I felt connected to Valeri, his journey throughout his life, and the obstacles he had to overcome. The Canadians in this film were portrayed as being very animalistic. They would check players for fun and did not wear helmets when they played. Hell, I would be terrified if I had to go up against a team like that on the ice. It's a good thing I don't play hockey. In conclusion, I loved this movie from start to finish and I hope professor Isham has another one of these gems up his sleeve for tomorrow.