[yasr_overall_rating]
“Red Army” is the story of the infamous Soviet Ice Hockey team as told from the perspective of its players.
On an unusually snowy Dallas day, I had the chance to see a documentary on the Cold War and ice hockey. I’ll admit, I’m not much of a Hockey fan, but “Red Army” was not just about the sport. It portrays a group of men championing their skills and spirits against horrid conditions. Documentary filmmaker Gabe Polsky’s film showcases a nation’s national pride on the backdrop of cold war politics. The film mixes propaganda films sliced in with interviews to give us a sense of the world the players were in.
“Red Army” starts off with a black and white film message from President and actor Ronald Regan. “In the traditional motion picture story, villains are usually defeated. The ending is a happy one. I can make no such promise for the picture you are about to watch.” This, and a quick montage of news clips and interviews, set the mood for the rest of the film. From the clips we get the idea that the Soviet Team was one of the most dominating hockey teams that ever existed and that ice hockey was a national past time.
One of the first characters we see in the documentary is Vyacheslav Fetisov. He at first seems more interested in his telephone than the interview. He comes across as arrogant and cocky. And while we are waiting for him to engage in the interview, the screen fills with a massive list of awards and recognition the ice hockey defenseman hard earned over the years, including two gold medals and a Stanley Cup. You soon realize he’s a larger than life figure who’s been though a lot and accomplished just as much.
Fetisov was one of the many hundreds of youth that went to the Soviet hockey camps. Clips of grueling workouts show kids being conditioned and weeded out, giving you a glimpse of the start of his journey. This was a piece of cake compared to his living conditions.
Another interesting character we hear about through clips and interviews is Anatoly Tarasov. He was a well liked innovative coach that garnered inspiration from various places, considered by many to be the father of Russian hockey. After World War II, he was invited to create a hockey program at the Red Army’s Sports Club. He would take cues from ballet dancing and lessons from Russian Chess masters to shape his players. Many great Russian players were developed from his coaching system. He and these players would eventually go off to play against one of the best hockey nations – Canada. The Canadians were surprised and defeated by the skill set of the Russian’s hockey team. This became the signal to the world that the Russians have arrived and would be a dominant force. Despite their dominance, at one point in history the beloved Tarasov is replaced with a more Tyrant-like coach from the KGB system.
This Tyrant coach, Viktor Tikhonov, is easily the bad guy of the film. He was harsher and colder than Tarasov. The conditions were so harsh that some of the best Hockey players in Russia considered leaving the sport, or even possibly leaving to play in the NHL in the US.
The film shows the struggles of players being forced to play without freedom or breaks, 11 months out of the year. It also shows the climate of a nation during the cold war era. In a KGB fearful society, somehow pride in one’s country and a sense of nationalism still held true amongst the athletes and the countries citizens.
After the fall of the Soviet Union, greed became more prominent, and the players that were once national icons and heroes were commodities to be traded to the American NHL for financial reward. By the end of the film, you can’t help but sympathize with the players and their struggles.
It was a very enjoyable film. It was a lot to keep up with at times, and I know I’m not doing it justice in this review. Long story short, it’s entertaining and informative. The documentary style is lighthearted. The filmmaker often lets himself get made fun of in order to tell the story.
If you like underdogs, and you like good sports movies, you’ll love “Red Army.”
Now playing at the Angelika Film Center in Dallas
