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JohnnyKerrigan
Reviews
Red Army (2014)
Such a great Story!
I watched "The Red Army" a documentary about the Russian hockey players that dominated the world in the 1980's during the Cold War, and the human story that emerged took me completely by surprise. The film features the Russian hockey players that played on the so- called "KLM" line, which consisted of defencemen Viacheslav Fetisov and Alexei Kasatonov, and forwards Sergei Makarov, Igor Larionov and Vladimir Krutov, the best five man unit that ever played the game. I feared these guys and the Soviet Union hockey team during the 1980's, my entire country did; Canadian hockey announcers pointed out the lack of emotion in their faces when they came to visit, suggesting that they weren't human. Every young child I knew growing up was afraid of the Russians and their way of life, anti Russian sentiment flowed through pop culture, it was a Cold War, a term that baffles the Russians interviewed in the film. This documentary reminded me of how ignorant we all were, the Iron Current prevented the western world from seeing people in the Soviet Union as human beings. The propaganda in my country prevented me from recognizing the creativity and talent these hockey players possessed.
Viacheslav Fetisov was the leader of the group, he treated Alexei Kasatonov like a little brother all his young life. As I watched the images of early Russian hockey I must admit there was a part of me that envied the young boys that got sent to these hockey camps. Their coach Anatoli Tarasov mentored his players, and in the old film they showed he really seemed to enjoy himself. Tarasov was unorthodox, he saw hockey as a ballet, he had his players juggle during training, and they were rolling around on the ice like gymnasts. I never knew the early history of the "KLM" line but before they were Olympians they were children, and that's what this film depicts so brilliantly. The director and writer Gabe Polsky seems very close to Viacheslav Fetisov while he interviews him, and that really helped authenticate what I was hearing.
The coach that took over the Russian hockey program from Tarasov was completely different from the gentle father that wanted to inspire. Viktor Tikhonov was a military man first, and according to Fetisov he cared nothing about his players as human beings. He wouldn't let his players see their families, even when a family member fell terminally ill. The relationship between Fetisov and Tikhonov is what pushed Fetisov out of the Red Army, the Russian government agreed to let him go after his many years of service but Tikhonov took back that offer, stopping the government from letting Fetisov join the NHL. The other players on the "KLM" line were eventually told they could join the NHL, but they would have to give up half their salary to mother Russia. Fetisov held strong, he would not go to the NHL without getting permission to sign his own contract, in his mind he was finished serving the Russian government.
The film demonstrates how the politics at the time reflected the lives of these young hockey players and as I watched them go through this, I found myself cheering for them for the first time. A handful of young Russian hockey players were sent out to make money for their cash starved government, a couple of them signed with my beloved Vancouver Canucks. I still here the local stories about Vladimir Krutov, while he was in Vancouver he found the North American life style very hard to adjust to. When he arrived in Canada, he couldn't get over the fact he could get a hamburger from McDonald's anytime he wanted to, he could buy soft drinks and hot dogs from the corner store any hour of the day. He ballooned in his first year, growing bigger and bigger, his new freedom leading him to over indulgence. He didn't last long in the NHL; during his interview in this movie he was very stoic, he had lost his life in hockey without his country, he seemed so distant when he spoke.
The Russian culture has always fascinated me, I've regarded our two national hockey teams as the best for many years. Hockey has changed however and Russia has changed right along with it, hockey has become more about skill and less about physical intimidation. Russia is now a democracy, still in its infancy, lots of good and bad going on in that country, and dealing with political corruption is at the forefront. This film starts at the peak of the communist regime and ends in present day Russia, a democracy still haunted by its past. Viacheslav Fetisov is now working in the KHL, a league that would never exist without political change, in 2002 Vladimir Putin made him minister of Sport for Russia, he never turned his back on his country and at no point did Fetisov take the easy way out. He faced his government like the big man he is, he looked the minister of defence right in the eyes and challenged him to send him to Siberia. The courage Fetisov shows in this story impressed me the most, and I loved learning that his closest friends were five boys that loved to play hockey together.
Interstellar (2014)
"Interstellar" opens up the imagination and this intricate story lingers in your mind long after the movie ends.
For days my thoughts were of family, sacrifice and love while I digested the ideas presented in the film. Brothers Christopher and Jonathan Nolan have written another tangled story that slowly unravels as a great cast of characters experience this heart pounding adventure. The Nolan brothers brought us "Inception" and "Momento" two stories that weren't told in a traditional linear way. "Interstellar" continues their challenging story telling convention in this fantastic space voyage.
The story takes place in the not so distant future, climate change has ravaged the earth. Farming is an assigned career to almost everyone on the planet. Good farmers are the most important commodity the earth has, food is scarce and finding soil that will yield an abundant crop is difficult. There is a sense of desperation on earth as we are introduced to Cooper (Matthew McConaughey) on his family farm. Cooper, once a pilot for N.A.S.A. is now farming while the planet suffers from a major food crisis. The government is focused on keeping the human race alive, frightened taxpayers refuse to foot the bill for anything that doesn't keep them from starving. Working on Cooper's farm is his father in law Donald (John Lithgow), his 15-year-old son Tom (Timothée Chalamet), and his 10-year-old daughter Murph (Mackenzie Foy) as they struggle with the day-to-day challenges farming on earth now presents.
Cooper and Donald have teamed up to create one of the most successful farms on earth. They continually supply corn ever year to the struggling human race and raise Cooper's son Tom to do the same. Cooper's scientific eagerness helped him achieve a high success rate when it came to growing corn but his heart was never really into farming. He longs for something more, he never stops his pursuit of engineering and manages to pass on his thirst for discovery to his daughter who seems to have inherited her fathers passions. Murph is a bright young girl that constantly embarrasses her teachers because she isn't being challenged enough academically. Murph is convinced there's a Ghost in her room and says it's been there for years. Copper encourages her to be scientific about her observations if she truly believes something unexplainable is happening. She writes down her observations and keeps track of every mysterious event that happens in her farmhouse room.
Dust storms chase everybody into shelters almost daily, people can't breath and it's beginning to take its toll. After Copper and his family race inside during one of these storms Murph realizes she left her room window open and runs upstairs. Cooper races up after her and when they enter the room a mysterious dust cloud falls on the floor in a very distinct way. Cooper sits beside the phenomenon and begins to realize Murph was observing something curious. He realizes that the gravity in her room has been altered somehow, some of the dust falls slower than the rest. Copper begins to decipher the code hidden in the pattern. He realizes the message in the dirt contains some geographic coordinates, so he figures out where on earth they are pointing and decides to investigate.
A brilliant physicist named Professor Brand (Michael Caine) recognizes the former pilot and questions him about how he found their underground installation. After hearing Coopers explanation of what led him there, Professor Brand decides to explain everything to him. The Professor puts his trust in Cooper and reveals the secret that N.A.S.A. still exists and there is a plan to save humanity.
Brand tells Cooper about a wormhole that appeared a few years ago just beyond Saturn. He explains that N.A.S.A. sent 12 astronauts out through it to visit 12 possible planets humanity could survive on. These brave men and women knew they might be on a one way trip and were told to send out a beacon only if the planet they landed on had the appropriate attributes. N.A.S.A.'s resources are limited, they can't visit all 12 planets so an accurate account of each was necessary. Professor Brand asks Cooper to pilot the rocket they've almost completed through the wormhole to retrieve the information from the 12 astronauts. His mission, if he accepts it, is to find the astronaut with the best planet.
As Cooper raises through space and time to save humanity all he can think about is his family. The mission he's on requires him to visit planets where time is experienced differently at a different rate than earth. His crew must calculate the time displacements based on the wormhole's proximity to the worlds they visit. While visiting the planets time is normal to them but years go flying by on Earth. Upon returning from one of the planets, video arrives from earth and Cooper is able to see his how time has affected his families lives.
Cooper's epic adventure teaches him that time and space are interconnected, he begins to understand the universe in a way no other human as ever experienced. The story can be confusing at times and gives the audience a lot to digest. The story comes full circle with a good payoff at the end. I enjoyed the unexpected twists and turns throughout this 169 minute epic. I never stopped processing the many layers this story presents. I really felt the love Copper has for his family and his strong desire to see them again. The sadness Murph felt not having her dad around really affected her life and made her thirsty for the truth. Their connection inspires them both to be the best and brightest they can be as the fate of planet earth hangs in the balance.
I can't wait for the next Nolan Brothers presentation because this one was simply amazing. I look forward to watching this movie again to see what clues I missed the first time around.