A Day At The Theatre

I had the privilege of spending the afternoon with friend of HBIC (FOHBIC) Brenden O. at the movie theatre to take in the movie Goon, starring Seann William Scott, Jay Baruchel, Liev Schreiber, and Alison Pill, directed by Michael Dowse, and written by Jay Baruchel and Evan Goldberg. I had watched Slap Shot earlier this week as I caught it on TV one night, so I was pumped to see this film with a good friend.

I'm not going to give you many details of the movie, but I will say this: I recognized a lot of scenes that featured Winnipeg as a backdrop. I'm loving the hometown representation, and it was great to see the ol' homestead featured in a major Hollywood film so prominently.

I enjoyed the performances of Seann William Scott and Liev Schreiber as Doug Glatt and Ross Rhea, respectively, and I thought they did a great job in making the hockey look very real despite the making the fight scenes overly bloody. Schreiber was especially convincing as a tough guy in the twilight of his career despite some of his scenes being more Oscar-esque drama than necessary for a comedy. Alison Pill, an unheralded actress, plays Eva, Glatt's love interest, and really performed well. She may not get any breakout roles from this film, but her scenes showed just how good an actress she is. She'll make you smile in her portrayal of Eva, especially if you've been a hockey player.

I will give you this recommendation: go see this film. It's not Slap Shot in terms of unseating the undisputed champion of hockey films, but Goon will rock you. I found myself laughing at a number of seemingly small details, but they are entirely true to hockey players. I thoroughly enjoyed the film, and it will be added to my DVD collection once it hits the shelves. Count this guy as a fan of this movie!

HBIC Movie Rating: ☺☺☺☺/5 (four smiley faces means it's good!).

Goon is now playing nationwide, and is rated R for brutal violence, non-stop language, some strong sexual content and drug use.

Until next time, keep your sticks on the ice!