“Red Army” is a documentary—-no, no, no, don’t lose interest just yet since this one actually has a great story and compelling characters who just so happen to be real—-about the infamous Russian hockey team that won them medal after medal at the Olympics during the 80’s, but it’s about so much more than that…
What Works: Ever seen the Kurt Russell film “Miracle” about America beating that nasty Russian team at the height of Cold War propaganda? Well what were those players really like? That’s a question I can honestly say I’ve never had, but this fascinating film tells the story of how those villainized Russians really were, what it was like to really play for the Russian team (North Korean prisoners may have it better), what it’s like being the symbol of an empire that’s collapsing around you, and the story of how many of those players went on to play for big bucks in the NHL American league through years of shrewd wrangling to get out of Russia but with contracts that still paid a cash-starved Russia. [Plus, what it was like for artful Russians to play on an artless American hockey team where fistfights would break out on the ice. It was a little like taking ballerinas to meet the barbarians.] The players are sometimes cocky and arrogant, but this film humanizes Russian alpha males in a way I’ve never quite seen before. If you had told me I would leave a movie feeling deep compassion for Russian athletes (come on, what about “Rocky 4”?! Those bastards killed Apollo Creed!), I would want to see that movie immediately. Well now “Red Army” is here.
What Doesn’t: Not all of the story is told, given how the Russian “coach” (a cog of the state machine) or any government honchos aren’t interviewed, and the surviving players are sometimes forced to hold things back that they might want to say but can’t. In fact, some of the lesser-known players are even cagey because you get the sense they were ashamed of how they acted for throwing various other players or friends under the bus. There’s a prickly defensiveness running beneath the interviews that doesn’t exactly lend itself to documentary filmmaking and its need for truth telling, but what can you do?
What I Would Have Done Differently: Nothing. This is a movie about a topic I had zero interest in (hockey…Russian hockey…Russian hockey during the 80’s) and makes it fascinating. I can’t think of a better compliment than to say a film that should be boring is actually great.