A. Horice Sesdyk
This is one of the best comedies you will ever see. I'm only writing this in case anybody who hasn't seen this movie is reading reviews, because I want to tell you that you're a fool for having missed this until now. It's not just the best hockey movie ever, it's a classic 70's comedy, up there with Animal House and The Bad News Bears. Don't even debate it, just watch it.
George Wright
Slapshot from 1977 is one of the best hockey movies ever. It strikes a chord with me because I associate hockey with tremendous skill and excitement as well as respect and community spirit. At heart, Slapshot is about those same values. The storyline is a team's struggle to survive when the closure of a steel mill threatens the existence of the town and its hockey team. The 1970's obsession with goon style hockey offers the players hope that they can use such tactics to save their team and their jobs. The team leader Michael Ontkean and the player-coach Paul Newman are at odds with each other over the strategy. Both have strained relationships with their wives because of hockey. There are Canadian elements with games against Canadian teams and stereotypes of French Canadian hockey players. Paul Newman drinks Canadian Club. The Canuck touches are clearly to draw interest and chuckles from Canadian audiences. I thought the Hanson brothers were great with their thick horn-rimmed glasses and geeky behaviour, who are treated as "retards" but inspire everyone with their skill and enthusiasm. Other touches are the surprise scene at the end by Michael Ontkean. The plaid clothes and hair rugs herald back to 1970's fashions. The whole thing is totally dated but this snapshot movie from the 1970's is part of its charm.
Mr-Fusion
To be completely honest, "Slap Shot" would've charmed me simply for being a hockey movie. We could do with more of those, without Emilio Estevez. But it earns its place among the better (best?) sports movies not for having underdog skill, a committed dream or thirst for winning, but for dabbling in the gutters of blue humor and distilling the sport down to its most low-brow of beer-guzzling violent fun. The closest thing I can think of to compare this to is "Major League", which is a compliment unto itself.Even if you don't like the sport, the movie is absolutely worth your time for an unusually profane (and always likable) Paul Newman and for the psychotic Hanson brothers.Thoroughly entertaining.8/10
kenjha
A minor league hockey team tries to salvage its losing season while dealing with the possibility of being sold. It is not clear what this film is meant to be. It's advertised as a comedy, but there's hardly anything funny here. There are endless scenes of home and road games that do little to propel the narrative. Newman is the player-coach, although he's too old to be playing and is not shown doing any coaching. The characters are undeveloped and uninteresting. This is inexplicably regarded as one of the best sports films. Director Hill is reunited with Newman, but the magic of "Butch Cassidy" and "The Sting" is missing here; perhaps if Robert Redford played Newman's teammate...
AD
