I first saw this film in 1983 in Australia as a 9 year old. I knew absolutely nothing about Hockey and still don’t. But the story of what happened in 1980 continues to be awe inspiring. It was so good to see this film again. Thanks for putting it up here for us to watch.
Come on Randy! It was not a big event and no upset no miracle! Canada have 650000 hockey players today! USA have 550000 hockey players today! Ovechkin's Russia only 80000 hockey players today! Soccer have 250 million players vs Canada 650000 players that means The Soccer All Stars would beat Orr Gretzky Lemieux easily 100 game Series 93-7! The Soccer All Stars would had Beaten Soviets 9999-1 in 1980! USA had More Ice rinks and hockey players than Russia in 1980!
Soccer 4 billion fans around the world! Cricket 2 billion fans around the world! Only hockey ever who had fans was russian Kharlamov 200 million fans More than Gretzky who had under 50 million fans!!
Soviet league goal scoring leaders were in 1980 Shalimov 34 goals Drotzdetzky 31 Varnakov 30 Priodin 27 Lavrentjev 27 they did not played in 1980 olympics!! No miracle
I love this movie. Thank you so much for placing it on TH-cam. I was 8 years old when these games were played, and I watched every game on TV (I think I had to stay up because the games were actually taped delayed and broadcast in the evening even though the games had been played earlier in the day). I didn't know a damn thing about hockey except you pushed a puck and tried to put it into a goal. What I was clear on was what was on my team's jerseys, USA. When this movie came out on TV (ABC, I believe), I taped it on the VHS recorder. Over my youthful years I watched it regularly. I loved it. USA!USA! ...As well as Herb Brooks' emphasis on hard work, character, and playing as a teammate for a team. These were messages my mother emphasized to me. So, I am probably biased about my preference for this 1981 movie over Disney's Miracle. I feel that this TV movie was more balanced. It had more backstories about certain players as well as Herb's backstory. I enjoyed learning about the regional rivalries between the talented players from the East/Northeast and the upper Midwest which, in fairness and if I recall correctly, Miracle alluded to a little bit, too. I just think the 1981 Miracle On Ice brought us closer to the players as well as to Herb while Miracle seemed to focus on Herb Brooks almost as if Kurt Russell and his agent said, "If I'm going to do this movie, I want more prominence in it." When Miracle did come out, I chuckled at the fact that nobody, especially ESPN, seemed to know/remember that a 1981 film existed. There was no mention of it as sports folks started to talk about Disney's Miracle. It wasn't hard to discern what a possible reason was. Disney produced the film, Miracle; and ESPN is owned by Disney. So, of course, they weren't going to mention the "original" film whose name was "Miracle On Ice." Oh well. I enjoyed both, but 1981 was the real deal in my opinion. I can listen to Al Michaels all day doing the Soviet and gold medal game. whew...
The greatest hockey game I ever watched as a kid growing up. This movie gets more kudos than the Disney version. I saw this on WOR television in NY as a kid. Thanks very much for the upload and keeping this version alive.
Jim J The Disney movie was sensational and the players who were actually there agree. This was slapped together for TV. Andrew Stevens as Mike Eruzione was laughable casting. The Boston Accents were hilarious.
@@Farinadog13 Their story was HOT when this was made. "Bad acting" aside, it still captured the interests of the people who witnessed the 1980 Winter Games. I'd like to see a comparison of this film's Neilson ratings the night it debuted and the box office tally for the 2004 film.
I was at the USSR game Live, and the Finland game Live, and both for FREE, and I was getting paid to be there as a Medic in the New York Army National Guard out of the 243rd Medical Co. from Buffalo. I am still thrilled rewatching this for only my 3rd time and not in over 15 yrs. I always looked for me in the arena, but I was under the balcony behind the camera/ press area too hard to be seen. My ass hurt so much because I di dnot have a seat, but sat on top of a bike rack like you might see outside of a school yard. If I left it, I would loose it, so I stayed there(same spot) for both games. I even got the entire USA's teams autographs including Herb & Patrick's on a 3x5 Olympic flag. 41 yrs ago.
I was at home watching it on TV and to this day I still say it's the greatest thing I've ever seen in my life. You are so lucky to have been there, could you hear Al Micheals yell out those immoral words "Do you believe in miracles!?!?!?" or was there another voice calling the game inside the arena? Because if you didn't hear that inside the arena then man did you miss something.
@@dukecraig2402 You know, I really do not remember. there was so much screaming cheering etc. it was a mad house. and of course, I hear it on every replay of the game, I do not know what I heard.
@@michaelt.d.blasting8705 That must have really been something to have been there. The last 10 minutes of the game when they were up by 1 point was a real nail biter, I was 15 years old and alone in our house watching it and every time the Russian's would go charging down the ice towards goalie Jim Craig I'd say to myself "Oh God, they're gonna score I just know they are" and I about had a heart attack every time they did charge down there towards him, and poor Jim looked like the loneliest guy in the world there by himself watching that red wave coming at him, I swear to God it was the longest 10 minutes of my life, then when Al Micheals yelled "Do you believe in miracles!!!" I shot up from my seat and was screaming and cheering despite the fact that no one else was in the house, I just couldn't believe what I'd just seen, to this day when I see it I still want to jump up and down screaming the way I was that night, greatest thing I've ever seen in my life.
@@dukecraig2402 I was crazy too, thinking how the Russians scored 10 goals on Craig just a few days before and could do it again Oh, did I mention I m a goalie too. My ass was so sore too from sitting on top of a bike rack (like at a school would have).for the whole game. I had such a tiny amt of room to be crazy in watching all this. there were so many "Standing room only" people just behind me, maybe 3 or 4 people deep being just as crazy too.
@@michaelt.d.blasting8705 I'll bet it was loud in there, I can remember all the people chanting "USA...USA...USA..." you could hear it in the television, and that was back when a TV had one little crappy speaker in it without digital sound or anything like that, it must really have been something to be there cause it was really something to watch on TV all the way in Uniontown Pennsylvania.
Got some lunch recently in the North End of Boston and after a few minutes a group of guys walked in and sat down next to us. I looked over and it was Mike Eruzione. I don't usually get starstruck but that day I was.
@@kidmack1121 Ha Ha...They ordered alot of food but all I remember was the meatball appetizers the got. The restaurant was Pagliuca's just off of Hanover St.
@@rushrules81 Making me hungry! Summer's starting which means ITALIAN Boston style SANDWICHES. Thanks to you, I am remembering to get the Cento Diced Hot Cherry Pepper Hoagie Spread, and Cento Calabrese Hot Pepper Pepperincino sauce for my gluttony. Thanks for the name of the spot too. Maybe I will get there one day.
@@kidmack1121 Yes, once this thing (what do you call it? lol) we are going through is over then we owe it to ourselves to head out and stuff our faces in all those restaurants that could use our business. And get the wife and girls some cannolis!
@@bizzy24100 I have never felt more patriotic than in 1976! I don't know what America of the 1970's the shamed, embarrassed and dissatisfied were living in? The mid '70s ('75-'77) were my happiest time. Middle school and a portion of high school. Best girls, best music, best movies, varsity, every body in my family had full time employment, no homelessness (except for that "ONE GUY" that every neighborhood had just one of, and everybody knew him by name or nickname) and I even made friends with two kids around my age that were visiting from the USSR in Summer of '77 This Olympic gold medal winning team was fun to watch and root for, and I loved watching the success they were having game after game. Proud of them, YES! but they didn't restore any "Pride Of Place" in me, because I hadn't lost any of it yet...the lowlights of disillusionment didn't happen to me until after the election of November 1980...
Good made-for-television film that followed up The US Olympic Hockey Team's conquest of the Gold Medal months after the 1980 Winter Olympics. Good footage of the games played. Karl Malden playing Herb Brooks was fine, but Kurt Russell's performance as the emotional, feisty and workaholic coach of The US Hockey squad in Miracle was superior. In that movie, it felt like I was reliving that intense, suspenseful game between Team USA and Team CCCP. The winner going on to win the Gold Medal in the final game.
I think the portrayal of the Soviet players in "Miracle" were overdone. In the 2004 film they had them as if they were sneering, smirking antagonists, when in reality they should've been shown as they had been described by most; unemotional, automaton like, expressionless opponents...just gears in a big red machine "professionals"
@@kidmack1121 You must've watched a different version of Miracle than I did. I just finished watching it, literally, & I didn't think the Soviets were portrayed as anything but the confident hockey players they had every right to be.
53:16 litterly loved this song so much also Jack blessing has an amazing voice I've seen him in a lot of movies and shows but never heard him sing and omg it's beautiful ☺️
Really good movie based on a true story even includes real footage of games from that day. Funny to see the old commercials featuring "3 Dog Night" and "Earth Wind & Fire," and other back-in-the-day ads.
I was 15 years old when I watched it happen that night in February of 1980 by myself in our house, those last 10 minutes when they had the lead but had to hold off the Russian's was a real nail biter, every time the Russian's would go charging down the ice towards the goalie Jim Craig I'd think "Oh God, they're gonna score one, I just know they are" and I thought I was gonna have a heart attack, longest 10 minutes of my life, then when Al Micheals yelled out those immortal words "Do you believe in miracles?" I was jumping up and down and cheering even though I was by myself. To this day it remains the greatest and most inspirational thing I've ever seen in my life and I consider myself to be lucky to have witnessed it the way I did.
This is not the same network that you might be thinking of as the current History Channel. History Channel was founded in 1995 and always used some form of the gold and red H as their logo.
@@daveyboy_ Uh, no, he's right. This is not the History Channel, it's called History TV and it's from Canada. en.wikipedia.org/wiki/History_(Canadian_TV_network)
I have often compared this movie which was made just a year after the event to Disney's Miracle remade several years later. The two movies tell two very different tales with only a few similarities. Both show the heartbreak to Ralph Cox when he was, like Herb Brooks in 1960, the last man cut from this team. But this film went more onto the individual players careers outside of the Olympics where as Miracle focused more on Brooks molding them into a team and his changing the philosophy of American hockey forever. Kurt Russell nailed it as Herb Brooks whereas Karl Malden was more of a synthetic version of Brooks. I like this version where it used actual footage of the games rather than what Disney did using real hockey players as actors and reshooting the whole game. I thought the actors used in this were more Hollywood than the actors / hockey players used in Miracle who were more I think in tune with the players identities than this one. The difference in this was Herb Brooks immortal speech before playing the Russians. And Russell's portrayal of Brooks was phenomenal.
I thought both movies were excellent. I noticed this movie spent some time focusing on the players agents as opposed to the disney version. You're right , Kurt Russel nailed the Herb Brooks part. If i was ne er told that was russel i never in a million years figured it out as i didn't think he had that range.
yes of course, most of the actors in Miracle WERE hockey players, that's why they were able to film it that way. Andrew Stevens was just a pretty boy. BTW , "Miracle" was made MANY years after the fact
While I agree about Kurt Russell, as someone who had the pleasure and honor of briefly knowing the real Herb Brooks - in person: put a wig on Karl Malden and he actually looked more like the real Herb than Kurt Russell did. They had a similar facial structure, especially about the nose and mouth. Kurt Russell has a square face/jaw, KM definitely had more of a physical facial resemblance to HB, RIP to them both.
We need 1994 Grey Cup on CBC with the entire video with original commercials and of course, there's a huge canadian surprise for store for you. Coming to TH-cam this year.
At least this 1979-80 USA Team Played a 62 Game Exhibition Schedule. The last USA Men's Olympic Team that went to the Winter Olympics in 2018 Played a Grand Total of 3.
Hey, this is Guttenberg pre-Mahoney. I’m sure he got this part due to his stellar performance in “Can’t Stop the Music” starring Bruce Jenner and the Village People.
I still think that the Soviet goal scorer making the score 3-2, Alexander Maltsev, was one of their best of all time. I mentioned that to friends that I made when I traveled to the USSR, and they insisted that Kharlemov R.I.P. was their best ever.
@@jamessollazzo4860 I don't think he would've wanted to come over, even if he hadn't been too old by the time the "great migration" began in '90-'92. He was one of only a few National Team stars, at that time, that didn't play for CSKA, he played for Dynamo (KGB) and I think he may have been a political "Hard liner" At least that's the impression he gave. Fetisov claimed that his longtime friend and defensive partner Alexei Kasatonov was a hard liner and was opposed to their team being broken apart by lure of big dollars and the perceived freedom of "coming in from the cold"
@@kidmack1121 money!!! a chance to play in the best league in the world, but i don't know his age. He might of been past his prime by the early 90's when the russians started coming over
@@jamessollazzo4860 Coach Tikhonov is good example of someone who had no desire to come over. I'm not sure he even visited North America outside of team travel... His younger brother was a coach of some sort with the SJ Sharks for a short time. Tikhonov, I imagine could have probably written his own contract as a consultant similar to Tretiak's with the Blackhawks
I taped this when it first aired and must've watched this about a million times as a young adolescent hockey player. Haven't seen this in years and I have to say, prefer this over the version that starred Kurt Russell a few years ago.
Both Movies in 1981 + 2004 about this Team had advantages + disadvantages compared to each other. The thing I liked about the 1981 Movie was it used actual Game Footage while the Movie Miracle in 2004 was more accurate with the way Herb Brooks prepared that U.S. Team for the Winter Olympics.
Jessica Walter in a Nightie......then History Making Hockey! I'm currently 61 years old....but I was a total RinkRat back then.....skated anywhere and Everywhere I could. Even now, it's still the Impossible Dream comes True;
Seems to be an even split between those who liked , 1981 or 2004. Maybe a third feature film could be made to break the tie? We could sure use something to remind us of how we as a nation united to support that team and the "Miracle" I was really hoping our 2022 U.S. Men's FIFA World Cup team was going to be able to do that. Wouldn't that have been something?! Beating the Nederlands, then messi and argentina in the quarters and semis and then France in the Final...
Miracle was a much better movie. Better acting, better casting just...better. But it really isn't fair to compare a quickly slapped together made for tv movie with the Disney production that was Miracle.
@munkustrap2 Like I've said elsewhere, if a filmmaker goes through the trouble of paying attention to the details when making a "period piece," they've done an excellent job. "Miracle" (2004) Hair is wrong, clothes are wrong and the vernacular in the dialog is wrong = Deal Breaker. I'm going guess here that the actors in 2004's "Miracle" took a look at all the "bad" hairstyles in the pics of the actual team, and immediately decided NOT get their hair styled exactly like the team. Probably saying to their agents, "we're too cool to look and dress that badly." What was cool in '79/'80 is very different in 2004 and 2024-25 Take a look at the montage of the black & white headshots of the 1980 Olympic Hockey Team, and you'll see what I mean. Those players were from hardworking families, many of them from small towns and factory towns, and were several years behind the curve of the latest and greatest in fashion, and probably getting their haircuts at home in the mirror. The actors in "Miracle" (2004) look as though they were barbered by Sassoon himself.
Inaccurate: he didnt say 'take it to your grave if u lose' before the soviet game. Hell he wasnt even sure they could win...he said this during the last game vs finland
@@johnrotuno1077 I back that up too. It was said during the Finland Game. It's a shame, this was only a year after it happened. Probably filmed a few months after it happened.
@@rocknroll7065 A little, but not as much as the players said. For example, before the Russia game, Brooks was showing videos of the Soviet team and said of one of the Russian stars "Look at him, he looks like Stan Laurel!' They said they couldn't take the Russian seriously after that.
@@howie9751 😜 im sure he had a sense of humor he was very smart and as im sure you know his tough guy act worked psychologically... I remember an incident years later when he coached th Penguins and he lost his temper at a reporter it was sad and a few years later he faced his untimely death
Coming soon, more CFL Games, NHL Games and more coming soon to TH-camrs everywhere, like the extended video of the 1994 Grey Cup between Baltimore and BC With Original Commercials from CBC from November 27, 1994. And of course, there's a more Peg City videos on TH-cam, coming soon.
Tks for posting the m9vie, loved the intensity, and a great game 9f h9ckey is a great game. The US🇺🇲 mastered it in 1980, they beat the godam POS soviets: that was glorious, and deserved the gold. No doubt. As a Canadian🇨🇦, where hockey's a religion, hats off to the Americans🇺🇲.
This was an interesting version of Miracle. I'm used to the other movie. I was waiting for the part where Brooks had the team on the ice and kept blowing the whistle. I mean 1 outa 10 I give this one an 8.
My Dad might like this since he’s almost 60. This might be decent to him. He got to experience this as a 20 year old, the real game. I know the movie, Miracle is better but this is older. It seems alright for the time
@@zubiecup hmm thats interesting i didnt know that.I just asummed it was like football where a righty handed qb is usually innefective throwing left or same thing in basketball with a shooter
@sashacougar..funny I saw it on TV. CBS covered 1st period. Announcer was Bud Palmer. 5:54 score USA 2 RUSSIA 2. 5:01 USA 3 RUSSIA 2. It was a really good game. USA WON 3 to 2. USSR pulled their golie with 15 sec left. Players just like in 1980 celebrated ecstatically. They beat the Czechs 9 to 4 in final game to win gold.
This is a Truly Great Momoent in Sports,I AM THANKFUL TO GOD I GOT THE PRIVILEGE OF BEING ALIVE TO EXPERIENCE THIS WHEN IT OCCURED. THIS IS WHAT TRUE ATHLETES ARE,NOT THE HUMAN VERMIN & COCKROACHES THAT PLAY IN THE NFL.GOD BLESS HOCKEY & the GOOD OLD U.S.A.!!!!
At the end, during the interview (around 2:52:00), the guy says "I don't think it's the greatest upset of all time". I'd like to know what is. The best hockey team in the world got beat by guys still in, or coming out of, college. They had players as old as 35, while the average age of the U.S. team was 22. Many Soviet players had played together for over a decade. That team routinely beat NHL teams, and the NHL all-star team. They had won 4 straight gold medals. The Soviets outshot them 39 - 16 in this game and yet they still lost. Again I ask....what's a better upset?
Miracle ? Stop already this American College Kids versus the Russians comparison - The 1980 U.S.A. Men's Olympic Team were only 3 years younger then the Russians not 10 or 15 years younger - and played against guys around the same age - Our U.S.A players won all games but on which was a tie ! Are all those games also " Miracles " - Give our 1980 U.S.A Men's hockey team credit already -They had talent - they had speed/agility - they scored a lot of goals - To call it a so called " miracle " is in a way an insult to their talents !
Soviet league goal scoring leaders were in 1980 Shalimov 34 goals Drotzdetzky 31 Varnakov 30 Priodin 27 Lavrentjev 27 they did not played in 1980 olympics!
I figured the comments would be comparing this movie to the 04’ Disney movie “Miracle” and was right. Of course Russell portrayed Brooks better than Malden. This movie was made for TV and came out in 81’ to capitalize on the actual games the year before. This movie used actual game footage and calls from Ken Dryden and Al Michaels (save the last little bit of “Miracle”). This movie has some cringe worthy moments looking back almost 40 years that’s not that surprising though. (Guitar playing and the song Homeward Bound on the bus🙄). I do think this movie did a better job of showing the brutal pre Olympic schedule of games across Europe then back in the states playing NHL teams and then the lopsided loss to the Russians right before the games started. It was also cool to see the end of this movie included real footage of the players getting their gold medals. “Miracle” did a better job of showing how America was experiencing a crisis of confidence at that time (Watergate, hostages in Iran, Three Mile Island, ongoing energy crisis, etc). All that said, how many hockey movies are there besides these two? Slap Shot of course! Goon, Youngblood off the top of my head so I’ll make a Tostino’s pizza, open a can of Hamms beer and enjoy this movie and watch “Miracle” next week!
I thought this movie was halfway decent i watched it for nostalgic purposes at the 40 year anniversary. I think it was hastily put together to capitalize on it being fresh in people's minds. They could have waited a couple more years and done a better job.
peg city on youtube, please upload the 1994 grey cup with extended coverage on CBC, including our hometime lions takes home our hometown cup in Vancouver, BC on 11/27/1994 With Original Commercials?
I thought Mark Johnson played for his dad on the 1976 Olympic team along with Schneider? [self edit] What I meant to say was that "I thought I remembered Mark Johnson playing for his dad on the '76 team along with Schneider" I definitely remember seeing him before 1980 somewhere (???)
I’m not going to say Karl Malek was right for the part but he was great actor,I thought he did great job in this movie,I was 15 years old when U.S Hockey won the Gold Metal in lake Placid in 1980,I just month before I turned 16,one of greatest memories life.
Remember this when it was first televised. Not a great, but, not a bad film either. Although I liked Karl Malden as an actor, he clearly waS too old to be playing the much younger Brooks. Still, Malden's presence on screen really helps carry that domineering status Herb had as coach. What I really like about this film over the later "miracle" movie is thAt because this was filmed only months after that magical moment the look of this film is smack dab in 1980. The clothes, the hair styles, everything is authentic from that time as opposed to manufactured in the latter film. A typical, decent made for TV movie that simply documented the greatest sporting moment in my life.
Great movie. This movie focused more on the players. Tge other one. Focused on brooks. But it also put u back in that time. I was 10 when the game happened. Didn't realize how much it really meant. Though I knew what was going on in the world
Malden was too old to portray Herb Brooks. He not only was miscast, the man had a nose you could land a plane on, and did not remotely resemble Brooks in appearance or speech. Malden was 68, trying to portray a 43 year old Brooks. He had enough makeup and hair dye on to sink a ship. Having said that, I am a fan of Karl Malden, and think he was a fine character actor. He just does not stand up to Kurt Russell's more realistic portrayal of Brooks. Steve Guttenberg's attempt at Boston accent was just that: an attempt. Oy vey!
TheCarnivalguy Hey,at least this is a movie without some whining,crying minority POS yelling Discrimination!! AH,the good old days before those Cockroaches infested America and ruined this once Great Country.
@@anthonyemanuel1114 Point of fact in reference to your diatribe; at 41:00-05, on screen, just past the nose of the actor portraying Craig Patrick, as he's typing, you can see a young Black man's photograph on the coach's board of prospects wearing a red t-shirt. This photo of an Black actor was NOT a fictional character put in the screenplay to appease concerns about quotas, "discrimination" or that of a Caucasian actor in blackface. It was accurate in presentation because there was at least one (that I know of) Black player, BeBe Walker of NorCal amateur hockey, that was invited to the Colorado springs tryouts, and he was one of the last cuts. He was one of my coaches in the adult rec league in the late 80's
TheCarnivalguy oh well it’s just a movie and it was made how many years before Miracle. I’m 24 and my Dad grew up with this kinda stuff. It’s probably fine just shut your mind off and it’s probably fine. It’s a TV movie that was made shortly after the REAL game. I’m a Canadian but I LOVE how that USA team beat up that red army 🇺🇸
Jeesh from what ive seen of the real herb brooks and kurt russels potryal most of his act was just to get the team going and united (even if it was against him) 15 minutes in and malden is seemingly trying to be sgt hartman from full metal jacket. Ithink hes also older at this point then herb was...when he died
@@cowetascore8476 The 2004 film may be better in some ways, but for me if a period film looks or feels nothing like the year(s) it's supposed to, then I probably won't like it. This film is more than obviously accurate because it was made right after the '80 Olympics. The 2004 film had incorrect wardrobing, hair and dialogue. Only someone great like Scorsese can get away with doing that, because he knows his camera work and scripts blow everything else away.
So bizzare they tie sweeden. Destroy the checks and beat the soviets...the 3 best teams in the world...yet they struggled mightily against weaker teams like finland and west germany
Even with that dye job and heavy makeup, Malden looked old enough to be Walters father. In actuality, he was 29 years older and was horribly miscast as Brooks. ABC rushed this train wreck into production for the ratings.
I prefer this 1981 TV movie over the 2004 theatrical remake for several reasons. This film captures the spirit of the era (the way it was meant to) in emotion, costuming and sets, props etc. There have been a few made for television movies, that are just better than their cinematic releases. I love Kurt Russell, but not in this remake and certainly not his make up, he looked like he was on his way to a Halloween party in "Miracle" This seems to happen a lot with most of the more recent films attempting to get that 70's look...they just never get it right. Guttenberg and Stevens were almost household names as far as Film and television in the late '70s, and this film has Jerry "Killer Carlson" Houser for cryin' out loud! And Karl Malden ("A Streetcar Named Desire" and "The Streets Of San Francisco" etc. etc.) had definitely been a household name for over a decade. All of the above mentioned are/were experienced craftsmen, and the 2004 film lacked that. And...this film has Jessica Walter, while the 2004 imitation, has Pat Clarkson, whom I've never liked in anything. Thank you very very much for uploading this historical portrayal of a very emotional as well as transitional time.
sounds more like the actors are your personal preference..1-they don't even look like hockey player's,2- Herb doesn't even look or act like herb....the 2004 was way better and accurate since the real herb helped make it and tried to keep it within the scope of the game.3-..the acting if you could call it that was terrible..a TV movie that had no input from the sources that lived it will always seem bad..for a reason.
@@morgangrey4020 Morgan is right. The acting in this movie was terrible, Karl Malden was 68 years old trying to portray Herb Brooks who was only 42. Also the real-life Mike Eruzione was left-handed, but the actor playing him in this movie is shooting with his right hand.
I saw this film on TV when it came out in 1981. Reviewing it again it seems kind of dumb. Karl Malden at 69 as coach? Andrew Stevens trying to talk like a wiseguy italian guy (Andrew Stevens as Mike Eruzione) is a stupid and inaccurate portrayal. Jack O'Callahan acting like a goof, and other players crying after they got cut from the squad are also lame. It also misses the rivalry between the players from BU and Minnesota which was quite heated and culminated in a game opening brawl in the NCAA championship game in 1976 ( "Miracle") portrays this very well. Of course it was a different world back then and this is all you can see from this film. It also focuses took much on the players and their lawyers and them threatening to leave due to pro interests. (probably because most of them did eventually play in the NHL,and until then it was very unusual for an American to play in the NHL.) "Miracle" better focuses onthe biggest and most important theme, on how big was the significance of beating the Soviets at their own game during the height of the cold war and the subsequent pride Americans felt for that achievement.
I remember Brooks reacting so negatively to this original production. With "Miracle", he worked closely with the production. Kurt Russell not only had the right script, he nailed it as the coach. Plus, his physical resemblance to Brooks also made the character much more authentic.
I'm glad they omitted that angle. What I remember was being more concerned about Iran, the hostages, and the Middle East falling apart with the Oil crisis, and the warring in several spots over there, than what was happening in Afghanistan. Remember our involvement in Afghanistan 1978 - 1980 was still very clandestine. I'm also glad that this happened in early 1980, or else Reagan would've tried to claim credit for the win, right along with the release of the hostages.
@@kidmack1121 Reagan was the reason the hostages were released. The Iranians knew Carter would do nothing and that Reagan would. They were actually released the day of Reagans inauguration.
Check out the Soviet's 2nd Goal. See the Soviet Player " Pass the Puck " Back to HIMSELF off the SKATE BLADE of the USA Player while the Soviet Players Teammate directly on the OTHER SIDE Skates by the USA Player to DISTRACT His attention towards Him as the DECOY MAN. I have seen the Soviet Union use that Tactic a few times and that was one of the CREATIVE WAYS they would COMPENSATE FOR COVERAGE.
canada hosted the summer olympics in montreal in 1976. the summer games, a ton of events1 zero gold medals what a fuckin embarrassment!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!
@@toddbrothers1520 have you seen this movie Todd? Really? Have you seen the movie Miracle? Did you watch the game in 1980? I was 14 how old were you? I won't watch it ever again but let's connect my friend.
ddog jones hey I was 11 years old when the hockey team won the gold. Have you seen the HBO documentary on the 1980 hockey team? It’s really good. Sorry for replying so late I’ve been really busy. Hope your having good weekend
Close...25 years. That's how tv movies were back then. Just take whoever is already working for whatever network or studio making the film. It always kinda bugged me lolol
Karl Malden was simply way too old to be playing Herb Brooks. Malden was literally pushing 70 years old at the time whereas Herb Brooks in real life, was only in his early 40s at the time of the Lake Placid Olympics. Plus, Malden didn't remotely look like Brooks even without the age discrepancy. Brooks in real life, was a very slick, handsome looking guy. Karl Malden just seems too burly and rumpled looking to make it work. In the 2004 movie, it's much easier to forget that you're watching Kurt Russell and actually think that you're looking at the real Herb Brooks. Karl Malden's look is way too distinctive and of himself to immediately make you believe that he's somebody else. Especially so soon after such a high profile and triumphant event like the Miracle on Ice.
That's because this particular movie was low budget, so after paying Karl Malden there wasn't much spent on research or production for that matter. The movie Miracle had a much bigger budget, and obviously was better researched than this one was. Plus, they had better production, which gave it more polish.
20:13 Looks like a Lefty to me! I'm watching this movie again today for the umpteenth time, and this will be the first time that I am bored enough to nitpick and check on "Rightys and Leftys" in the screenplay.
@@sean2015 The sad thing is they got real actors and tried to make them into hockey players but in the 2004 movie they took hockey players and made them actors. The hockey players in the 2004 movie were better actors then the actors in the 1981 movie.
@@joemckim1183 another thing is that Mike Eruzione in real life was left-handed, but the actor playing him in the film is using a right-handed stick. C'mon really? Filmmakers can't get those types of details wrong. Not to mention that Herb Brooks was only 43 in 1980, but Karl Malden was almost 70 when this film was made. Too much of an age difference imho.
@@joemckim1183 good point im sure its hard to find a good balance. I didn't particularly like the acting but i mainly watched it for nostalgic purposes at the 40 year anniversary
I first saw this film in 1983 in Australia as a 9 year old. I knew absolutely nothing about Hockey and still don’t. But the story of what happened in 1980 continues to be awe inspiring. It was so good to see this film again. Thanks for putting it up here for us to watch.
It is the greatest upset of all time,without a doubt.
Come on Randy! It was not a big event and no upset no miracle! Canada have 650000 hockey players today! USA have 550000 hockey players today! Ovechkin's Russia only 80000 hockey players today! Soccer have 250 million players vs Canada 650000 players that means The Soccer All Stars would beat Orr Gretzky Lemieux easily 100 game Series 93-7! The Soccer All Stars would had Beaten Soviets 9999-1 in 1980! USA had More Ice rinks and hockey players than Russia in 1980!
Soccer 4 billion fans around the world! Cricket 2 billion fans around the world! Only hockey ever who had fans was russian Kharlamov 200 million fans More than Gretzky who had under 50 million fans!!
Soviet league goal scoring leaders were in 1980 Shalimov 34 goals Drotzdetzky 31 Varnakov 30 Priodin 27 Lavrentjev 27 they did not played in 1980 olympics!! No miracle
@@RaineriHakkarainen
You can’t know that. Any team can lose.
I love this movie. Thank you so much for placing it on TH-cam.
I was 8 years old when these games were played, and I watched every game on TV (I think I had to stay up because the games were actually taped delayed and broadcast in the evening even though the games had been played earlier in the day). I didn't know a damn thing about hockey except you pushed a puck and tried to put it into a goal. What I was clear on was what was on my team's jerseys, USA. When this movie came out on TV (ABC, I believe), I taped it on the VHS recorder. Over my youthful years I watched it regularly. I loved it. USA!USA! ...As well as Herb Brooks' emphasis on hard work, character, and playing as a teammate for a team. These were messages my mother emphasized to me. So, I am probably biased about my preference for this 1981 movie over Disney's Miracle. I feel that this TV movie was more balanced. It had more backstories about certain players as well as Herb's backstory. I enjoyed learning about the regional rivalries between the talented players from the East/Northeast and the upper Midwest which, in fairness and if I recall correctly, Miracle alluded to a little bit, too.
I just think the 1981 Miracle On Ice brought us closer to the players as well as to Herb while Miracle seemed to focus on Herb Brooks almost as if Kurt Russell and his agent said, "If I'm going to do this movie, I want more prominence in it."
When Miracle did come out, I chuckled at the fact that nobody, especially ESPN, seemed to know/remember that a 1981 film existed. There was no mention of it as sports folks started to talk about Disney's Miracle. It wasn't hard to discern what a possible reason was. Disney produced the film, Miracle; and ESPN is owned by Disney. So, of course, they weren't going to mention the "original" film whose name was "Miracle On Ice." Oh well. I enjoyed both, but 1981 was the real deal in my opinion.
I can listen to Al Michaels all day doing the Soviet and gold medal game. whew...
Thanks for showing this again.
I have seen both Miracle On Ice and Miracle...There are things in BOTH movies I really like...I find it very hard to pick a favorite...
Agreed. This was pretty impressive considering how quickly after the 1980 Olympics it was made.
The greatest hockey game I ever watched as a kid growing up. This movie gets more kudos than the Disney version. I saw this on WOR television in NY as a kid. Thanks very much for the upload and keeping this version alive.
Jim J The Disney movie was sensational and the players who were actually there agree. This was slapped together for TV.
Andrew Stevens as Mike Eruzione was laughable casting. The Boston Accents were hilarious.
@@Farinadog13
Their story was HOT when this was made.
"Bad acting" aside, it still captured the interests of the people who witnessed the 1980 Winter Games.
I'd like to see a comparison of this film's Neilson ratings the night it debuted and the box office tally for the 2004 film.
I agree watching to night November 21, 2023
I was at the USSR game Live, and the Finland game Live, and both for FREE, and I was getting paid to be there as a Medic in the New York Army National Guard out of the 243rd Medical Co. from Buffalo. I am still thrilled rewatching this for only my 3rd time and not in over 15 yrs. I always looked for me in the arena, but I was under the balcony behind the camera/ press area too hard to be seen. My ass hurt so much because I di dnot have a seat, but sat on top of a bike rack like you might see outside of a school yard. If I left it, I would loose it, so I stayed there(same spot) for both games. I even got the entire USA's teams autographs including Herb & Patrick's on a 3x5 Olympic flag. 41 yrs ago.
I was at home watching it on TV and to this day I still say it's the greatest thing I've ever seen in my life.
You are so lucky to have been there, could you hear Al Micheals yell out those immoral words "Do you believe in miracles!?!?!?" or was there another voice calling the game inside the arena?
Because if you didn't hear that inside the arena then man did you miss something.
@@dukecraig2402 You know, I really do not remember. there was so much screaming cheering etc. it was a mad house. and of course, I hear it on every replay of the game, I do not know what I heard.
@@michaelt.d.blasting8705
That must have really been something to have been there.
The last 10 minutes of the game when they were up by 1 point was a real nail biter, I was 15 years old and alone in our house watching it and every time the Russian's would go charging down the ice towards goalie Jim Craig I'd say to myself "Oh God, they're gonna score I just know they are" and I about had a heart attack every time they did charge down there towards him, and poor Jim looked like the loneliest guy in the world there by himself watching that red wave coming at him, I swear to God it was the longest 10 minutes of my life, then when Al Micheals yelled "Do you believe in miracles!!!" I shot up from my seat and was screaming and cheering despite the fact that no one else was in the house, I just couldn't believe what I'd just seen, to this day when I see it I still want to jump up and down screaming the way I was that night, greatest thing I've ever seen in my life.
@@dukecraig2402 I was crazy too, thinking how the Russians scored 10 goals on Craig just a few days before and could do it again Oh, did I mention I m a goalie too. My ass was so sore too from sitting on top of a bike rack (like at a school would have).for the whole game. I had such a tiny amt of room to be crazy in watching all this. there were so many "Standing room only" people just behind me, maybe 3 or 4 people deep being just as crazy too.
@@michaelt.d.blasting8705
I'll bet it was loud in there, I can remember all the people chanting "USA...USA...USA..." you could hear it in the television, and that was back when a TV had one little crappy speaker in it without digital sound or anything like that, it must really have been something to be there cause it was really something to watch on TV all the way in Uniontown Pennsylvania.
THANK YOU for posting!
thank you for watching
Got some lunch recently in the North End of Boston and after a few minutes a group of guys walked in and sat down next to us. I looked over and it was Mike Eruzione. I don't usually get starstruck but that day I was.
chris B that’s actually very cool.
Did he order sofritte?
That's a blue collar dish for blue collar guys from Boston.
@@kidmack1121 Ha Ha...They ordered alot of food but all I remember was the meatball appetizers the got. The restaurant was Pagliuca's just off of Hanover St.
@@rushrules81
Making me hungry!
Summer's starting which means ITALIAN Boston style SANDWICHES.
Thanks to you, I am remembering to get the Cento Diced Hot Cherry Pepper Hoagie Spread, and Cento Calabrese Hot Pepper Pepperincino sauce for my gluttony.
Thanks for the name of the spot too.
Maybe I will get there one day.
@@kidmack1121 Yes, once this thing (what do you call it? lol) we are going through is over then we owe it to ourselves to head out and stuff our faces in all those restaurants that could use our business. And get the wife and girls some cannolis!
Im watching this at the 40 yr anniversary. You definitely don't have to be a hockey fan to appreciate this movie or the disney movie
@@bizzy24100
I have never felt more patriotic than in 1976!
I don't know what America of the 1970's the shamed, embarrassed and dissatisfied were living in?
The mid '70s ('75-'77) were my happiest time.
Middle school and a portion of high school.
Best girls, best music, best movies, varsity, every body in my family had full time employment, no homelessness (except for that "ONE GUY" that every neighborhood had just one of, and everybody knew him by name or nickname) and I even made friends with two kids around my age that were visiting from the USSR in Summer of '77
This Olympic gold medal winning team was fun to watch and root for, and I loved watching the success they were having game after game. Proud of them, YES! but they didn't restore any "Pride Of Place" in me, because I hadn't lost any of it yet...the lowlights of disillusionment didn't happen to me until after the election of November 1980...
@@kidmack1121 just remember to stay patriotic !
Good made-for-television film that followed up The US Olympic Hockey Team's conquest of the Gold Medal months after the 1980 Winter Olympics. Good footage of the games played. Karl Malden playing Herb Brooks was fine, but Kurt Russell's performance as the emotional, feisty and workaholic coach of The US Hockey squad in Miracle was superior. In that movie, it felt like I was reliving that intense, suspenseful game between Team USA and Team CCCP. The winner going on to win the Gold Medal in the final game.
I think the portrayal of the Soviet players in "Miracle" were overdone.
In the 2004 film they had them as if they were sneering, smirking antagonists, when in reality they should've been shown as they had been described by most; unemotional, automaton like, expressionless opponents...just gears in a big red machine "professionals"
@@kidmack1121 You must've watched a different version of Miracle than I did. I just finished watching it, literally, & I didn't think the Soviets were portrayed as anything but the confident hockey players they had every right to be.
53:16 litterly loved this song so much also Jack blessing has an amazing voice I've seen him in a lot of movies and shows but never heard him sing and omg it's beautiful ☺️
Watching it with my friend Shannon November 21, 2023
Really good movie based on a true story even includes real footage of games from that day. Funny to see the old commercials featuring "3 Dog Night" and "Earth Wind & Fire," and other back-in-the-day ads.
I was 15 years old when I watched it happen that night in February of 1980 by myself in our house, those last 10 minutes when they had the lead but had to hold off the Russian's was a real nail biter, every time the Russian's would go charging down the ice towards the goalie Jim Craig I'd think "Oh God, they're gonna score one, I just know they are" and I thought I was gonna have a heart attack, longest 10 minutes of my life, then when Al Micheals yelled out those immortal words "Do you believe in miracles?" I was jumping up and down and cheering even though I was by myself.
To this day it remains the greatest and most inspirational thing I've ever seen in my life and I consider myself to be lucky to have witnessed it the way I did.
Those ads are from the 90s not 1981.
When the history channel used to be good . And about actual history. Now its Ancient Mysteries and Pawn Stars all day long. WTF .
don't forget supporting the official stories of false-flag operations.
This is not the same network that you might be thinking of as the current History Channel. History Channel was founded in 1995 and always used some form of the gold and red H as their logo.
@@joe6096 Wrong Joe
@@daveyboy_ Uh, no, he's right. This is not the History Channel, it's called History TV and it's from Canada.
en.wikipedia.org/wiki/History_(Canadian_TV_network)
@@floydefisher exactly, it used to be called Histoty Television now its the History channel
Today I purchased authentic autographed framed pictures of Jim Craig and Mike Eruzione so that brought me here.
I have often compared this movie which was made just a year after the event to Disney's Miracle remade several years later.
The two movies tell two very different tales with only a few similarities.
Both show the heartbreak to Ralph Cox when he was, like Herb Brooks in 1960, the last man cut from this team. But this film went more onto the individual players careers outside of the Olympics where as Miracle focused more on Brooks molding them into a team and his changing the philosophy of American hockey forever. Kurt Russell nailed it as Herb Brooks whereas Karl Malden was more of a synthetic version of Brooks. I like this version where it used actual footage of the games rather than what Disney did using real hockey players as actors and reshooting the whole game. I thought the actors used in this were more Hollywood than the actors / hockey players used in Miracle who were more I think in tune with the players identities than this one.
The difference in this was Herb Brooks immortal speech before playing the Russians. And Russell's portrayal of Brooks was phenomenal.
I thought both movies were excellent. I noticed this movie spent some time focusing on the players agents as opposed to the disney version. You're right , Kurt Russel nailed the Herb Brooks part. If i was ne er told that was russel i never in a million years figured it out as i didn't think he had that range.
yes of course, most of the actors in Miracle WERE hockey players, that's why they were able to film it that way. Andrew Stevens was just a pretty boy. BTW , "Miracle" was made MANY years after the fact
While I agree about Kurt Russell, as someone who had the pleasure and honor of briefly knowing the real Herb Brooks - in person: put a wig on Karl Malden and he actually looked more like the real Herb than Kurt Russell did. They had a similar facial structure, especially about the nose and mouth. Kurt Russell has a square face/jaw, KM definitely had more of a physical facial resemblance to HB, RIP to them both.
I like the Malden movie better. Can't explain it, but I felt more like I was in a hockey rink.
RIP Mark Pavelich.
We need 1994 Grey Cup on CBC with the entire video with original commercials and of course, there's a huge canadian surprise for store for you. Coming to TH-cam this year.
Ya that would be cool.
At least this 1979-80 USA Team Played a 62 Game Exhibition Schedule. The last USA Men's Olympic Team that went to the Winter Olympics in 2018 Played a Grand Total of 3.
Interesting i didn't know that. But im sure they cant play many ex games as the Olympics are during the NHL season
Hey, this is Guttenberg pre-Mahoney. I’m sure he got this part due to his stellar performance in “Can’t Stop the Music” starring Bruce Jenner and the Village People.
At 8:09 he asks the guy from Slapshot if he's watching Slapshot
I was reading your comment when that scene happened. I actually said "holy shit!" out loud lolol
I like how he's watching game film of himself getting face planted into the glass and then later in the movie he gets face planted again the same way!
Yeah man Dave's a killer !!! Haha
@@richardmonaghan1144 "Dave's a mess"
@@Vonstadt lol.
Love this movie god bless
I still think that the Soviet goal scorer making the score 3-2, Alexander Maltsev, was one of their best of all time.
I mentioned that to friends that I made when I traveled to the USSR, and they insisted that Kharlemov R.I.P. was their best ever.
Kharlamov and Yachuchev
too bad he didn't play in the nhl
@@jamessollazzo4860
I don't think he would've wanted to come over, even if he hadn't been too old by the time the "great migration" began in '90-'92.
He was one of only a few National Team stars, at that time, that didn't play for CSKA, he played for Dynamo (KGB) and I think he may have been a political "Hard liner"
At least that's the impression he gave.
Fetisov claimed that his longtime friend and defensive partner Alexei Kasatonov was a hard liner and was opposed to their team being broken apart by lure of big dollars and the perceived freedom of "coming in from the cold"
@@kidmack1121 money!!!
a chance to play in the best league in the world, but i don't know his age. He might of been past his prime by the early 90's when the russians started coming over
@@jamessollazzo4860
Coach Tikhonov is good example of someone who had no desire to come over.
I'm not sure he even visited North America outside of team travel...
His younger brother was a coach of some sort with the SJ Sharks for a short time.
Tikhonov, I imagine could have probably written his own contract as a consultant similar to Tretiak's with the Blackhawks
I taped this when it first aired and must've watched this about a million times as a young adolescent hockey player. Haven't seen this in years and I have to say, prefer this over the version that starred Kurt Russell a few years ago.
It's better for guys like us because it's what was happening then.
Cool
Both Movies in 1981 + 2004 about this Team had advantages + disadvantages compared to each other. The thing I liked about the 1981 Movie was it used actual Game Footage while the Movie Miracle in 2004 was more accurate with the way Herb Brooks prepared that U.S. Team for the Winter Olympics.
Kurt Russell played a much better Herb Brooks than Karl Malden
I give this movie the edge just on the "If I use your first name, the heat's on you. If I use your 2nd name, you're the scapegoat." So great!
I’m surprised that this movie didn’t have a postgame Herbies scene following the 3-3 tie against Norway.
Gotta remember this version was made mere months after the Olympics. It's possible the post-game Herbies after the Norway game wasn't even known yet.
Jessica Walter in a Nightie......then History Making Hockey! I'm currently 61 years old....but I was a total RinkRat back then.....skated anywhere and Everywhere I could. Even now, it's still the Impossible Dream comes True;
Seems to be an even split between those who liked , 1981 or 2004.
Maybe a third feature film could be made to break the tie?
We could sure use something to remind us of how we as a nation united to support that team and the "Miracle"
I was really hoping our 2022 U.S. Men's FIFA World Cup team was going to be able to do that.
Wouldn't that have been something?!
Beating the Nederlands, then messi and argentina in the quarters and semis and then France in the Final...
I just saw the one from 2004, and it's exciting. I just found out there was one in 1981.
Miracle was a much better movie. Better acting, better casting just...better. But it really isn't fair to compare a quickly slapped together made for tv movie with the Disney production that was Miracle.
@munkustrap2
Like I've said elsewhere, if a filmmaker goes through the trouble of paying attention to the details when making a "period piece," they've done an excellent job.
"Miracle" (2004) Hair is wrong, clothes are wrong and the vernacular in the dialog is wrong = Deal Breaker.
I'm going guess here that the actors in 2004's "Miracle" took a look at all the "bad" hairstyles in the pics of the actual team, and immediately decided NOT get their hair styled exactly like the team. Probably saying to their agents, "we're too cool to look and dress that badly."
What was cool in '79/'80 is very different in 2004 and 2024-25
Take a look at the montage of the black & white headshots of the 1980 Olympic Hockey Team, and you'll see what I mean.
Those players were from hardworking families, many of them from small towns and factory towns, and were several years behind the curve of the latest and greatest in fashion, and probably getting their haircuts at home in the mirror.
The actors in "Miracle" (2004) look as though they were barbered by Sassoon himself.
Inaccurate: he didnt say 'take it to your grave if u lose' before the soviet game. Hell he wasnt even sure they could win...he said this during the last game vs finland
you were in the locker room? Really. How can you say this Scott?
ddog jones Because it’s a known fact that he said it before the 3rd period against Finland.....ask Mike Eruzione
@@nicknorris2540Yep! I've watched
Mike Eruzione say it on several occasions. 100% during the gold medal Finland game
Thats probably true but this version is more hollywood
@@johnrotuno1077 I back that up too. It was said during the Finland Game. It's a shame, this was only a year after it happened. Probably filmed a few months after it happened.
I’m not a hockey fan…can’t even see the puck 😂😂😂
But, I love any movie that’s a sports film and I loved this movie! I’m a proud American 🇺🇸🇺🇸🇺🇸
Watch Disney's 'Miracle'. Much better acting & it captured the feel of the game better, imo...from someone who lived through it.
This was a pretty good version a year after the miracle happened!
For the standards of early 1980's made for TV movies it wasn't terrible, but it doesn't hold a candle to the 2004 film.
Plus Fred Karlin did the music for this, and I am a fan of his.
Sorry to say, but Kurt Russell really embodied the spirit and intimidation of Herb Brooks much better than this guy.
mcs 7873 facks
Yes. But in neither of the scripts did they include Brook's sense of humor as well.
@@howie9751 in the disney version it seemed to me like they touched on his sense of humor a little bit as well as his sensitivity
@@rocknroll7065 A little, but not as much as the players said. For example, before the Russia game, Brooks was showing videos of the Soviet team and said of one of the Russian stars "Look at him, he looks like Stan Laurel!' They said they couldn't take the Russian seriously after that.
@@howie9751 😜 im sure he had a sense of humor he was very smart and as im sure you know his tough guy act worked psychologically... I remember an incident years later when he coached th Penguins and he lost his temper at a reporter it was sad and a few years later he faced his untimely death
Great movie, missed it all the while
The “Streets of Lake Placid” ...
More like 'Hoosiers on Ice' but I get the drift. 🤣
Bwahaha!
That's good.
Coming soon, more CFL Games, NHL Games and more coming soon to TH-camrs everywhere, like the extended video of the 1994 Grey Cup between Baltimore and BC With Original Commercials from CBC from November 27, 1994. And of course, there's a more Peg City videos on TH-cam, coming soon.
What a GREAT TRUE STORY!
Tks for posting the m9vie, loved the intensity, and a great game 9f h9ckey is a great game. The US🇺🇲 mastered it in 1980, they beat the godam POS soviets: that was glorious, and deserved the gold. No doubt. As a Canadian🇨🇦, where hockey's a religion, hats off to the Americans🇺🇲.
This was an interesting version of Miracle. I'm used to the other movie. I was waiting for the part where Brooks had the team on the ice and kept blowing the whistle. I mean 1 outa 10 I give this one an 8.
19:49 West Covina Ice Arena.
I remember being able to see it from the 210
328.2 million people live in the USA as of 2020...
My Dad might like this since he’s almost 60. This might be decent to him. He got to experience this as a 20 year old, the real game. I know the movie, Miracle is better but this is older. It seems alright for the time
I saw this game as a kid live and im watching this at the 4p year anniversary. Both good movies
Did anyone notice Craig develop suddenly develop a Boston accent halfway through the movie?
Guttenberg is trying.
I heard his attempts early on during his first scene with his father (Eugene Roache) at the mantle in the living room.
Anyone else notice in the North Stars game Eruzione shot right handed? Its hard to believe they got that wrong.
Im sure its not easy to find an actor that shoots left-handed
rock n roll left handed shooters are extremely common, though. Tons of righties actually shoot left in hockey. I’m one of them.
@@zubiecup hmm thats interesting i didnt know that.I just asummed it was like football where a righty handed qb is usually innefective throwing left or same thing in basketball with a shooter
@@zubiecup for this movie they also needed hockey players who could act because for the hockey scenes they didn't use body doubles
None of those guys they mentioned played on the 1980 North Stars
Is that…is that the play by play announcer from Mighty Ducks?
The 1960 U.S. Team accomplishments get ignored. Why is that?
@sashacougar Still a great story that needs to be told.
@sashacougar..funny I saw it on TV. CBS covered 1st period. Announcer was Bud Palmer. 5:54 score USA 2 RUSSIA 2. 5:01 USA 3
RUSSIA 2. It was a really good game. USA WON 3 to 2. USSR pulled their golie with 15 sec left. Players just like in 1980 celebrated
ecstatically. They beat the Czechs 9 to 4 in final game to win gold.
I was 11 watching my 1st Olympics.
This is a Truly Great Momoent in Sports,I AM THANKFUL TO GOD I GOT THE PRIVILEGE OF BEING ALIVE TO EXPERIENCE THIS WHEN IT OCCURED. THIS IS WHAT TRUE ATHLETES ARE,NOT THE HUMAN VERMIN & COCKROACHES THAT PLAY IN THE NFL.GOD BLESS HOCKEY & the GOOD OLD U.S.A.!!!!
Have to agree with you about the N-ational F-elons L-eague
At the end, during the interview (around 2:52:00), the guy says "I don't think it's the greatest upset of all time".
I'd like to know what is. The best hockey team in the world got beat by guys still in, or coming out of, college. They had players as old as 35, while the average age of the U.S. team was 22. Many Soviet players had played together for over a decade. That team routinely beat NHL teams, and the NHL all-star team. They had won 4 straight gold medals. The Soviets outshot them 39 - 16 in this game and yet they still lost. Again I ask....what's a better upset?
Miracle ? Stop already this American College Kids versus the Russians comparison - The 1980 U.S.A. Men's Olympic Team were only 3 years younger then the Russians not 10 or 15 years younger - and played against guys around the same age - Our U.S.A players won all games but on which was a tie ! Are all those games also " Miracles " - Give our 1980 U.S.A Men's hockey team credit already -They had talent - they had speed/agility - they scored a lot of goals - To call it a so called " miracle " is in a way an insult to their talents !
Soviet league goal scoring leaders were in 1980 Shalimov 34 goals Drotzdetzky 31 Varnakov 30 Priodin 27 Lavrentjev 27 they did not played in 1980 olympics!
I figured the comments would be comparing this movie to the 04’ Disney movie “Miracle” and was right. Of course Russell portrayed Brooks better than Malden. This movie was made for TV and came out in 81’ to capitalize on the actual games the year before. This movie used actual game footage and calls from Ken Dryden and Al Michaels (save the last little bit of “Miracle”). This movie has some cringe worthy moments looking back almost 40 years that’s not that surprising though. (Guitar playing and the song Homeward Bound on the bus🙄). I do think this movie did a better job of showing the brutal pre Olympic schedule of games across Europe then back in the states playing NHL teams and then the lopsided loss to the Russians right before the games started. It was also cool to see the end of this movie included real footage of the players getting their gold medals. “Miracle” did a better job of showing how America was experiencing a crisis of confidence at that time (Watergate, hostages in Iran, Three Mile Island, ongoing energy crisis, etc). All that said, how many hockey movies are there besides these two? Slap Shot of course! Goon, Youngblood off the top of my head so I’ll make a Tostino’s pizza, open a can of Hamms beer and enjoy this movie and watch “Miracle” next week!
I thought this movie was halfway decent i watched it for nostalgic purposes at the 40 year anniversary. I think it was hastily put together to capitalize on it being fresh in people's minds. They could have waited a couple more years and done a better job.
@@rocknroll7065
rock n roll!
I couldn't have said it better.
This version is so much better than the lame 2005 film. Karl Maldin is the man!
1:06:11 playing a professional hockey team losing 4-2 is like winning
You must get more Peg City Videos on TH-cam which includes the 1994 Grey Cup with extended celebrations and the whole more on 1 TH-cam.
Ok Ill work on it
peg city on youtube, please upload the 1994 grey cup with extended coverage on CBC, including our hometime lions takes home our hometown cup in Vancouver, BC on 11/27/1994 With Original Commercials?
I'll watch that myself!
I thought Mark Johnson played for his dad on the 1976 Olympic team along with Schneider?
[self edit]
What I meant to say was that "I thought I remembered Mark Johnson playing for his dad on the '76 team along with Schneider"
I definitely remember seeing him before 1980 somewhere (???)
His dad cut him
@@Gutts31 yeah
He was 17 years old and still in high school
@@mikehanzal9562
Age nor grade level alone would prevent a skilled player from making an Olympic team.
Eddie Olczk was 16 when he made the '84 team.
I’m not going to say Karl Malek was right for the part but he was great actor,I thought he did great job in this movie,I was 15 years old when U.S Hockey won the Gold Metal in lake Placid in 1980,I just month before I turned 16,one of greatest memories life.
I just turned 16 less than two months earlier and it remains the greatest sporting event i ever witnessed.
That would be Karl Malden, but it’s a great memory and how many hockey movies are there anyways?
Remember this when it was first televised. Not a great, but, not a bad film either. Although I liked Karl Malden as an actor, he clearly waS too old to be playing the much younger Brooks. Still, Malden's presence on screen really helps carry that domineering status Herb had as coach. What I really like about this film over the later "miracle" movie is thAt because this was filmed only months after that magical moment the look of this film is smack dab in 1980. The clothes, the hair styles, everything is authentic from that time as opposed to manufactured in the latter film. A typical, decent made for TV movie that simply documented the greatest sporting moment in my life.
Maybe im missing something but why did herb feed craig to the wolves at msg
Good question
I remember when the Canadiens did that to Patrick Roy and as a result he ended up getting traded to my favorite team the Avalanche
1:04:50 1:04:52 in the action scenes there wearing different jerseys
Great movie. This movie focused more on the players. Tge other one. Focused on brooks. But it also put u back in that time. I was 10 when the game happened. Didn't realize how much it really meant. Though I knew what was going on in the world
Malden was too old to portray Herb Brooks. He not only was miscast, the man had a nose you could land a plane on, and did not remotely resemble Brooks in appearance or speech. Malden was 68, trying to portray a 43 year old Brooks. He had enough makeup and hair dye on to sink a ship. Having said that, I am a fan of Karl Malden, and think he was a fine character actor. He just does not stand up to Kurt Russell's more realistic portrayal of Brooks. Steve Guttenberg's attempt at Boston accent was just that: an attempt. Oy vey!
TheCarnivalguy Hey,at least this is a movie without some whining,crying minority POS yelling Discrimination!! AH,the good old days before those Cockroaches infested America and ruined this once Great Country.
@@anthonyemanuel1114
Point of fact in reference to your diatribe; at 41:00-05, on screen, just past the nose of the actor portraying Craig Patrick, as he's typing, you can see a young Black man's photograph on the coach's board of prospects wearing a red t-shirt. This photo of an Black actor was NOT a fictional character put in the screenplay to appease concerns about quotas, "discrimination" or that of a Caucasian actor in blackface. It was accurate in presentation because there was at least one (that I know of) Black player, BeBe Walker of NorCal amateur hockey, that was invited to the Colorado springs tryouts, and he was one of the last cuts. He was one of my coaches in the adult rec league in the late 80's
TheCarnivalguy oh well it’s just a movie and it was made how many years before Miracle. I’m 24 and my Dad grew up with this kinda stuff. It’s probably fine just shut your mind off and it’s probably fine. It’s a TV movie that was made shortly after the REAL game. I’m a Canadian but I LOVE how that USA team beat up that red army 🇺🇸
TheCarnivalguy low budget made for TV movie
TheCarnivalguy Karl Malden yeah my Dad grew up with a show called “Streets Of San Francisco “, with a young Michael Douglas
Karl Malden is good but is to laid back compared to Kurt Russell's performance has Herb Brooks
Never saw this movie...
Jeesh from what ive seen of the real herb brooks and kurt russels potryal most of his act was just to get the team going and united (even if it was against him) 15 minutes in and malden is seemingly trying to be sgt hartman from full metal jacket. Ithink hes also older at this point then herb was...when he died
Malden was too old for the part but he's at least credible as a coach (Robert Conrad would have been the best choice for a film made then).
Great movie way better than the Disney re make.
I'm with you!
You've taken one too many hip checks.This movie is awful.
@@cowetascore8476
The 2004 film may be better in some ways, but for me if a period film looks or feels nothing like the year(s) it's supposed to, then I probably won't like it.
This film is more than obviously accurate because it was made right after the '80 Olympics.
The 2004 film had incorrect wardrobing, hair and dialogue.
Only someone great like Scorsese can get away with doing that, because he knows his camera work and scripts blow everything else away.
Nigga the fuck you smokin
@@Kongatthegates00
I'm smokin the English class books that you couldn't read.
1980 USA Hockey
USA! USA! wouldn't we love to here that today, in 2020...
I agree we should go back to that and stop fighting with each other 🇺🇲
So bizzare they tie sweeden. Destroy the checks and beat the soviets...the 3 best teams in the world...yet they struggled mightily against weaker teams like finland and west germany
Yeah right! A good movie stuffed up by stupid bloody ads!
I thought Karl Malden and Jessica Walter were a lovely couple in this
Even with that dye job and heavy makeup, Malden looked old enough to be Walters father. In actuality, he was 29 years older and was horribly miscast as Brooks. ABC rushed this train wreck into production for the ratings.
doesnt make sense what if a player gets injured out of the 20 players now what .do they recall the ones they cut
I think that's how it works
I prefer this 1981 TV movie over the 2004 theatrical remake for several reasons.
This film captures the spirit of the era (the way it was meant to) in emotion, costuming and sets, props etc.
There have been a few made for television movies, that are just better than their cinematic releases.
I love Kurt Russell, but not in this remake and certainly not his make up, he looked like he was on his way to a Halloween party in "Miracle" This seems to happen a lot with most of the more recent films attempting to get that 70's look...they just never get it right.
Guttenberg and Stevens were almost household names as far as Film and television in the late '70s, and this film has Jerry "Killer Carlson" Houser for cryin' out loud! And Karl Malden ("A Streetcar Named Desire" and "The Streets Of San Francisco" etc. etc.) had definitely been a household name for over a decade.
All of the above mentioned are/were experienced craftsmen, and the 2004 film lacked that. And...this film has Jessica Walter, while the 2004 imitation, has Pat Clarkson, whom I've never liked in anything. Thank you very very much for uploading this historical portrayal of a very emotional as well as transitional time.
sounds more like the actors are your personal preference..1-they don't even look like hockey player's,2- Herb doesn't even look or act like herb....the 2004 was way better and accurate since the real herb helped make it and tried to keep it within the scope of the game.3-..the acting if you could call it that was terrible..a TV movie that had no input from the sources that lived it will always seem bad..for a reason.
@@morgangrey4020 Morgan is right. The acting in this movie was terrible, Karl Malden was 68 years old trying to portray Herb Brooks who was only 42. Also the real-life Mike Eruzione was left-handed, but the actor playing him in this movie is shooting with his right hand.
2:51:00 "Technical Advisor MIKE ERUZIONE"
The defense rests...
'u just werent putting out' lol
Is that what Brooks said to his wife? 😜
I saw this film on TV when it came out in 1981. Reviewing it again it seems kind of dumb. Karl Malden at 69 as coach? Andrew Stevens trying to talk like a wiseguy italian guy (Andrew Stevens as Mike Eruzione) is a stupid and inaccurate portrayal. Jack O'Callahan acting like a goof, and other players crying after they got cut from the squad are also lame. It also misses the rivalry between the players from BU and Minnesota which was quite heated and culminated in a game opening brawl in the NCAA championship game in 1976 ( "Miracle") portrays this very well. Of course it was a different world back then and this is all you can see from this film. It also focuses took much on the players and their lawyers and them threatening to leave due to pro interests. (probably because most of them did eventually play in the NHL,and until then it was very unusual for an American to play in the NHL.) "Miracle" better focuses onthe biggest and most important theme, on how big was the significance of beating the Soviets at their own game during the height of the cold war and the subsequent pride Americans felt for that achievement.
I remember Brooks reacting so negatively to this original production. With "Miracle", he worked closely with the production. Kurt Russell not only had the right script, he nailed it as the coach. Plus, his physical resemblance to Brooks also made the character much more authentic.
It was a made for TV movie - u expecting Gone With The Wind ?
Almost no mention of the political ramifications of this
Maybe because it came out DURING the political crisis, not with the advantage 20-25 years of hindsight and analysis.
I'm glad they omitted that angle.
What I remember was being more concerned about Iran, the hostages, and the Middle East falling apart with the Oil crisis, and the warring in several spots over there, than what was happening in Afghanistan.
Remember our involvement in Afghanistan 1978 - 1980 was still very clandestine.
I'm also glad that this happened in early 1980, or else Reagan would've tried to claim credit for the win, right along with the release of the hostages.
@@kidmack1121 Reagan was the reason the hostages were released. The Iranians knew Carter would do nothing and that Reagan would. They were actually released the day of Reagans inauguration.
Kurt is a better Brooks. He spent a lot of time with him.
Check out the Soviet's 2nd Goal. See the Soviet Player " Pass the Puck " Back to HIMSELF off the SKATE BLADE of the USA Player while the Soviet Players Teammate directly on the OTHER SIDE Skates by the USA Player to DISTRACT His attention towards Him as the DECOY MAN. I have seen the Soviet Union use that Tactic a few times and that was one of the CREATIVE WAYS they would COMPENSATE FOR COVERAGE.
My abc affiliate airs the games.
canada hosted the summer olympics in montreal in 1976.
the summer games, a ton of events1
zero gold medals
what a fuckin embarrassment!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!
No "Herbies" after 3-3 versus Norway!!
1:49:43
its a joke that this move was ever made! They arent even pronouncing the name correctly!
Don’t watch it
@@toddbrothers1520 have you seen this movie Todd? Really? Have you seen the movie Miracle? Did you watch the game in 1980? I was 14 how old were you? I won't watch it ever again but let's connect my friend.
@@toddbrothers1520 i sure hope you respond!
@@toddbrothers1520 i stopped half way through. abomination of the real thing and the Movie Miracle!
ddog jones hey I was 11 years old when the hockey team won the gold. Have you seen the HBO documentary on the 1980 hockey team? It’s really good. Sorry for replying so late I’ve been really busy. Hope your having good weekend
Wow commercial s awesome being sarcastic
Yeah uh malden is like 30 years older then brooks was
Close...25 years. That's how tv movies were back then. Just take whoever is already working for whatever network or studio making the film. It always kinda bugged me lolol
@@johnrotuno1077 Robert Conrad would have been the perfect choice to play Brooks in 1981.
Gotta love Conrad!
OMG
Dull movie. Miracle in 2004 was far better.
I thought Karl Malden was grossly miscast as Herb Brooks
Movie was made 1 year after the event. Its no masterpiece no
Karl Malden was simply way too old to be playing Herb Brooks. Malden was literally pushing 70 years old at the time whereas Herb Brooks in real life, was only in his early 40s at the time of the Lake Placid Olympics. Plus, Malden didn't remotely look like Brooks even without the age discrepancy. Brooks in real life, was a very slick, handsome looking guy. Karl Malden just seems too burly and rumpled looking to make it work.
In the 2004 movie, it's much easier to forget that you're watching Kurt Russell and actually think that you're looking at the real Herb Brooks. Karl Malden's look is way too distinctive and of himself to immediately make you believe that he's somebody else. Especially so soon after such a high profile and triumphant event like the Miracle on Ice.
So did Herb Brooks.
1:05:16 "What is this?" Been asking myself that same thing since the beginning of this shit show.
Steve Guttenberg!
The Stone Cutters made him a star
Yeah, no....
gord stellick is lost both in his career and what ever the hell he's doing now!
This movie did not give you the flavor of what went on with Brooks and the team. It was a just a walk though.
That's because this particular movie was low budget, so after paying Karl Malden there wasn't much spent on research or production for that matter. The movie Miracle had a much bigger budget, and obviously was better researched than this one was. Plus, they had better production, which gave it more polish.
abc rushed to get out this stiff of a movie about 1 year after the actual event
Innacurate Sweden game before opening.
Cheese-ball movie. Rizzo is a lefty...they have him as a righty in this movie. Who was the producer? Horrible job 👎
"Rizzo" WAS the technical advisor.
BWA HA HA HA HA!
20:13 Looks like a Lefty to me!
I'm watching this movie again today for the umpteenth time, and this will be the first time that I am bored enough to nitpick and check on "Rightys and Leftys" in the screenplay.
HaHa look at the hockey scenes. Horrible.
The hockey scenes come from the original game broadcasts.
@@epaddon Not all of them
1:15:13
POV: your too cheap to buy the actual movie
Lol
This movie is very hard to find. There is a VHS version somewhere if you can find it.
This has to be one of the worse B movies that I ever watched. Acting was terrible with so many clichés. Really did Karl Maldin think he was Toe Blake.
The acting in this movie is straight up awful
You speak the truth. I gagged at 2:06:53-2:07:30.
@@sean2015 The sad thing is they got real actors and tried to make them into hockey players but in the 2004 movie they took hockey players and made them actors. The hockey players in the 2004 movie were better actors then the actors in the 1981 movie.
@@joemckim1183 another thing is that Mike Eruzione in real life was left-handed, but the actor playing him in the film is using a right-handed stick. C'mon really? Filmmakers can't get those types of details wrong.
Not to mention that Herb Brooks was only 43 in 1980, but Karl Malden was almost 70 when this film was made. Too much of an age difference imho.
Steve Gutenberg.
@@joemckim1183 good point im sure its hard to find a good balance. I didn't particularly like the acting but i mainly watched it for nostalgic purposes at the 40 year anniversary
Too much yapping about nhl and lawyers and agents. No one gives a shit.
this was so bad