Was a teenager when this happened. Knew nothing about hockey. Watched all of the games through to the gold medal. It can't be overstated how important to restoring Americans moral and belief in our country and at the same time it was the beginning of the end of the Soviet Union. It's amazing how one sporting event can be so important to American and world history.
Me too and absolutely. We had extended family around including 70 year olds who had never seen hockey, all hoping we beat the soviet's, and going CRAZY when they did.
Amen. I watched it with my dad. We live in California and the games we’re on really late but dad let me stay up. I still remember when we won. And as I’m watching this with you guys, I’m sitting here balling.
@@insertgenericusernamehere2402 Honestly no, and really never did after that event. There was a season probably back in the 90's that I followed the Sharks when they had their first playoff run. I lived in NoCal so it was a big deal, but that's it. It is a great sport, but I am a big basketball fan, so hockey kinda got lost in the backround for me.
@@stuckinarkansas1 that's a shame, it's fascinating how folks enjoy different things to me basketball is as dull as dishwater. But I know plenty enjoy it. Guess that's the joys of growing up playing contact sports
This game was the literal origin of the epic "U-S-A, U-S-A" chant. As a teen watching the game on TV, hearing it for the first time gave me and all my friends chills.
I never mention it but I always thought that about the U-S-A chants. I was 25 years old at the time and never remembered hearing it before. Right after the game we all went out and bought USA shirts and ball caps. Maybe it was done before somewhere on a small scale but it exploded overnight and ever since the Miracle.
@@tvc1848 It's possible that someone used the chant at a smaller earlier event, but I'm pretty sure this game was the first time it was broadcast on national TV, and therefore the first time most of the nation experienced it
Al Michaels, "Do you believe in Miracles?" perhaps the most iconic, dramatic and perfect line to close out that game. His quick, poetic delivery has made him the commentator with the most gravitas possible ever.
The line by the announcer Al Michaels is the most iconic calls in history. They used his actual audio for the “5 seconds to go 3 seconds! Do you believe in Miracles?!? YES!!!”
@shag139 He wasn't sure he could get the same emotion so at about with 11secs left in the game, you can hear the audio switch. He did re-record the other play by play dialogue though.
I have an unused ticket to that Miracle game. My boss at the time had a home in Lake Placid. Because of bad snow that evening, his daughter could not get to the game. When he came back after the Olympics, he gave me an assortment of stubs and unused tickets. That gem, is one of them. I’m 72 now and still treasure it.
Brooks' best speech came before the gold medal game against Finland. It was short and to the point. All he said was "If you lose this game, you'll take it to you effing grave."
It wasn't before the game, it was during the second intermission. They were trailing 2-1; your point still stands, though. He was basically saying, "What you did two days ago will forever be a footnote if you don't win the Gold."
He walked into the locker room at the second intermission and said "If you guys lose this game after doing what you did you'll take it to your fucking graves" then turned and started to walk out and when he got to the door he turned around and looked at them again and said "You're Fucking Graves!"
@@7thwheel i got chills reading that just like I did when Eruzione talked about it on the documentary. I was 10 yrs old and played hockey in Tx believe it not since the age of four. We only had enough players in the state for teams in :Dallas, Fort Worth, Richardson and Arlington and some years Houston. My cousin who was a year older had to move up to squirts his last year as a mite. That group of kids played an entire season with 6 players. no changing lines, ever. Billy Carlson, his sister, Matt their goalie, my cousin Jimmy Don and two others i can't recall the names of.
More than 44 years have passed, and this still evokes powerful emotions in me. I still can't believe a group of American kids who had only been playing together for 7 months beat that Soviet team.
YES! It is the greatest upset in sports history, imho…. To watch it as it unfolded… especially the last ten minutes …. I still get emotional about it…. 😭
Yes they are not actors their hockey players real hockey players from colleges they were taught to act you can't teach actors to skate it's easier to teach skaters to act
Mark Johnson ... scored 2 against the USSR and 1 goal and an assist against Finland. Also ... won a National Championship playing for the Wisconsin Badgers, played 669 games in the NHL ... and has won 7 National Titles as the Coach of the Badgers Women's Hockey team.
@dacrosber love watching his women’s teams work relentlessly like he did. The one they got last year was such a beautiful representation of never give up and play hard the whole way. First title in ‘06 and now 7 championships later most ever in the women’s game.
The Russians used 30 year old men on their team. They were all military soldiers. No professionals were allowed to play. Yet their team was full of professional players. The Russian coach pulled the goalie who was their best player. A bunch of college kids did the impossible. Thanks to Herb Brooks.
The Soviets skirted the rules all the time. When the '72 Soviet basketball team beat Team USA, it was because the FIBA secretary general (from the UK but apparently had an axe to grind with the Americans) illegally added more time twice so the Soviets could win. When the team appealed, the final decision was 3-2 in favor of the Soviets winning the gold, the majority votes coming from Soviet-allied nations.
I don't get how basketball is somehow an exception to the amateur athlete concept. It has brought me to the position of "who gives a fu** about Olympic basketball.
I count myself among the lucky ones, as while I was born over a decade afterward, I grew up watching this with my mom. She'd seen the original game, and always said that the movie invoked the same intensity of emotions every time. And through it, I've gotten much the same experience as she did
The political divide, the cultural shift social media has had on us as people. Sports and the Olympics whoring themselves out for money. Sadly a moment like this will never happen again and there is blame and cause on all and everyone. Being born in 77, the pride in country made life so much better. Things like the Olympics, fireworks on the 4th, a underdog like Villanova in college basketball, hell even Hulkamania. Things where enjoyed by all and really brought us together. Its sad, what has happened to America and again blame is enough to go everywhere, including our reflection in the mirror.
@@5IvanDrago5 As true as that might be to a degree, it's still ultimately the actions of a vocal minority at the core imho. More Americans than not are still ultimately decent people who want nothing to do with the craziness of the deluded few who stir up the pot; I know I certainly don't, nor do many people I know. Generalizing everyone based on the actions of some doesn't help anyone either, even if it might be true to some degree. So tbh, that view shouldn't be taken at face value.
@@Omegafire17 Fair response, but I think that, "small vocal minority", is bigger then you are giving credit for. Yes, I agree most people are decent people doing their best, but I think the game is rigged. So many of our institutions and companies big enough to be institutions have become part of the problem. Google, Disney, Big Pharma and I could go on and on. they have so much power and telling the narrative with their bought and paid for media. I also included and think the cell phone and social media while its making the world smaller, its isolating us. Yes, Im aware that drink isnt getting put back in the bottle. Relevant to Miracle a movie about a team and country coming together. 25 years ago I had a very successful three year run as a baseball coach. Life happened and I hadnt coached for 25 years and returned this year, HS. Comparing the kids form 25 years ago, no cell phones and their relationships with each other and will to commit to a common goal. Comparing that to todays generation is scary different. No Im not bashing gen Z or whatever, the kids I coached this year where great. They where polite young men that worked hard and I was proud to coach them. That said, they where not friends, they where not hanging out after games, they where not going to the local pizza joint after games and practices. They are so tech dependent that they lack real interpersonal skills and lacked bonds with each other. It took me nearly all season to realize tis and it made me sad for them. When I played and when I coached. We hung out together, we where friends, in many cases we are still, friends. These kids lack those personal skills to make friends. They dont talk to each other, they dont hang out, asking a girl out is a text or a app. Everything they do is done on apps, its sad. Im 47 and we created this culture, we are responsible. If you cant get a group of talented HS baseball players who attend the same school to unify, how do you recapture the magic of the 80 Miracle Team?
"In 1980, America Needed Heros. What America Got, Was a Hockey Team." You had to have been alive back then to appreciate how big this was for the USA. We were not attending the Summer Olympics, being held in Moscow, in protest of the Soviet Union invading Afghanistan, so the Winter Olympics was it. The USA was still recovering from Vietnam, American citizens were being held hostage in Iran, runaway inflation, and it seemed that it was only a matter of time before the Soviet Union just ran over the world. (At least, to 10-year-old me.) The movie said, "their biggest weapon is intimidation," that no one thought the Soviet Hockey Team, and by extension the Soviet Union, could be beaten. This team went out and played like they were not afraid, and that was what made things turn around, showing that the Soviets could be beaten. Once that aura of invincibility was gone, the Soviets didn't know how to react, and it cost them the game. And for a short time, the USA was actually united, behind a group of college kids playing hockey. Eleven years later, the Soviet Union collapsed. Side note, the play by play you ger during the Soviet game is the actual broadcast from that game. Al Micheals, the announcer, could not bring back the emotions of the actual moment, so they used what he said during the game. There is a great documentary on what happened to the Soviet team after the game. If you want to watch something with Olympics, but a lot more lighthearted watch "Animalympics."
Al Michaels actually was in a recording booth and recreated most of the calls you hear in the movie, but couldn't recreate the raw emotion he had when he made that final call in 1980. So they cross faded from Al Michaels of 2003/2004 to Al Michaels' actual call from 1980 at the end. And it's still one of the best play-by-play calls of all time.
I was seven and still remember sneaking out of bed into my parent's room and watching it on a little orange TV, that moment will live with me till my last day.
I watched the USSR vs USA hockey game, medal round, with my teammates on my junior high basketball team in 1980. Our off-guard, Sean Bell, had parents who had the original black box/descrambler, which, if needed was awesome. We didn't, and we had a living room of 11 7th & 8th graders, who knew nothing technical about hockey, since Indiana is a basketball state by nature, silent for Al Michael's call of the game. Now I already loved Al for his baseball game calls, as that was my sport. I only played basketball for the conditioning thru the winter months to be in shape for baseball in March. Now, we were Gen X kids. Men/boys were taught to keep emotions in check as much as possible..because we were taught correctly that the real world doesnt give a sh1t about your hurt feelings..and that is still true as millennials and Gen Z are finding out in the job market; we were ready for it at 14-15, though, not 30 like the newer generations. We didnt hide in safe spaces and channeled negative feelings to something positive, especially if it made bulllies look bad. I can tell you there wasn't a dry eye as the clock ran down that last 2 minutes. Amidst our screams of joy and spilt beers (yes, we were allowed to drink if we spent the night at most households)..but we weren't just celebrating this team's huge accomplishment..as Herb's wife correctly stated, it was about more than just a game. We were in the throws of record-setting inflation, gas shortages and a cold war so tense, that we wondered if we would see the next morning without mushroom clouds on the horizon...this was about beating an entire ideology THROUGH a hockey game. The USSR had everything they needed to beat our best NHL allstar team, let alone this non-professional team of varying college backgrounds. In that moment, and also, after winning the gold medal days later, we beat the BEST communism had to offer, athletically and ideologically. After that, our hostages were released by Iran upon presidential change, and although it took another 3-4 years, we pulled into a time period of 1984-1999 in which prosperity reigned for nearly all levels of income-earning. It was the turning point. And we still hold those young men up as an example of what freedom, teamwork and perception of what an underdog really is: fcking dangerous to the status quo. So many younger people watch this and are of course happy/excited for this victory..but the one thing they will never get to experience is our phrase: "You had to be there."
"Do you believe in miracles..." For a teen in 1980 w/America suffering gas shortages, hostage crisis & looming threat of nuclear war w/an implacable foe..."yes". This Olympics was everything. Eric Hyden to hockey Gold. It was living a dream. Until Chuch Mangione played "Give It All You Got" as the flame was extinguished. Unforgettable.
My favorite comment comes from a Soviet player who said that watching the USA team celebrate after winning made him envious, because they had lost that feeling, winning had become second nature and there was no pure excitement on their side anymore...and to see the excitement in the Americans made him envious.
I remember that from the 30 for 30 they did on the after math of the game for the Soviets. That part gave me chills. It really made me feel for the Soviet players, having their love for the game stripped away from them in a militaristic and political way.
@@dillonspear542 Also, at that time, life in the USSR was very depressing. Showing emotion, positive or negative, was frowned upon. You were supposed to be cold and stoic no matter how good or bad you felt.
it would still be many years until the era of the Russian defectors to the NHL but it feels in many ways that this was the launching point for that defection era
and your point? Life is tough & not like the movies or tv shows people die everyday some by choice some by accident some by other people. Death is part of life.
I was a 13-year-old in 1980 when this happened. Cannot explain how unbelievably big this was. Unlike in today's age. This was actually taped delayed when it was shown on TV. Remember all day long people saying to one another don't tell me about the hockey score I'm watching it tonight. I have fond memories of my older brother who was in high school staying home all day because he didn't want anybody to tell him about the game. That night me and my father and him watch the game together. For me and many others this is by far and away the biggest sports moment ever. Nothing even compares.
I was 16 and on crutches during the Olympics. Followed the hockey religiously. I was impressed when they thumped Czechoslovakia but thought the Soviets would win. Living near the Canadian border, we got to see the game live. My uncles kept calling from all over, wanting updates. When the US went up 4-3, my Dad unplugged the phone. When the game was over, everyone in the house screamed and you could hear the neighbors screaming. Everyone, but me, went outside and danced in the snow. One of the three times i seen my father cry. Nothing like it and there never will be again
Thank you for this story. That brought tears to my eyes. That’s awesome that you guys got to watch it live, people forget that most of the country had to watch it on replay!
It might please you to know that the crowd shouting USA at the Olymic game against the Soviets were actually Canadian. Kurt Russell said he was very proud of them for shouting USA so enthusiastically.
All the players were actual players except for Eddie Cahill as Jim Craig the goalie and Nathan West as Rob McClanahan (the guy who fought and was bloody). The director decided it was easier to teach players to act than to teach actors to play. He also said the guys became their players and called each other by the name of the player they were portraying. Actual NHL goalie Bill Ranford stood in for Eddie Cahill in actual game play scenes.
I love that Cassie and Carly both understand Hockey. Knowing the game they understand the technical aspects of the 1980 US Olympic Hockey team and the odds of what they went through just to be in the position of facing the Soviets. I was a freshman in High School during these Olympics in the northwest suburbs of Chicago (fairly decent Hockey area). These were demoralizing times to be a US citizen because of several factors, including the Iranian hostage situation. The US Hockey team gave the country the dose of patriotism and pride that engulfed the entire nation. This is where the "USA USA USA" chant began. For the first time in several years these 20 young men and their coach gave the country something to really be proud of. This was probably the greatest gift any of us could ever imagine. Miracle captured the spirit of the 1980 US Olympic Hockey team and the feeling of national pride very well but to live through this period and experiencing the national pride first hand was simply incredible. To this day I still get chills hearing Al Michaels and his final second account from the US - Soviet game. Yes, I do believe in miracles!
The real miracle was holding that Soviet team scoreless for the last 37 minutes of that game. That team averaged 10 goals a game in that tournament. They were a monster team.
I watched as Walter Cronkite announced the US leaving Vietnam in 1975, I saw the US embassy overrun in Iran, I watched this game live with my 2 best friends at 10 years old. Military family. You can't understand how important this was to our country.
I love that towards the end of the game with Russia the merged Al Michael's voice with his original commentary from the game since he was there. They knew there was no way to recapture the same feel of surprise and passion in that moment. So what you hear when he asks "Do you believe in miracles?!" is what he said when the U.S. Olympic Hockey team beat the Soviets for the first time in decades. It shocked the world and gave us a much needed boost in morale during a tough time in our history.
@@48Nugget Bob Suter died of a heart attack, Michael Mantenuto died of a self inflicted gunshot wound, Joseph Cure was killed in a traffic accident, Kenneth Mitchell died from complications from amyotrophic lateral sclerosis (ALS), Mark Pavelich died by suicide by asphyxiation
I grew up in Alabama and we barely knew what Hockey was. I remember that call from Al Michaels like it was yesterday. My family was gathered around our television and watching the tape delayed broadcast of the game. Our country was really down and hurting during this time and we desperately needed a "Miracle". We weren't even sure what was happening while we watched but cheered like we were there in the stands. My Mom was crying when the final buzzer went off.
This is a moment in history everyone remembers where they were. Like the bronco chase, or Kennedy or 9/11. The miracle game was on tape delay but no one knew. Winning it felt like winning the Cold War. 12 years later we sent our pro basketball players to the Olympics - the dream team - because the international teams were all pros and we had college kids.
As happened in many Olympics in the pre Internet age many people in US border cities watched the live Canadian Broadcasting Corp (CBC) coverage via antenna and some via cable
In those days, we watched the Olympics religiously! Loved all the commentators, especially Jim McKay. When coverage switched to NBC, and Bob Costas stepped in, we loved him too!
This was huge here in Minnesota as coach Brooks was born here, coaching the NCAA champion Minnesota Gophers hockey team and 13 of the 20 players on the Olympic team were born in Minnesota. Everyone was watching and cheering our "local" team throughout. It was an amazing time.
It's the original footage from 1980. Everything else from Michaels in this movie was in the script, but the fillmmakers agreed he could never duplicate the same emotion from that day.
The Soviets won the Gold Medal in 1964, 1968, 1972, and 1976 before this happened. It was the equivalent of a High School football team beating the Tom Brady Patriots. But even more than that, the Russians WERE the bad guys. In every day of our lives, every tv show, movie, comic book, everything. It was literally good vs. evil, us vs. them. At least that's how we felt back then. This is the greatest moment in sports, period. I was 9 when this happened, and it was the greatest rush of national pride I've ever felt before or since. the high of it lasted for months.
@@renaissanceman7145 To those watching it, we didn;t really know that. Don;t forget, if you didn;t get the weekly TV guide section of your newspaper, you might now know what programming was scheduled for when. I was eight, watched it when it was broadcast (on delay).
I was 13 years old when I watched this game. I still recall the screaming... the tears of joy I watch coming down my mothers cheeks... the disbelief we actually won. You have no idea... no idea what it meant to play the Soviet Union in 1980. This was much more than a hockey game. This was the Soviet Empire vs "the West". They're war-tested professional hockey players against our non-pro college kids. Remember... in 1980 the U.S. Olympic rules committee did not allow our professionals to play this game. CASSIE AND CARLY... There was no way you two could have known this... but the last 10 seconds of the game in this movie... the audio from the actor portraying Al Michaels actually shifted into the recording of the ACTUAL broadcast with REAL voice of Al Michaels calling the game for the 1980 Olympics. I am 56 years old... and those words.... those immortal words still gives me chills to this very day... "Do you believe in miracles? YES!!!" Great reaction! Luv you two ladies! :)
My high school teacher showed this movie in class and it honestly should be watched more today. Just the many lessons about how to act like a team in anything. Sports, class, the work environment. “You think you can win on talent alone? You don’t have enough talent to win on talent alone.”
Al Michaels redid the on ice commentary for the game as close to how he did it on that night in Lake Placid. But he could not replicas the “Do You Believe in Miracles?!?!” So they slowly faded in his famous question from that game. I was just a young boy and I still remember that game.
yea I was at work and I gone out witha few buddies for drinks , But knew the game was gonna be on TAPE delay at 8 pm since the OLympics had games on during the day .JIm Mckay was the HOst and looking back as he gave the live intro to the game , he contained a smile and It was such an amazing game as abc had to hold back all the celebrations by fans in that Little Lake Placid village. ANd then the TEAm had to win the final gold medal game on sunday at NOON
my favorite line in sports movies ... "You don't have enough talent to win by talent alone." Honestly I wish someone would have told me that pre college. Nice vid ladies.
This damn movie makes me cry every time. The greatest moment in US sports history and one of the greatest of all time. The music at the end, “Do you believe in miracles” all of it is just perfect.
i remember not being interested in the Olympics until this series. I was glued to my t.v. as a 12 year old and shedding tears of joy and pride in my country. And to this day I shed more tears when watching this movie EVERY TIME Herb Albert says "DO YOU BELIEVE IN MIRACLES"!!! This; movie is in my opinion the best sports movie.
What a treat to watch two Canadian girls react to a movie about hockey. Both of my kids played hockey at a rather high-level through through high school. My son was fortunate enough to have been coached on occasion by Mark Johnson who is now the head coach for the University of Wisconsin women’s hockey team. The University of Wisconsin women’s hockey team has won quite a few national championships, and Mark Johnson’s dad Bob Johnson was head coach of the men’s team at the University of Wisconsin for many years.
Hi im Swedish. My cousins husbend they are 20 years older than me and the are Norwegians. He was on this game Norway vs USA before Olympic 1980. And he was one of the last who leave in the audience. He saw the US coach where crazy angry on his very young team. I ask my grandmother before she died and she was a great Sports women in the 1950s in Sweden. What is your strongest sports memory from television? She said TEAM USA 1980 when they defeated the evil CCCP.❤
@ct6852 a little, they overplayed it some. I have a heavy northern Minnesota accent. It's the o's like in the words about or boat. My mom was from Boston, so throw a little of the Boston accent in there, too.
"What we have here is the rarest of sporting events: an event that needs no build-up, no superfluous adjectives. In a political or nationalistic sense, I'm sure this game is being viewed with varying perspectives. But manifestly, it is a hockey game. The United States and Soviet Union on a sheet of ice in Lake Placid, New York." More than anything, this movie shows the collective power a major sporting event has in bringing people together.
All I can say is as emotional as you got watching the movie, you should have seen it live. I did. The entire nation went crazy. USA shirts everywhere. So much pride. It's a moment in history I'll never forget.
If compared to today, this win would be like a college football All-American team beating an NFL All-Pro team. No way to put in words how huge this win was. Its still the greatest sports upset EVER! Whatever comes 2nd, not even close. Its where the "U-S-A" chant was first shouted. I was 21 and after USA beat the Czechs, my friend and I thought about driving through the night from N Indiana to Lake Placid and try to get tix. Silly thought, glad we didn't try. I was in that arena the following summer; what intimate place in a beautiful setting for this epic event.
They beat the Soviets because they were NOT a "Dream Team" rather a collection of athletes that worked well together and had a stake in winning for their country.
@@jwfmsu1990 wrong, the Russian National Army team was the best players from their entire country and all their professional hockey leagues, therefore an all star; all-Pro team. McKay definitely understated their talent. I doubt that Steeler team, as good as it was, could have beaten an all Pro NFL team that had several years together
In 1980, the Olympics did not permit professionals to compete in the games. The Soviets circumvented this rule by paying their players to technically work for the military, even though their only job in the military was to compete in their sport. That's what made the events depicted in this movie so miraculous, it was true amateurs competing against actual professionals. But this is why Team Canada was not mentioned in the movie, despite it being a movie about hockey. In protest of this unfair situation, Canada did not even send a hockey team to Lake Placid. After the Olympics lifted its ban on professionals, Canada resumed sending a hockey team to the competition in 1988. Coincidentally, the 1988 games were hosted by Canada in Calgary.
I was at this game with my dad and my brother. I was 7 years old, and we had Boston Bruins season tickets when I was a kid. I was obsessed with hockey. I got to meet Jim Craig, Dave Silk, and Jack O'Callahan over the following years. Silk and Craig played for the Bruins. I met OC at the Blades and Boards club under the old Boston Garden after a game. He was there to see Dave Silk. It was around 1984 because I was 11, and I got a puck signed by Jack.
I was eight saw it on TV in the house I own now, Boston born raised and schooled (GO CM). Being told that people from my state were on that team, and growing up in the shadow of Orr and Espo and Turk and Westfall and Cashman and Pie and Chief and Cheesie....wow, what a time to watch some hockey!
As great as this movie was, watching it live when I was 12 is still a true memorable point in my life. It turned me into a huge hockey fan, which was tough growing up on Las Vegas, but seeing all the rest of our country that Olympics going NUTS for the boys playing was amazing. Wish the country would remember those days..... And as big as this game against the Russian's was, it wasn't for the Gold. That was a couple days later.
ESPN did a fantastic 30 for 30 documentary on the Miracle on Ice game's aftermath for the Soviet team. It was really interesting seeing what happened to the coach, Tretiak, Mikhailov and the other players.
Tretiak was probably the greatest goaltender ever. At least what happened for some of the other players is they started to come to America in play in the NHL. Detroit in particular signed a number of Soviet defectors.
Probably my favourite ever 30 for 30 was the one on Soviet Hockey under 2 coaches (1 who was loved & one who was disliked). One of my favourite lines in it was about the Miracle on Ice & how it was like getting a kiss from Sophia Loren as a teenage boy. He would remember it forever whilst she will not recall it.
I was 11 when this happened, I live in Texas, so I barely knew about hockey (Houston Aeros minor league team was the only thing I knew). We knew the Soviets were monsters and near impossible to beat, we knew we had a bunch of college kids, but I remember this team having momentum in the Olympics and the entire country was transfixed with them. Then the great play calling by Al Michaels with the all-time great line "do you believe in miracles, YES!!" Also, Jim Craig's play was incredible, I wanted to be a goalie after watching him.
"Chariots of Fire" (1981) of course is a true story from the 1924 Olympics, 2 sprinters and their struggles and quest for gold. But also the true story of native American Billy Mills in the 1983 film "Running Brave" is well worth watching (10,000 meter runner in the 1964 Olympics). And more than one movie on the great Jesse Owens.
I was in the military at the time. There was like 15 of us in a room watching the game against Soviet Union. At the end of the game, every one of us were in tears. We all got together to watch the final game and it crushed us even more.
Born & raised in MN. I wasn’t even born when this happened. But with so many of the players being native Minnesotans as well as Herb Brooks. This movie holds a very special place in my heart.
There's a great documentary on Disney+ called "Of Miracles and Men" that shows the Soviet's side of this story and their journey through multiple decades of the Olympics, dominating for years. They had to sign 25 year contracts with the Army to play for the national team. Once in, their entire job was hockey. The documentary is really good.
Disney+ showing the Communist point of view. That's typical for Disney under Bob Iger's leadership & their efforts to undermine our culture & society via their recent movies and television shows.
@@pauld6967stupid take…..it’s an ESPN 30 for 30 documentary that came out long before these moronic takes on so called “efforts to undermine our culture and society” even existed….smh….
I was 10. I’m from Texas. The whole neighborhood it seemed was at one house surrounding the tv. There has never been a sports moment like it since and may never be again.
Don S. Davis played in MacGyver and Stargate SG-1 as well as X-files as Dana's Dad. Also, many other roles through the years. He was a fantastic actor . He passed away in 2008 of heart trouble.
One of the players is from my hometown, 2 others were from towns a couple miles away! Most of the players are Minnesotan 🙌🏻 A proud day back in 1980!!! It was really exciting to watch! Sadly Herb Brooks was killed in car accident about 5 yrs ago? America NEEDED this win ! Unity! USA USA USA
Mark Johnson #10 (MVP) said in an interview: " The movie made Herb out to be a nice guy." Yes, he had them skating lines - in the dark - after tying Norway. Watch a documentary or two, you'll see that this was a very special team. Loved your reaction too! 👍🏻
Al Michaels was the announcer for ABC in 1980, and he came in and re recorded his call of the entire game - but if you listen very carefully, you tell, right around 11 seconds, the go back and use the original call from the game...
One of the moments of my life. I have a signed Jim Craig goalie mask on my wall, and a complete team signed index card display as well. I remember sitting in my living room and having a complete meltdown as each game progressed. It's difficult to explain to those not around at the time, but it was a bunch of college kids beating a Russian team that had torn the NHL stars apart. All the stars in the sky aligned, and Herb Brooks did an impossible job. It opened the door for many of the Russian elite players to come to the NHL to become stars in America (US & Canada). My favorite part was "who do you play for?" Everything changed when they replied USA for the first time. Loved watching it with you.
The most dramatic and important sports moment in my lifetime. Craig and Eruzione were from Massachusetts not far from where we lived. The moment of the cold war, the underdog college kids, the build up to this was unbelievable. Russel and the cast do a great job recreating this. Do you believe in miracles? Yes!
I first watched this movie in 2004 on a plane flying over the ocean on the way to Europe. We left from Pittsburgh and landed in Frankfurt, Germany. Great movie, great vacation!!!
As a teenager this was the biggest sports event in my life. Watched it with my Mother who is now 94 and still remembers it vividly. There have been many other great sports events in my life but this one remains the most special. "Do you believe in miracles?" I did after that day.
This game was played at 5pm on a Friday. So ABC Sports actually aired the game on tape delay. The world didn't have the internet and sports shows like we do now, so it wasn't known around the world about what happened. I was a very young 9 yr old boy and watched this game while laying in my bed. It was one of the greatest young moments of my life. I am so happy I watched it. Just this past year I listened to Mike Eurozone's book. It was really great and goes into greater depth. Herb Brooks walked into the locker room before the gold medal game and said, "If you lose this game you'll remember it for the rest of your fucking life. Your fucking life!" The rest is history!
Hard to believe the really dramatic goals actually happened exactly as portrayed in this film. The goal against Sweden in the final 30 seconds, without which we would not have even made the medal round. And of course, the goal against the Soviets to end the first period with 1 second left. THIS team was truly a Team of Destiny. I was 9 when this happened and still remember it. Because of the state of the country and of the world, I believe this moment will never be topped. It was such a privilege to be alive and watch it, and it's such a privilege to see younger generations still appreciate one of the finest moments in Olympic and sports history. GREAT reaction, ladies.
FINALLY!!!!!!!!!!!! Thank you for watching this epic movie. Why reactors haven't watched this yet is beyond me. Hopefully they will follow your lead. And as usual, great reaction from you ladies.
I was a freshman in high school when this Olympics occurred. This was the most amazing thing watching them defeat the most dominant hockey team in the world at that time. All of the Soviet team members were professional players. They got around the amateur status by being officially employed by the military or industries that just happened to have a hockey team. Many nations complained about this, Canada even withdrew from both the 1972 and 1976 Olympic Games in protest. Team USA was also the youngest hockey team to have ever participated in the Olympic Games. Their average age was 21. In some ways, Team USA winning the Gold was almost anticlimactic. Looking up details online, I found that the exhibition game that the Soviet team played against Team USA at Madison Square Garden four days before the Games began, where the Soviets won 10-3, actually caused the Soviets to underestimate Team USA.
They cast actual hockey players for the movie (high school and college kids for team USA and NHL and IHL players for the Soviets and European teams). They even, by accident, cast Schneider’s own son to play his dad and didn’t realize it until after he was given the part!
I was 14, and watched this game live on TV. When it was over, my parents both were crying their eyes out. It was all anyone talked about for months. For this film, they had legendary sportscaster Al Michaels re-record his play-by play for the film except the last thing he said, "DO YOU BELIEVE IN MIRACLES? YES!" For that, they used his original recording from 1980, because Michaels didn't think he could repeat the emotion involved.
I'm gonna say something here... Sports-movies are guys' version of rom-coms. I mean that in a good way. Formulaic, feel-good, a bit of drama with a bit of humor, focussed upon characters, happy endings, reliable non-offensive tone. Overall, just something that you can sit down and watch, and be pretty sure that you'll enjoy it and feel good about having watched it. Good stuff. :)
Brooks' speech before the gold medal game was a lot shorter the the one before the Soviets. He just said, "If you lose this game, you'll take it to your f--king graves."
@@AdderTude And it was not a gold medal game. There was no gold medal game, or semifinals. Only a medal round. USA could have finished even 4th if they lost to Finland.
Herb's Speach before the Russia game is iconic. But down a goal to Finland in the finals after two periods may have been just as important. All he said was " if you lose this game tonight, you will take it to your FUCKING graves". Headed toward the door, turned back and snarled again.... "YOUR FUCKING GRAVES!!!" watch the third period of that game, the US came out of the locker room and just dominated to take the gold. Remember if they lost to Finland they would have won NO Medal.
I was 18 when this happened and I still remember the excitement vividly. I wasn't even a hockey fan but during this magical run, all Americans became hockey fans. I'm so thrilled to see that both of you are reacting to this. You've made my night.
USA! USA! USA! USA! What an amazing movie and a great story. HBO made a documentary back in 2001 called "Do You Believe in Miracles" that went into great detail about the players, Herb Brooks, the game. It was well done. I don't think a lot of the younger generation can grasp the amount of pride and emotion the country felt when we won that game. When you watch the actual video with the commentators counting down the clock and one says that phase 'DO YOU BELEIVE MIRACLES!" And to see some of the people in the documentary still tear up talking about. It was the greatest moment of their lives. I recommend that documentary and the one made by the YT CHANNEL Joseph Vincent. It's a lot shorter but still makes you emotional.
I think it is the HBO documentary where they included some interviews with USSR players and journalists. It was very interesting to hear their perspective!
This game was the literal origin of the epic "U-S-A, U-S-A" chant. As a child watching the game on TV, hearing it for the first time gave me and all my friends chills.
There was the Iran hostage crisis, the Soviets had just invaded Afghanistan, Carter was feckless. I was a college Div1 wrestler and a Poli-Sci major watching this game. The Soviets had been playing professionals in the Olympics forever (they were all "in the Army") against college kids. It is hard to imagine a setup like this again. This was more than sports. Thank you, guys. Thank you.
I didn't know the story for this & the bit around Christmas I got nervous because I thought Herb or one of the players was going to get hurt. They used Al Michaels to do the commentary like he had for the Olympics, except the line "Do you believe in miracles?" because of the emotion Al had used when he originally called it in 1980. When you watch the end credits you notice that only 4 of the players actually had anything to do with ice hockey after college & the olympics. Nowadays it would be more.
The idea of using college players is cool but I miss having NHL players on the roster. You really get to see the best players out there. For hockey fans it was comparable to the World Cup.
Almost every player tried to continue their careers, after the Olympics, and several made the NHL...but there's only so many jobs in the game, after you hang up the blades.
Five had long NHL careers, six played in more than a hundred games, and both goalies played very briefly. One played pro hockey briefly in the WHA and another coached for twenty years. Several were with NHL teams but played only for their minor league teams (but that's still professional hockey). One played professionally in Europe. One was drafted, signed with a different club, never played but later worked as a scout for the Minnesota expansion team .
I almost broke my wrist clicking this one...one of my favorite movies! It's so important to remember this was about more than the Olympics but happened during the cold war when competition and tensions with Russia was at an all-time high. I remember being a kid with my dad in the car listening on the radio and it seemed like the whole country was doing the same. People were celebrating in the streets when we beat them.
I remember when this happened. Middle of the cold war. It was epic. We watched it with baited breath. We, as a family screamed at ever shot. It was miraculous. We were proud to be Americans. I was 13yo.
Watch on TV as a kid and it was soooo exciting. Visited Lake Placid 10-15 years later and got the chills walking into the arena as the memories flooded back.
The production quality of this movie is amazing! 99% of the game was done EXACTLY as it happened, complete with the actual broadcast from the game with AL Michael's and Ken Dryden. Such a great movie!
I remember going to see this movie in the theaters with my late Dad when this came out. My dad LOVED the miracle on ice and loved this movie so much. So this movie has a lot of happy memories for me.
I went and saw this movie 4 times in the theater with my mom & grandma, so it holds a special place in my heart too. I watched all the documentaries & extra features I could get my hands on at the time. I think it's probably what started my love of everything olympics & why I always get so excited when the they start.
Fun story: Mike Eruzione's uncle lives 3 houses up from my parents. After the Olympics he came over and showed us all the gold medal. This is still the most amazing experience of my youth. It was on tape delay and Jim McKay came on to introduce the game and he already knew the outcome. He was a well known, older sports reporter and you knew something amazing happened. He was in shock. The Finnish, gold medal game, was a heart attack as well. What was sad is Pelle Lindbergh was a really great goal tender in that Olympics. He got signed by the Philadelphia Flyers and died in a drunk driving accident early in his career.
they made a movie a few years after this in the 80s called Miracle on ice...it had a lot to be desired..this movie...captured the emotions and everything...I get just as emotional watching this movie as I did when I watched the USA olympic team beat the Soviets way back in 1980..it was and is amazing
Since there wasn't internet back then and NBC delayed the broadcast to show it in prime time, NO ONE knew we had already beat the soviets until way after...unless you were lucky enough to hear something on the radio. It was electric back then.
As happened in many Olympics in the pre Internet age many people in US border cities watched the Canadian Broadcasting Corp (CBC) coverage via antenna and some via cable.
In 1982 I was in Boston on a business trip with a few coworkers. We stopped at an oyster bahhh after work and one of us said, Isn't that Jim Craig,? nodding toward a handsome fellow a few tables away accompanied by a blonde who looked... very good. We weren't sure until one of us said, check out his finger. There was a ring about the size of a golf ball that seemed to glow from its own sheer richness. Yep, that's him, we said. Stirring experience. What a time to be an American that was.
I was out of the country, on a military mission when the "Miracle on Ice" happened. I got back soon after it happened and saw the recap, watching it on a TV in a hotel room in Los Angeles. It was a weird, getting my feet back on the ground moment, watching the recap.
Mr. Brooks was a master motivator. He took the kids he could mold into a team, not necessarily the best players, and made them into winners. Great reaction Cassie and Carly. I have to keep reminding myself that you two were not born yet and didn't experience this epic moment when it happened. We knew it would be shown on tape delay and nobody I watched it with wanted any spoilers. That team lifted America's spirits like no other sporting event I can think of.
Even non hockey fans were excited about this event and can enjoy this movie. Patrician Clarkson was in my favorite movie The Station Agent (2003), and many other movies such as: The Untouchables (1987), The Dead Pool (1989), Jumanji (1995), Good Night, and Good Luck (2005), Lars and the Real Girl (2007), The Green Mile (1999), Far From Heaven (2002), Shutter Island (2010), Wendigo (2001), The Maze Runner (2014), The Maze Runner: The Scorch Trials (2015), The Maze Runner: The Death Cure (2018). One of the jokes by standup comedian and actor Rodney Dangerfield was, "I went to a fight the other night and a hockey game broke out."
Herb had some classic insults. He said every day you’re getting worse and right now you’re playing like it’s next month. You should take a couple days off and don’t come back. And, my favorite was when he pulled his star defenseman off the ice and put in a rookie named Harrer. Harrer goes out and scores. He’s all proud that he scored and goes back to the bench and Herb says to the star defenseman, see even fricken Harrer can do it.
Was a teenager when this happened. Knew nothing about hockey. Watched all of the games through to the gold medal. It can't be overstated how important to restoring Americans moral and belief in our country and at the same time it was the beginning of the end of the Soviet Union. It's amazing how one sporting event can be so important to American and world history.
Me too and absolutely. We had extended family around including 70 year olds who had never seen hockey, all hoping we beat the soviet's, and going CRAZY when they did.
Amen. I watched it with my dad. We live in California and the games we’re on really late but dad let me stay up. I still remember when we won. And as I’m watching this with you guys, I’m sitting here balling.
Do you lot watch hockey now if so who is your teams? (To the original commenter and the replies)
@@insertgenericusernamehere2402 Honestly no, and really never did after that event. There was a season probably back in the 90's that I followed the Sharks when they had their first playoff run. I lived in NoCal so it was a big deal, but that's it. It is a great sport, but I am a big basketball fan, so hockey kinda got lost in the backround for me.
@@stuckinarkansas1 that's a shame, it's fascinating how folks enjoy different things to me basketball is as dull as dishwater. But I know plenty enjoy it. Guess that's the joys of growing up playing contact sports
This game was the literal origin of the epic "U-S-A, U-S-A" chant. As a teen watching the game on TV, hearing it for the first time gave me and all my friends chills.
I never mention it but I always thought that about the U-S-A chants.
I was 25 years old at the time and never remembered hearing it before. Right after the game we all went out and bought USA shirts and ball caps.
Maybe it was done before somewhere on a small scale but it exploded overnight and ever since the Miracle.
@@tvc1848Yep, I remember it well. I was SO stressed during the last couple minutes. I couldn’t believe they did it.
@@tvc1848 It's possible that someone used the chant at a smaller earlier event, but I'm pretty sure this game was the first time it was broadcast on national TV, and therefore the first time most of the nation experienced it
Yes indeed. I remember.
Al Michaels, "Do you believe in Miracles?" perhaps the most iconic, dramatic and perfect line to close out that game. His quick, poetic delivery has made him the commentator with the most gravitas possible ever.
The line by the announcer Al Michaels is the most iconic calls in history. They used his actual audio for the “5 seconds to go 3 seconds! Do you believe in Miracles?!? YES!!!”
Easily. Still remember watching this live as a kid.
@shag139 He wasn't sure he could get the same emotion so at about with 11secs left in the game, you can hear the audio switch. He did re-record the other play by play dialogue though.
I was 15 and it remains one of my clearest memories. I screamed like mad thing at the TV the whole game
@@JohnMacleod-wo3ou You're not the only one! I still tear up when I see the footage.
Chills every time
I have an unused ticket to that Miracle game. My boss at the time had a home in Lake Placid. Because of bad snow that evening, his daughter could not get to the game. When he came back after the Olympics, he gave me an assortment of stubs and unused tickets. That gem, is one of them. I’m 72 now and still treasure it.
Probably worth a good chunk of change. Not sure I'd ever sell it though
KEEP THAT TICKET. If anybody from the team signs it, a lot better
@@WeissVogelEspecially Eruzione. Team captain and scored that game winning goal 🤘
Brooks' best speech came before the gold medal game against Finland. It was short and to the point. All he said was "If you lose this game, you'll take it to you effing grave."
It wasn't before the game, it was during the second intermission. They were trailing 2-1; your point still stands, though. He was basically saying, "What you did two days ago will forever be a footnote if you don't win the Gold."
It wasn't before the game it was in between the 2nd and 3rd period and the team was trailing
He walked into the locker room at the second intermission and said "If you guys lose this game after doing what you did you'll take it to your fucking graves" then turned and started to walk out and when he got to the door he turned around and looked at them again and said "You're Fucking Graves!"
@@7thwheel i got chills reading that just like I did when Eruzione talked about it on the documentary. I was 10 yrs old and played hockey in Tx believe it not since the age of four. We only had enough players in the state for teams in :Dallas, Fort Worth, Richardson and Arlington and some years Houston. My cousin who was a year older had to move up to squirts his last year as a mite. That group of kids played an entire season with 6 players. no changing lines, ever. Billy Carlson, his sister, Matt their goalie, my cousin Jimmy Don and two others i can't recall the names of.
@@ronaldmcdonald8894 It's perhaps the greatest motivational speech ever given in sports.
More than 44 years have passed, and this still evokes powerful emotions in me. I still can't believe a group of American kids who had only been playing together for 7 months beat that Soviet team.
YES! It is the greatest upset in sports history, imho…. To watch it as it unfolded… especially the last ten minutes …. I still get emotional about it…. 😭
My lovely young ladies of popcorn in bed none of these players are actors
Yes they are not actors their hockey players real hockey players from colleges they were taught to act you can't teach actors to skate it's easier to teach skaters to act
Mark Johnson ... scored 2 against the USSR and 1 goal and an assist against Finland. Also ... won a National Championship playing for the Wisconsin Badgers, played 669 games in the NHL ... and has won 7 National Titles as the Coach of the Badgers Women's Hockey team.
Legend.
@dacrosber love watching his women’s teams work relentlessly like he did. The one they got last year was such a beautiful representation of never give up and play hard the whole way. First title in ‘06 and now 7 championships later most ever in the women’s game.
The Russians used 30 year old men on their team. They were all military soldiers. No professionals were allowed to play. Yet their team was full of professional players. The Russian coach pulled the goalie who was their best player. A bunch of college kids did the impossible. Thanks to Herb Brooks.
The Soviets skirted the rules all the time. When the '72 Soviet basketball team beat Team USA, it was because the FIBA secretary general (from the UK but apparently had an axe to grind with the Americans) illegally added more time twice so the Soviets could win. When the team appealed, the final decision was 3-2 in favor of the Soviets winning the gold, the majority votes coming from Soviet-allied nations.
@@AdderTude Yea they put time back on the clock and allowed them to win the game.. Somebody stole like $1000 from the US coach's wallet too..
In a really good documentary about the Miracle on Ice Boris Mikhailov talked about getting a higher army rank "without doing any army stuff".
Pulling Tretiak still has to go down today as a top 5 bad decision from any coach in Hockey, ever.
I don't get how basketball is somehow an exception to the amateur athlete concept.
It has brought me to the position of "who gives a fu** about Olympic basketball.
I remember the patriotism of a whole nation,most people in America today do not realize just how historic this was.Amazing movie
I count myself among the lucky ones, as while I was born over a decade afterward, I grew up watching this with my mom.
She'd seen the original game, and always said that the movie invoked the same intensity of emotions every time. And through it, I've gotten much the same experience as she did
The political divide, the cultural shift social media has had on us as people. Sports and the Olympics whoring themselves out for money. Sadly a moment like this will never happen again and there is blame and cause on all and everyone. Being born in 77, the pride in country made life so much better. Things like the Olympics, fireworks on the 4th, a underdog like Villanova in college basketball, hell even Hulkamania. Things where enjoyed by all and really brought us together. Its sad, what has happened to America and again blame is enough to go everywhere, including our reflection in the mirror.
@@5IvanDrago5 As true as that might be to a degree, it's still ultimately the actions of a vocal minority at the core imho. More Americans than not are still ultimately decent people who want nothing to do with the craziness of the deluded few who stir up the pot; I know I certainly don't, nor do many people I know.
Generalizing everyone based on the actions of some doesn't help anyone either, even if it might be true to some degree. So tbh, that view shouldn't be taken at face value.
@@Omegafire17 Fair response, but I think that, "small vocal minority", is bigger then you are giving credit for. Yes, I agree most people are decent people doing their best, but I think the game is rigged. So many of our institutions and companies big enough to be institutions have become part of the problem. Google, Disney, Big Pharma and I could go on and on. they have so much power and telling the narrative with their bought and paid for media.
I also included and think the cell phone and social media while its making the world smaller, its isolating us. Yes, Im aware that drink isnt getting put back in the bottle. Relevant to Miracle a movie about a team and country coming together. 25 years ago I had a very successful three year run as a baseball coach. Life happened and I hadnt coached for 25 years and returned this year, HS. Comparing the kids form 25 years ago, no cell phones and their relationships with each other and will to commit to a common goal. Comparing that to todays generation is scary different. No Im not bashing gen Z or whatever, the kids I coached this year where great. They where polite young men that worked hard and I was proud to coach them. That said, they where not friends, they where not hanging out after games, they where not going to the local pizza joint after games and practices.
They are so tech dependent that they lack real interpersonal skills and lacked bonds with each other. It took me nearly all season to realize tis and it made me sad for them. When I played and when I coached. We hung out together, we where friends, in many cases we are still, friends. These kids lack those personal skills to make friends. They dont talk to each other, they dont hang out, asking a girl out is a text or a app. Everything they do is done on apps, its sad. Im 47 and we created this culture, we are responsible.
If you cant get a group of talented HS baseball players who attend the same school to unify, how do you recapture the magic of the 80 Miracle Team?
@@Omegafire17my mom was excited about this. Italian immigrant and the only hockey game she ever watched in her life.
"In 1980, America Needed Heros. What America Got, Was a Hockey Team."
You had to have been alive back then to appreciate how big this was for the USA. We were not attending the Summer Olympics, being held in Moscow, in protest of the Soviet Union invading Afghanistan, so the Winter Olympics was it. The USA was still recovering from Vietnam, American citizens were being held hostage in Iran, runaway inflation, and it seemed that it was only a matter of time before the Soviet Union just ran over the world. (At least, to 10-year-old me.) The movie said, "their biggest weapon is intimidation," that no one thought the Soviet Hockey Team, and by extension the Soviet Union, could be beaten. This team went out and played like they were not afraid, and that was what made things turn around, showing that the Soviets could be beaten. Once that aura of invincibility was gone, the Soviets didn't know how to react, and it cost them the game. And for a short time, the USA was actually united, behind a group of college kids playing hockey. Eleven years later, the Soviet Union collapsed.
Side note, the play by play you ger during the Soviet game is the actual broadcast from that game. Al Micheals, the announcer, could not bring back the emotions of the actual moment, so they used what he said during the game. There is a great documentary on what happened to the Soviet team after the game. If you want to watch something with Olympics, but a lot more lighthearted watch "Animalympics."
Al Michaels actually was in a recording booth and recreated most of the calls you hear in the movie, but couldn't recreate the raw emotion he had when he made that final call in 1980. So they cross faded from Al Michaels of 2003/2004 to Al Michaels' actual call from 1980 at the end. And it's still one of the best play-by-play calls of all time.
I was seven and still remember sneaking out of bed into my parent's room and watching it on a little orange TV, that moment will live with me till my last day.
Fascinating that the US boycotted because Russia invaded Afghanistan, and then just a couple decades later....
I watched the USSR vs USA hockey game, medal round, with my teammates on my junior high basketball team in 1980. Our off-guard, Sean Bell, had parents who had the original black box/descrambler, which, if needed was awesome. We didn't, and we had a living room of 11 7th & 8th graders, who knew nothing technical about hockey, since Indiana is a basketball state by nature, silent for Al Michael's call of the game. Now I already loved Al for his baseball game calls, as that was my sport. I only played basketball for the conditioning thru the winter months to be in shape for baseball in March.
Now, we were Gen X kids. Men/boys were taught to keep emotions in check as much as possible..because we were taught correctly that the real world doesnt give a sh1t about your hurt feelings..and that is still true as millennials and Gen Z are finding out in the job market; we were ready for it at 14-15, though, not 30 like the newer generations. We didnt hide in safe spaces and channeled negative feelings to something positive, especially if it made bulllies look bad.
I can tell you there wasn't a dry eye as the clock ran down that last 2 minutes. Amidst our screams of joy and spilt beers (yes, we were allowed to drink if we spent the night at most households)..but we weren't just celebrating this team's huge accomplishment..as Herb's wife correctly stated, it was about more than just a game. We were in the throws of record-setting inflation, gas shortages and a cold war so tense, that we wondered if we would see the next morning without mushroom clouds on the horizon...this was about beating an entire ideology THROUGH a hockey game. The USSR had everything they needed to beat our best NHL allstar team, let alone this non-professional team of varying college backgrounds.
In that moment, and also, after winning the gold medal days later, we beat the BEST communism had to offer, athletically and ideologically. After that, our hostages were released by Iran upon presidential change, and although it took another 3-4 years, we pulled into a time period of 1984-1999 in which prosperity reigned for nearly all levels of income-earning. It was the turning point.
And we still hold those young men up as an example of what freedom, teamwork and perception of what an underdog really is: fcking dangerous to the status quo.
So many younger people watch this and are of course happy/excited for this victory..but the one thing they will never get to experience is our phrase: "You had to be there."
"Do you believe in miracles..." For a teen in 1980 w/America suffering gas shortages, hostage crisis & looming threat of nuclear war w/an implacable foe..."yes". This Olympics was everything. Eric Hyden to hockey Gold. It was living a dream. Until Chuch Mangione played "Give It All You Got" as the flame was extinguished. Unforgettable.
those are all propaganda stories to herd the masses with fear
You nailed exactly what was going on in 1980.
Exactly. Me too! I was 18 and this was such a big deal
My favorite comment comes from a Soviet player who said that watching the USA team celebrate after winning made him envious, because they had lost that feeling, winning had become second nature and there was no pure excitement on their side anymore...and to see the excitement in the Americans made him envious.
I remember that from the 30 for 30 they did on the after math of the game for the Soviets. That part gave me chills. It really made me feel for the Soviet players, having their love for the game stripped away from them in a militaristic and political way.
@@dillonspear542 Also, at that time, life in the USSR was very depressing. Showing emotion, positive or negative, was frowned upon. You were supposed to be cold and stoic no matter how good or bad you felt.
@@dillonspear542
AFTERMATH bro.
it would still be many years until the era of the Russian defectors to the NHL but it feels in many ways that this was the launching point for that defection era
RIP Michael Mantenuto. He’s the actor who played OC. He joined the Army in 2010. In 2017 he took his own life. Rest in peace, brother!
@@crederules Wow, I did not know that! Horrible.
and your point? Life is tough & not like the movies or tv shows people die everyday some by choice some by accident some by other people. Death is part of life.
@@craighanson-rc1md Dude, go take a chill pill.
@craighanson-rc1md Jesus he was just saying RIP for the guy, calm tf down😂
@@zeakstigmata2 reality.....
I was a 13-year-old in 1980 when this happened. Cannot explain how unbelievably big this was. Unlike in today's age. This was actually taped delayed when it was shown on TV. Remember all day long people saying to one another don't tell me about the hockey score I'm watching it tonight. I have fond memories of my older brother who was in high school staying home all day because he didn't want anybody to tell him about the game. That night me and my father and him watch the game together. For me and many others this is by far and away the biggest sports moment ever. Nothing even compares.
I was 16 and on crutches during the Olympics. Followed the hockey religiously. I was impressed when they thumped Czechoslovakia but thought the Soviets would win. Living near the Canadian border, we got to see the game live. My uncles kept calling from all over, wanting updates. When the US went up 4-3, my Dad unplugged the phone. When the game was over, everyone in the house screamed and you could hear the neighbors screaming. Everyone, but me, went outside and danced in the snow. One of the three times i seen my father cry. Nothing like it and there never will be again
But why did your dad break your leg before the game?
Thanks for sharing that story. My three daughters were watching me jumping up and down like a mad man. Historic win.
😭
Thank you for this story. That brought tears to my eyes. That’s awesome that you guys got to watch it live, people forget that most of the country had to watch it on replay!
Was that CBC?
It might please you to know that the crowd shouting USA at the Olymic game against the Soviets were actually Canadian. Kurt Russell said he was very proud of them for shouting USA so enthusiastically.
All the players were actual players except for Eddie Cahill as Jim Craig the goalie and Nathan West as Rob McClanahan (the guy who fought and was bloody). The director decided it was easier to teach players to act than to teach actors to play. He also said the guys became their players and called each other by the name of the player they were portraying. Actual NHL goalie Bill Ranford stood in for Eddie Cahill in actual game play scenes.
One of the hockey players was the son of a player on the Olympic team.
@@rebeccaclementz3756 Buzz Schneider's son. He played his dad.
Someone said the player was Buzzy Schneider.
@@rebeccaclementz3756 yes. Buzz Schneider's son Billy played Buzz in the movie. #25. Part of the Cone heads line.
Pretty similar to the movie Hoosiers then.
I love that Cassie and Carly both understand Hockey. Knowing the game they understand the technical aspects of the 1980 US Olympic Hockey team and the odds of what they went through just to be in the position of facing the Soviets. I was a freshman in High School during these Olympics in the northwest suburbs of Chicago (fairly decent Hockey area). These were demoralizing times to be a US citizen because of several factors, including the Iranian hostage situation. The US Hockey team gave the country the dose of patriotism and pride that engulfed the entire nation. This is where the "USA USA USA" chant began. For the first time in several years these 20 young men and their coach gave the country something to really be proud of. This was probably the greatest gift any of us could ever imagine. Miracle captured the spirit of the 1980 US Olympic Hockey team and the feeling of national pride very well but to live through this period and experiencing the national pride first hand was simply incredible. To this day I still get chills hearing Al Michaels and his final second account from the US - Soviet game. Yes, I do believe in miracles!
The real miracle was holding that Soviet team scoreless for the last 37 minutes of that game.
That team averaged 10 goals a game in that tournament.
They were a monster team.
and they knew how to play dirty, and how to react to physical play.
I watched as Walter Cronkite announced the US leaving Vietnam in 1975, I saw the US embassy overrun in Iran, I watched this game live with my 2 best friends at 10 years old. Military family. You can't understand how important this was to our country.
Only one other American won a gold medal in those games, Eric Heiden. He won all five speed skating races ranging from 500 meters to 10,000 meters.
Never knew that. That's a crazy fact.
Heiden and the US hockey team are my memories of those games. I was 9 years old. Core memories, for sure.
Grew up in Madison ... Eric Heiden and Mark Johnson are revered.
Eric Heiden went back to school and became a doctor. He practiced at UC Davis Medical Center in Sacramento, CA. Great great guy.
Heiden and his sister were rockstars.
I love that towards the end of the game with Russia the merged Al Michael's voice with his original commentary from the game since he was there. They knew there was no way to recapture the same feel of surprise and passion in that moment. So what you hear when he asks "Do you believe in miracles?!" is what he said when the U.S. Olympic Hockey team beat the Soviets for the first time in decades. It shocked the world and gave us a much needed boost in morale during a tough time in our history.
RIP Herb Brooks (August 5, 1937 - August 11, 2003), aged 66
RIP Bob Suter (May 16, 1957 - September 9, 2014), aged 57
RIP Mark Wells (September 18, 1957 - May 14, 2024), aged 66
RIP Mark Pavelich (February 28, 1958 - March 4, 2021), aged 63
RIP Kenneth Mitchell (November 25, 1974 - February 24, 2024), aged 49
RIP Michael Mantenuto (May 13, 1981 - April 24, 2017), aged 35
RIP Joseph Cure (December 10, 1983 - November 8, 2015), aged 31
You will be remembered as legends.
RIP Mark Wells (September 18 1957 - May 18 2024), aged 67
@@ser132 66
Some died so young? Illness? RIP...
@@48Nugget Bob Suter died of a heart attack, Michael Mantenuto died of a self inflicted gunshot wound, Joseph Cure was killed in a traffic accident, Kenneth Mitchell died from complications from amyotrophic lateral sclerosis (ALS), Mark Pavelich died by suicide by asphyxiation
@@LPJack02 Thank you...
I grew up in Alabama and we barely knew what Hockey was. I remember that call from Al Michaels like it was yesterday. My family was gathered around our television and watching the tape delayed broadcast of the game. Our country was really down and hurting during this time and we desperately needed a "Miracle". We weren't even sure what was happening while we watched but cheered like we were there in the stands. My Mom was crying when the final buzzer went off.
This is a moment in history everyone remembers where they were. Like the bronco chase, or Kennedy or 9/11. The miracle game was on tape delay but no one knew. Winning it felt like winning the Cold War. 12 years later we sent our pro basketball players to the Olympics - the dream team - because the international teams were all pros and we had college kids.
I see your point, if Trump wins, Communist Putin wins.
I don't remember where I was. Then again, I was only 3 years old. I probably didn't even know where I was at the time. 😄
As happened in many Olympics in the pre Internet age many people in US border cities watched the live Canadian Broadcasting Corp (CBC) coverage via antenna and some via cable
In those days, we watched the Olympics religiously! Loved all the commentators, especially Jim McKay. When coverage switched to NBC, and Bob Costas stepped in, we loved him too!
I live in MN. Herb was a legend here! I'm a black dude that grew up on skates!!!
This was huge here in Minnesota as coach Brooks was born here, coaching the NCAA champion Minnesota Gophers hockey team and 13 of the 20 players on the Olympic team were born in Minnesota. Everyone was watching and cheering our "local" team throughout. It was an amazing time.
Al Michael's call at the end is absolutely iconic!
It's the original footage from 1980. Everything else from Michaels in this movie was in the script, but the fillmmakers agreed he could never duplicate the same emotion from that day.
Why didn't they throw in his line from the gold medal game vs Finland about the impossible dream comes true? Would have been a nice addition.
It launched him.
@@rowdycmooreCorrect! That could never be reproduced! I get chills when I hear the transition to the original broadcast!
The Soviets won the Gold Medal in 1964, 1968, 1972, and 1976 before this happened. It was the equivalent of a High School football team beating the Tom Brady Patriots. But even more than that, the Russians WERE the bad guys. In every day of our lives, every tv show, movie, comic book, everything. It was literally good vs. evil, us vs. them. At least that's how we felt back then. This is the greatest moment in sports, period. I was 9 when this happened, and it was the greatest rush of national pride I've ever felt before or since. the high of it lasted for months.
I watched this live when I was 12 years old in 1980. Now at 56 you girls made me cry. Thank You.
I was 14, it was tape delayed.
@@renaissanceman7145 To those watching it, we didn;t really know that. Don;t forget, if you didn;t get the weekly TV guide section of your newspaper, you might now know what programming was scheduled for when. I was eight, watched it when it was broadcast (on delay).
I was 13 years old when I watched this game. I still recall the screaming... the tears of joy I watch coming down my mothers cheeks... the disbelief we actually won. You have no idea... no idea what it meant to play the Soviet Union in 1980. This was much more than a hockey game. This was the Soviet Empire vs "the West". They're war-tested professional hockey players against our non-pro college kids. Remember... in 1980 the U.S. Olympic rules committee did not allow our professionals to play this game.
CASSIE AND CARLY... There was no way you two could have known this... but the last 10 seconds of the game in this movie... the audio from the actor portraying Al Michaels actually shifted into the recording of the ACTUAL broadcast with REAL voice of Al Michaels calling the game for the 1980 Olympics.
I am 56 years old... and those words.... those immortal words still gives me chills to this very day...
"Do you believe in miracles? YES!!!"
Great reaction! Luv you two ladies! :)
My high school teacher showed this movie in class and it honestly should be watched more today. Just the many lessons about how to act like a team in anything. Sports, class, the work environment.
“You think you can win on talent alone? You don’t have enough talent to win on talent alone.”
“Do you believe in miracles” makes me cry every time. As well as “the name on the front is a hell of a lot more important than the one on the back.”
There was a player named Buzzy Schneider on the team and his real life son plays him in this movie!!
Billy's wife is a professional goalie. She brought this movie to a tournament in Russia and the whole team watched it.
Watching the rest of the outro will make you cry more. They were all outstanding men who became leaders of business.
Al Michaels redid the on ice commentary for the game as close to how he did it on that night in Lake Placid. But he could not replicas the “Do You Believe in Miracles?!?!” So they slowly faded in his famous question from that game. I was just a young boy and I still remember that game.
yea I was at work and I gone out witha few buddies for drinks , But knew the game was gonna be on TAPE delay at 8 pm since the OLympics had games on during the day .JIm Mckay was the HOst and looking back as he gave the live intro to the game , he contained a smile and It was such an amazing game as abc had to hold back all the celebrations by fans in that Little Lake Placid village. ANd then the TEAm had to win the final gold medal game on sunday at NOON
Micheals; commentary partner is Kenny Dryden, famous Montreal Canadiens goalie
my favorite line in sports movies ... "You don't have enough talent to win by talent alone." Honestly I wish someone would have told me that pre college. Nice vid ladies.
This damn movie makes me cry every time. The greatest moment in US sports history and one of the greatest of all time. The music at the end, “Do you believe in miracles” all of it is just perfect.
i remember not being interested in the Olympics until this series. I was glued to my t.v. as a 12 year old and shedding tears of joy and pride in my country. And to this day I shed more tears when watching this movie EVERY TIME Herb Albert says "DO YOU BELIEVE IN MIRACLES"!!! This; movie is in my opinion the best sports movie.
What a treat to watch two Canadian girls react to a movie about hockey.
Both of my kids played hockey at a rather high-level through through high school. My son was fortunate enough to have been coached on occasion by Mark Johnson who is now the head coach for the University of Wisconsin women’s hockey team. The University of Wisconsin women’s hockey team has won quite a few national championships, and Mark Johnson’s dad Bob Johnson was head coach of the men’s team at the University of Wisconsin for many years.
Hi im Swedish. My cousins husbend they are 20 years older than me and the are Norwegians. He was on this game Norway vs USA before Olympic 1980. And he was one of the last who leave in the audience. He saw the US coach where crazy angry on his very young team.
I ask my grandmother before she died and she was a great Sports women in the 1950s in Sweden. What is your strongest sports memory from television? She said TEAM USA 1980 when they defeated the evil CCCP.❤
Kurt has that Minnesota accent down. That's how some of us talk. Great actor
Yah, sure, you betcha. The further north, the more Scandanavian comes out. Although I think the film "Fargo" over does it a little too much.
Were the accents in Fargo accurate at all?
@ct6852 a little, they overplayed it some. I have a heavy northern Minnesota accent. It's the o's like in the words about or boat. My mom was from Boston, so throw a little of the Boston accent in there, too.
@@Kilroy-h5u I kind of do a Midwest accent when I order in drive-throughs and I have no idea why.
His statue stands outside the Xcel Energy Center home of the Minnesota Wild. He stands out amongst a sea of legends in the State of Hockey!!
"What we have here is the rarest of sporting events: an event that needs no build-up, no superfluous adjectives. In a political or nationalistic sense, I'm sure this game is being viewed with varying perspectives. But manifestly, it is a hockey game. The United States and Soviet Union on a sheet of ice in Lake Placid, New York."
More than anything, this movie shows the collective power a major sporting event has in bringing people together.
If it's unifying, not divisive
All I can say is as emotional as you got watching the movie, you should have seen it live. I did. The entire nation went crazy. USA shirts everywhere. So much pride. It's a moment in history I'll never forget.
If compared to today, this win would be like a college football All-American team beating an NFL All-Pro team.
No way to put in words how huge this win was. Its still the greatest sports upset EVER! Whatever comes 2nd, not even close. Its where the "U-S-A" chant was first shouted.
I was 21 and after USA beat the Czechs, my friend and I thought about driving through the night from N Indiana to Lake Placid and try to get tix. Silly thought, glad we didn't try. I was in that arena the following summer; what intimate place in a beautiful setting for this epic event.
Wrong. As said by Jim McKay, it would be like a Canadian college football team beat the Pittsburgh Steelers (then Super Bowl Champs).
They beat the Soviets because they were NOT a "Dream Team" rather a collection of athletes that worked well together and had a stake in winning for their country.
I was going to say - wasn't this where the 'U-S-A !' chant originated?
I was 6 months old at the time.
@@jwfmsu1990 wrong, the Russian National Army team was the best players from their entire country and all their professional hockey leagues, therefore an all star; all-Pro team. McKay definitely understated their talent. I doubt that Steeler team, as good as it was, could have beaten an all Pro NFL team that had several years together
The Soviets team were all paid athletes?
In 1980, the Olympics did not permit professionals to compete in the games. The Soviets circumvented this rule by paying their players to technically work for the military, even though their only job in the military was to compete in their sport. That's what made the events depicted in this movie so miraculous, it was true amateurs competing against actual professionals. But this is why Team Canada was not mentioned in the movie, despite it being a movie about hockey. In protest of this unfair situation, Canada did not even send a hockey team to Lake Placid. After the Olympics lifted its ban on professionals, Canada resumed sending a hockey team to the competition in 1988. Coincidentally, the 1988 games were hosted by Canada in Calgary.
I was at this game with my dad and my brother. I was 7 years old, and we had Boston Bruins season tickets when I was a kid. I was obsessed with hockey. I got to meet Jim Craig, Dave Silk, and Jack O'Callahan over the following years. Silk and Craig played for the Bruins. I met OC at the Blades and Boards club under the old Boston Garden after a game. He was there to see Dave Silk. It was around 1984 because I was 11, and I got a puck signed by Jack.
I was eight saw it on TV in the house I own now, Boston born raised and schooled (GO CM). Being told that people from my state were on that team, and growing up in the shadow of Orr and Espo and Turk and Westfall and Cashman and Pie and Chief and Cheesie....wow, what a time to watch some hockey!
As great as this movie was, watching it live when I was 12 is still a true memorable point in my life. It turned me into a huge hockey fan, which was tough growing up on Las Vegas, but seeing all the rest of our country that Olympics going NUTS for the boys playing was amazing. Wish the country would remember those days..... And as big as this game against the Russian's was, it wasn't for the Gold. That was a couple days later.
ESPN did a fantastic 30 for 30 documentary on the Miracle on Ice game's aftermath for the Soviet team. It was really interesting seeing what happened to the coach, Tretiak, Mikhailov and the other players.
Tretiak was probably the greatest goaltender ever. At least what happened for some of the other players is they started to come to America in play in the NHL. Detroit in particular signed a number of Soviet defectors.
That was a great documentary. Slava Fetisov's story was remarkable.
"Red Army" is a great watch too - all about the soviet team
Probably my favourite ever 30 for 30 was the one on Soviet Hockey under 2 coaches (1 who was loved & one who was disliked).
One of my favourite lines in it was about the Miracle on Ice & how it was like getting a kiss from Sophia Loren as a teenage boy.
He would remember it forever whilst she will not recall it.
I was 11 when this happened, I live in Texas, so I barely knew about hockey (Houston Aeros minor league team was the only thing I knew). We knew the Soviets were monsters and near impossible to beat, we knew we had a bunch of college kids, but I remember this team having momentum in the Olympics and the entire country was transfixed with them. Then the great play calling by Al Michaels with the all-time great line "do you believe in miracles, YES!!"
Also, Jim Craig's play was incredible, I wanted to be a goalie after watching him.
"Chariots of Fire" (1981) of course is a true story from the 1924 Olympics, 2 sprinters and their struggles and quest for gold. But also the true story of native American Billy Mills in the 1983 film "Running Brave" is well worth watching (10,000 meter runner in the 1964 Olympics). And more than one movie on the great Jesse Owens.
Those would be better choices than Munich for movies about the Olympics.
My buddies dad was the last cat cut from this team. His name isn’t Ralph cox but it was tough on him watching them win
I was in the military at the time. There was like 15 of us in a room watching the game against Soviet Union. At the end of the game, every one of us were in tears. We all got together to watch the final game and it crushed us even more.
Born & raised in MN. I wasn’t even born when this happened. But with so many of the players being native Minnesotans as well as Herb Brooks. This movie holds a very special place in my heart.
There's a great documentary on Disney+ called "Of Miracles and Men" that shows the Soviet's side of this story and their journey through multiple decades of the Olympics, dominating for years. They had to sign 25 year contracts with the Army to play for the national team. Once in, their entire job was hockey. The documentary is really good.
Disney+ showing the Communist point of view. That's typical for Disney under Bob Iger's leadership & their efforts to undermine our culture & society via their recent movies and television shows.
@@pauld6967stupid take…..it’s an ESPN 30 for 30 documentary that came out long before these moronic takes on so called “efforts to undermine our culture and society” even existed….smh….
There's also the "Red Army" (2014) documentary which is also really good, which tells the whole story of the Soviet team from the 1950's to 1990's.
@@mvprime8 excellent film…
@@tysoncromwell2684 Ah yes, how typical of Bob Iger-led Disney to emphasize the communist point of view.
I was 10. I’m from Texas. The whole neighborhood it seemed was at one house surrounding the tv. There has never been a sports moment like it since and may never be again.
Don S. Davis played in MacGyver and Stargate SG-1 as well as X-files as Dana's Dad. Also, many other roles through the years. He was a fantastic actor . He passed away in 2008 of heart trouble.
Don S. Davis was in Atomic Train as well.
"close the iris!" Also he was in the Sam Steel Canadian heritage minute
One of the players is from my hometown, 2 others were from towns a couple miles away! Most of the players are Minnesotan 🙌🏻
A proud day back in 1980!!!
It was really exciting to watch!
Sadly Herb Brooks was killed in car accident about 5 yrs ago?
America NEEDED this win ! Unity! USA USA USA
Mark Johnson #10 (MVP) said in an interview: " The movie made Herb out to be a nice guy." Yes, he had them skating lines - in the dark - after tying Norway. Watch a documentary or two, you'll see that this was a very special team. Loved your reaction too! 👍🏻
Al Michaels was the announcer for ABC in 1980, and he came in and re recorded his call of the entire game - but if you listen very carefully, you tell, right around 11 seconds, the go back and use the original call from the game...
One of the moments of my life. I have a signed Jim Craig goalie mask on my wall, and a complete team signed index card display as well. I remember sitting in my living room and having a complete meltdown as each game progressed. It's difficult to explain to those not around at the time, but it was a bunch of college kids beating a Russian team that had torn the NHL stars apart. All the stars in the sky aligned, and Herb Brooks did an impossible job. It opened the door for many of the Russian elite players to come to the NHL to become stars in America (US & Canada). My favorite part was "who do you play for?" Everything changed when they replied USA for the first time. Loved watching it with you.
14:49 was the best part of this movie!! "I play for the United States of America"
The most dramatic and important sports moment in my lifetime. Craig and Eruzione were from Massachusetts not far from where we lived. The moment of the cold war, the underdog college kids, the build up to this was unbelievable. Russel and the cast do a great job recreating this. Do you believe in miracles? Yes!
I first watched this movie in 2004 on a plane flying over the ocean on the way to Europe. We left from Pittsburgh and landed in Frankfurt, Germany. Great movie, great vacation!!!
As a teenager this was the biggest sports event in my life. Watched it with my Mother who is now 94 and still remembers it vividly. There have been many other great sports events in my life but this one remains the most special.
"Do you believe in miracles?"
I did after that day.
i was 9 yrs old and so proud watching this, now the pride remains with tears the emotion this movie brings out is real
This game was played at 5pm on a Friday. So ABC Sports actually aired the game on tape delay. The world didn't have the internet and sports shows like we do now, so it wasn't known around the world about what happened. I was a very young 9 yr old boy and watched this game while laying in my bed. It was one of the greatest young moments of my life. I am so happy I watched it. Just this past year I listened to Mike Eurozone's book. It was really great and goes into greater depth. Herb Brooks walked into the locker room before the gold medal game and said, "If you lose this game you'll remember it for the rest of your fucking life. Your fucking life!" The rest is history!
Actually, Brooks said that during the second intermission of the gold metal game, as the US was down 2-1 vs Finland
People in Michigan knew thanks to Bill Bonds.
Hard to believe the really dramatic goals actually happened exactly as portrayed in this film. The goal against Sweden in the final 30 seconds, without which we would not have even made the medal round. And of course, the goal against the Soviets to end the first period with 1 second left. THIS team was truly a Team of Destiny. I was 9 when this happened and still remember it. Because of the state of the country and of the world, I believe this moment will never be topped. It was such a privilege to be alive and watch it, and it's such a privilege to see younger generations still appreciate one of the finest moments in Olympic and sports history. GREAT reaction, ladies.
FINALLY!!!!!!!!!!!! Thank you for watching this epic movie. Why reactors haven't watched this yet is beyond me. Hopefully they will follow your lead. And as usual, great reaction from you ladies.
It drives me nuts how few reactors have done this movie haha. Ive been waiting years for these girls to do it and it did not disappoint!! Haha
I don't know if that many even know about it. Most younger than 50 would have little to no memory of those Olympics.
I'm a proud Minnesotan. This is the State of Hockey and Herb Brooks is an ICON and a legend around here.
I was a freshman in high school when this Olympics occurred. This was the most amazing thing watching them defeat the most dominant hockey team in the world at that time. All of the Soviet team members were professional players. They got around the amateur status by being officially employed by the military or industries that just happened to have a hockey team. Many nations complained about this, Canada even withdrew from both the 1972 and 1976 Olympic Games in protest. Team USA was also the youngest hockey team to have ever participated in the Olympic Games. Their average age was 21. In some ways, Team USA winning the Gold was almost anticlimactic. Looking up details online, I found that the exhibition game that the Soviet team played against Team USA at Madison Square Garden four days before the Games began, where the Soviets won 10-3, actually caused the Soviets to underestimate Team USA.
They cast actual hockey players for the movie (high school and college kids for team USA and NHL and IHL players for the Soviets and European teams). They even, by accident, cast Schneider’s own son to play his dad and didn’t realize it until after he was given the part!
I was 14, and watched this game live on TV. When it was over, my parents both were crying their eyes out. It was all anyone talked about for months.
For this film, they had legendary sportscaster Al Michaels re-record his play-by play for the film except the last thing he said, "DO YOU BELIEVE IN MIRACLES? YES!" For that, they used his original recording from 1980, because Michaels didn't think he could repeat the emotion involved.
I'm gonna say something here...
Sports-movies are guys' version of rom-coms.
I mean that in a good way. Formulaic, feel-good, a bit of drama with a bit of humor, focussed upon characters, happy endings, reliable non-offensive tone.
Overall, just something that you can sit down and watch, and be pretty sure that you'll enjoy it and feel good about having watched it.
Good stuff. :)
I think this is Kurt's best role, even better than his Wyatt Earp in Tombstone or Snake Plissken in Escape From New York.
The hair, though. He looks like Emmett from the Lego Movie.
OMG! Cassie had her Canadian accent showing and Carly talking sports "in the crease" 😊 swoon you guys made my night thanks!
Brooks' speech before the gold medal game was a lot shorter the the one before the Soviets. He just said, "If you lose this game, you'll take it to your f--king graves."
He said it after the second period.
@@AdderTude And it was not a gold medal game. There was no gold medal game, or semifinals. Only a medal round. USA could have finished even 4th if they lost to Finland.
Herb's Speach before the Russia game is iconic. But down a goal to Finland in the finals after two periods may have been just as important. All he said was " if you lose this game tonight, you will take it to your FUCKING graves". Headed toward the door, turned back and snarled again.... "YOUR FUCKING GRAVES!!!" watch the third period of that game, the US came out of the locker room and just dominated to take the gold. Remember if they lost to Finland they would have won NO Medal.
I was 18 when this happened and I still remember the excitement vividly. I wasn't even a hockey fan but during this magical run, all Americans became hockey fans.
I'm so thrilled to see that both of you are reacting to this. You've made my night.
The Real Miracle Team lit the Olympic torch in 2002 Salt Lake City Olympics.
USA! USA! USA! USA! What an amazing movie and a great story. HBO made a documentary back in 2001 called "Do You Believe in Miracles" that went into great detail about the players, Herb Brooks, the game. It was well done. I don't think a lot of the younger generation can grasp the amount of pride and emotion the country felt when we won that game. When you watch the actual video with the commentators counting down the clock and one says that phase 'DO YOU BELEIVE MIRACLES!" And to see some of the people in the documentary still tear up talking about. It was the greatest moment of their lives. I recommend that documentary and the one made by the YT CHANNEL Joseph Vincent. It's a lot shorter but still makes you emotional.
I think it is the HBO documentary where they included some interviews with USSR players and journalists. It was very interesting to hear their perspective!
This game was the literal origin of the epic "U-S-A, U-S-A" chant. As a child watching the game on TV, hearing it for the first time gave me and all my friends chills.
@@vly9257 I believe you are right.
There was the Iran hostage crisis, the Soviets had just invaded Afghanistan, Carter was feckless. I was a college Div1 wrestler and a Poli-Sci major watching this game. The Soviets had been playing professionals in the Olympics forever (they were all "in the Army") against college kids. It is hard to imagine a setup like this again. This was more than sports. Thank you, guys. Thank you.
I didn't know the story for this & the bit around Christmas I got nervous because I thought Herb or one of the players was going to get hurt.
They used Al Michaels to do the commentary like he had for the Olympics, except the line "Do you believe in miracles?" because of the emotion Al had used when he originally called it in 1980.
When you watch the end credits you notice that only 4 of the players actually had anything to do with ice hockey after college & the olympics. Nowadays it would be more.
The idea of using college players is cool but I miss having NHL players on the roster. You really get to see the best players out there. For hockey fans it was comparable to the World Cup.
@@yourlifeisagreatstory I'm pretty sure that the NHL has announced they will be in the next 2 Winter Olympics.
Almost every player tried to continue their careers, after the Olympics, and several made the NHL...but there's only so many jobs in the game, after you hang up the blades.
Five had long NHL careers, six played in more than a hundred games, and both goalies played very briefly.
One played pro hockey briefly in the WHA and another coached for twenty years.
Several were with NHL teams but played only for their minor league teams (but that's still professional hockey).
One played professionally in Europe.
One was drafted, signed with a different club, never played but later worked as a scout for the Minnesota expansion team .
A one minute shift??? That's a LONG TIME to be on the ice. Average shift time is anywhere between 15 and 30 seconds.
I almost broke my wrist clicking this one...one of my favorite movies! It's so important to remember this was about more than the Olympics but happened during the cold war when competition and tensions with Russia was at an all-time high. I remember being a kid with my dad in the car listening on the radio and it seemed like the whole country was doing the same. People were celebrating in the streets when we beat them.
I remember when this happened. Middle of the cold war. It was epic. We watched it with baited breath. We, as a family screamed at ever shot. It was miraculous. We were proud to be Americans. I was 13yo.
Watch on TV as a kid and it was soooo exciting. Visited Lake Placid 10-15 years later and got the chills walking into the arena as the memories flooded back.
The production quality of this movie is amazing! 99% of the game was done EXACTLY as it happened, complete with the actual broadcast from the game with AL Michael's and Ken Dryden. Such a great movie!
I’m from Northern Minnesota, 60 yrs young, and let me tell you hockey is life up there and when we beat Russia tears were a plenty
I remember going to see this movie in the theaters with my late Dad when this came out. My dad LOVED the miracle on ice and loved this movie so much. So this movie has a lot of happy memories for me.
I went and saw this movie 4 times in the theater with my mom & grandma, so it holds a special place in my heart too. I watched all the documentaries & extra features I could get my hands on at the time. I think it's probably what started my love of everything olympics & why I always get so excited when the they start.
Do you believe in Miracles? YES!! Such an amazing quote that still gives people the chills.
Fun story: Mike Eruzione's uncle lives 3 houses up from my parents. After the Olympics he came over and showed us all the gold medal.
This is still the most amazing experience of my youth. It was on tape delay and Jim McKay came on to introduce the game and he already knew the outcome. He was a well known, older sports reporter and you knew something amazing happened. He was in shock.
The Finnish, gold medal game, was a heart attack as well.
What was sad is Pelle Lindbergh was a really great goal tender in that Olympics. He got signed by the Philadelphia Flyers and died in a drunk driving accident early in his career.
they made a movie a few years after this in the 80s called Miracle on ice...it had a lot to be desired..this movie...captured the emotions and everything...I get just as emotional watching this movie as I did when I watched the USA olympic team beat the Soviets way back in 1980..it was and is amazing
Yes Alyssa your correct. It was well done and that film deserves to be seen too. Good for you.
Since there wasn't internet back then and NBC delayed the broadcast to show it in prime time, NO ONE knew we had already beat the soviets until way after...unless you were lucky enough to hear something on the radio. It was electric back then.
As happened in many Olympics in the pre Internet age many people in US border cities watched the Canadian Broadcasting Corp (CBC) coverage via antenna and some via cable.
BTW it was ABC, Al Michaels, Jim McKay (studio host)
In 1982 I was in Boston on a business trip with a few coworkers. We stopped at an oyster bahhh after work and one of us said, Isn't that Jim Craig,? nodding toward a handsome fellow a few tables away accompanied by a blonde who looked... very good. We weren't sure until one of us said, check out his finger. There was a ring about the size of a golf ball that seemed to glow from its own sheer richness. Yep, that's him, we said. Stirring experience. What a time to be an American that was.
I was out of the country, on a military mission when the "Miracle on Ice" happened. I got back soon after it happened and saw the recap, watching it on a TV in a hotel room in Los Angeles. It was a weird, getting my feet back on the ground moment, watching the recap.
The actual audio from the game was a stroke of genius -- watching it happen live, this makes it all the more emotional!
Mr. Brooks was a master motivator. He took the kids he could mold into a team, not necessarily the best players, and made them into winners. Great reaction Cassie and Carly. I have to keep reminding myself that you two were not born yet and didn't experience this epic moment when it happened. We knew it would be shown on tape delay and nobody I watched it with wanted any spoilers. That team lifted America's spirits like no other sporting event I can think of.
Full hearts, clear eyes, can't lose. Congratulations you are officially my favorite.
Even non hockey fans were excited about this event and can enjoy this movie.
Patrician Clarkson was in my favorite movie The Station Agent (2003), and many other movies such as: The Untouchables (1987), The Dead Pool (1989), Jumanji (1995), Good Night, and Good Luck (2005), Lars and the Real Girl (2007), The Green Mile (1999), Far From Heaven (2002), Shutter Island (2010), Wendigo (2001), The Maze Runner (2014), The Maze Runner: The Scorch Trials (2015), The Maze Runner: The Death Cure (2018).
One of the jokes by standup comedian and actor Rodney Dangerfield was, "I went to a fight the other night and a hockey game broke out."
Herb had some classic insults. He said every day you’re getting worse and right now you’re playing like it’s next month. You should take a couple days off and don’t come back.
And, my favorite was when he pulled his star defenseman off the ice and put in a rookie named Harrer. Harrer goes out and scores. He’s all proud that he scored and goes back to the bench and Herb says to the star defenseman, see even fricken Harrer can do it.