Red Army

"It grabs you literally from the first sentence and rolls through a fascinating exploration of the professional story of the greatest five-man team of hockey players ever."

“Red Army” tells an intriguing story about Slava Fetisov and the elite Russian hockey team of the ’70’s and ’80’s. It grabs you literally from the first sentence and rolls through a fascinating exploration of the professional story of the greatest five-man team of hockey players ever. (You do NOT need to be a hockey fan to enjoy this movie.) The Soviets saw much propaganda value in dominating global competitions, so they established a national farm system that developed players based on skill from a very early age, leading eventually to the best of the best playing on the national team. The director presented a compelling, interesting, and entertaining way of assembling footage in a way to keep the storyline moving and understandable. It is a fascinating glimpse into the personal lives of individuals who found themselves thrust smack into the middle of a global dance of politics, sports, patriotism, and big business – far beyond anything they ever wanted to deal with. Recommended.

Reviewed by: on August 18, 2015