Loveable
lunkhead hockey goon Doug Glatt (Seann William Scott) gets beaten to a pulp on
the ice by bloodthirsty up-and-comer Anders Cain (Wyatt Russell). The injuries he sustains in the fight forces Doug
to retire, so he sets out to try to live a menial 9 to 5 life to support his
pregnant wife (Alison Pill). When Anders
is traded to Doug’s team, he sets out to make a comeback to win his old job
back.
Helping
Doug get back into fighting shape is his old nemesis, Ross Rhea (Liev Schreiber). (Which kind of makes this the Rocky 3 of
hockey movies.) The scenes between Scott
and Schreiber are some of the best in the entire film. I liked the fact that Rhea is so old that he's now in a league where the players don't play hockey and only fight. In fact, that idea alone is a lot better than
the predictable and formulaic plotline that is the main thrust of the story.
Scott’s
scenes with his pregnant wife feel like a first draft. Their dialogue is cliched and lacks the
quirky charm of the original. Scott does
what he can with the material, but it’s lacking the heart that made the first
Goon such a treat. The film is also
brimming with too many side characters (including T.J. Miller as an unfunny
Sports Center-type host) that get in the way of the hockey.
Still,
it’s not bad. Scott’s rivalry with
Russell (who used to be a pro hockey player) provides a few sparks. Russell makes for a formidable adversary. The two fights they have together that
bookend the film are appropriately over the top and bloody. It’s a shame that the movie (much like the
main character) never finds its footing whenever it goes off the ice (which is
for much of the second act).
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