When a sports movie isn't just a sports movie

“Do you believe in miracles?!”

That line has become one of the most memorable lines in sports commentary, but not just from the game Al Michaels said it in. The 2004 film, Miracle, immortalized the line to describe one of the ultimate achievements in sports.

Miracle is my favorite sports movie, because it transcends what sports movies can be. It doesn’t just show an underdog story, it is a film that best exemplifies the fulfillment of the concept of “The American Dream.”

What Miracle has over other movies like it, such as Rocky IV or Creed, is it is based on a true story. 

The film follows the coach and team of the gold medal winning United States men’s ice hockey team from the 1980 Winter Olympics in Lake Placid, New York. The team was made up of college players mainly from across the country. On the other hand, the Soviet Union team was older, seasoned and tougher, considered to be the best in the world after winning four straight gold medals at the preceding four Winter Olympics. 

After losing to the Soviet Union 10-3 in an exhibition match, and overcoming personal rivalries within the team, the United States ice hockey team went on to beat every other team until they met the Soviet Union again. This time in the match before the medal round of the Olympics. 

In a battle of a hockey game, the Soviet Union was leading 3-2 at the start of the final period. Against all odds, the United States scored twice and held the Soviet Union to win 4-3 despite the Soviet team being the universal favorite. 

This film showcases the American Dream by showing how a group of amateurs, that no one believed could do anything remarkable, went on to defeat the strongest opponent in their own sport, the Soviet Union. The antithesis of America at the height of the Cold War. 

While movies like Rocky IV also showcase this, the fictionality of it takes away from its impact. 

Miracle happened. 

That was real. 

Oftentimes, sports movies need a lead character in the form of a coach, trainer or even an athlete to elevate the film above the standard. Just as Denzel Washington and Will Patton do in Remember the Titans, or Samuel L. Jackson in Coach Carter they are able to inspire not only the characters but also the audience to propel those films into immortality. 

Miracle has Kurt Russel. Playing head coach Herb Brooks, the movie lives and dies based on his performance. If Russell isn’t able to portray the weight of what they are doing, the film becomes a standard, underdog sports movie. 

His ability to deliver inspirational speeches creates the mood and expectations for the audience of what they’re about to see. Namely his speech before the match against the Soviet Union in the Olympics. 

In this scene, the audience can feel the nerves shared by the players as they sit in the locker room. Russell walks in, pausing for a moment before speaking, and tells his players what they are about to accomplish and that, “tonight, we are the greatest hockey team in the world.” With the music beginning on that line, building through the rest of Russell’s speech. When the music is at its loudest, the players are focused and the audience is on the edge of their seats, and the players walk out to seize greatness. 

Miracle is a film that should be a decent sports movie. Beating the Soviet Union at the height of the Cold War? In a sport they dominate? That should be a hit. But what makes this better than decent is how they beat them and what that victory represents outside the bounds of its setting. 

That is what all sports movies should strive for, to push the bounds of what is expected from a sports film into something universal.