So much average

Overrated and overhyped

Although it has its amusing moments, in eneral the plot does not convince.

As somebody who had not heard any of this before, it became a curious phenomenon to sit and watch a film and slowly have the realities begin to click into place.

During the Cold War the Soviet Union took sport very seriously and ice hockey was a particular favourite. This film sets out to tell the story of the most successful five men produced by the Soviet system and they were all Red Army soldiers. It has interviews with the players as they are now including Fetisov who was one of the most driven of the men. It also uses archive footage from the era and uses the history of the time to contextualise what the men were going through. Some of the best bits were the Russians in action – they played with such grace and pose that it is a joy to watch – and I am not a sports fan in the least.The politics on and off the ice are covered too and there are more than a few tough memories brought to the surface. It is mainly in English but there is some Russian that is mostly translated. This is just a fascinating documentary about a little piece of history that I was totally unaware of – highly recommended indeed.

Sorry to say, I was very disappointed with this movie. Having managed to persuade a hockey legend and a politician of Russia to agree to partake on a "hockey documentary" is unfortunately the biggest achievement of Gabe Polsky on this title. I was really hoping to see and hear a lot more about the golden CSKA Moscow era and how it supplied the Soviet hockey team with the core of their succcess, but there is literally zero mentioning of this in the movie. The setting of the ambiance and the interviews are in my opinion quite overdramatized and it is obvious from the reactions of the interviewees they felt the same way. This could have been a far better film if more space was given to players from other countries who were confronted with the soviet team.

You'll note that the only bad reviews so far are Canadian hockey fans upset that those too young to remember Russian Hockey dominance, will learn that Canada was never the defacto all Hockey rulers of the world as they like to claim. Fact is, Russia was the best in the world for quite some time. This is just a tough pill for Canadian hockey fans to swallow.My only complaint is the interviewer did come off as amateurish and disrespectful. Outside of that, I thought the film was very introspective with lots of old footage of the former USSR. Excellent interviews. And to the guy complaining about no Tikhonov interview, it clearly stated at the end of the film that Tikhonov declined an interview request.This is an excellent documentary. If you can put your patriotic homerism aside and respect it for what it is, you will enjoy it.

Red Army illustrates the way of life hockey creates for its players, fans, and country on and off the ice. Polsky intimately describes the pride, devotion, and hardships these players experienced once shoved onto the patriotic pedestal meant to represent strength, determination and nationalism Russia insisted its people adopt. To be a part of the Red Army hockey team was a national honor, it proved your undying love and support for your country, it meant absolute popularity and respect from your fans (which was the entire Russian population), because to Russia, it wasn't just a game, it was a way of life, it was a fight that could move Russia to the top once again. The film primarily follows Slava Fetisov, highlighting his triumphs and relationship with the Red Army team and Russian government, his impossibly tough transition in the NHL, and the affect his hockey talents and patriotism had on his personal life. It's absolutely mesmerizing to watch the dance of the game, the political movements and the life decisions these players and their families are forced to make. It's a life full of tests and courage - Polsky shares an absolutely phenomenally detailed truth.