Youngblood

Maybe it's because I neither follow hockey nor care for it, or maybe it's because I'm a 15-year-old female teenager, but I liked this movie. Sure, it's nothing special or extraordinary, in fact its plot has been done a million times. But I just liked it. It's virtually impossible not to like Dean Youngblood (and it's got nothing to do with the fact that Rob Lowe is hot) and to cheer for him when he finally learns how to hit a guy. The romance between Dean and Jessie actually doesn't seem forced; the two of them have a certain chemistry that is quite obvious to viewers like myself. Cynthia Gibb is all-natural in her role as Jessie, and Patrick Swayze evokes empathy in the viewer as the high-school drop-out who is *this close* to being a pro hockey player. But it is Rob Lowe who basically carried the whole movie, and once again, it has got nothing to do with the fact that he is hot.

Overall, this is a feel-good hockey movie that I liked. I usually can't stand sports movies, as I hate sports with an intense passion, but this one is just...well, it's just nice. And then there's Rob Lowe...

One of my favorite underdog sports films. Swayze and Lowe are phenomenal

Dean Youngblood (Rob Lowe) is a skilled teen hockey player in upstate New York. He gets a tryout for a junior league team in Hamilton. His father refuses but his older brother Kelly convinces him otherwise. Kelly had tried but got injured. Dean's speed beats out the brute Racki in the eyes of coach Chadwick. The team led by captain Derek Sutton (Patrick Swayze) hazes the rookie. The coach's daughter Jessie (Cynthia Gibb) is intrigued. His landlady Miss McGill (Fionnula Flanagan) has boarded and seduced many hockey players in the past.

This is a pretty average coming-of-age movie. Rob Lowe is a charming young guy. Gibb is winsome. Swayze plays a good older mentor like he does in Dirty Dancing. Keanu Reeves gets a small role early in his career. It has a couple of memorable scenes like the hazing. It's not particularly outstanding but it does the job.

...what Youngblood attempts, which is to tell the story of an up and coming star at a crucial point in his hockey career. Of all the hockey movies I've seen, including Slap Shot, The Mighty Ducks movies, The Cutting Edge (which focuses on hockey for only the beginning of the film) and the Van-Damme action-film Sudden Death, (which in my opinion is the absolute worst hockey-related movie ever made) the plot of Youngblood is the most reasonable to me. I have not seen Mystery Alaska, but from a friend of mine's description, it sounds quite far-fetched. (although I suppose a group of Alaskans probably would have a chance against the Rangers :)

I was born late in 1979, and first saw Youngblood when I was quite young. In fact, it was the first hockey movie I ever saw, and to date the only one I own. Part of my fascination with this film resulted from my passion for the sport of ice hockey, which I began playing at the age of 4 and maintained competitively through the collegiate level.

What I like most about Youngblood is that the story is centered around one player (Dean) and his struggles to advance his career, despite his talent. The obstacles he faces in the film: lack of toughness, and clashing with the coach, and knowing his chances to go pro are running slim, are typical themes hockey players share as they advance toward the ultimate goal of one day playing in the NHL. While Slapshot is hockey's cult classic, it is more like Animal House on Ice than a realistic attempt to portray ice hockey, which Youngblood attempts, and quite honestly a film of such nature should be produced for the avid hockey fans around the world.

Without a doubt, Youngblood fails to portray skillful hockey, and the off-ice action only mildly captures the life of a junior hockey player, but had the proper research been done and certain changes made pre-production, Youngblood could have joined Slapshot in hockey fans' movie collections. The games needed to be faster, the dialogue snappier, (especially the Keanu Reeves brainbusters) and the Rocky-ish training diminished the quality of the film, because not only would Dean not go from being the weakest in the league to kicking the toughest guy's butt in a week, but most wannabe professionals and junior teams have regimented training programs to follow on a regular basis, and do not begin two days before the championship game of the league they're in.

Cutting that scene could have made room for a far more realistic side of the game, such as Dean being contacted by prospective coaches, agents and other interested parties to notify him they'd be coming to watch his games. (like most prospects with hopes of going pro have to deal with)

Dean simply mentions that he wants to go pro and needs to play juniors if he's going to get a contract, but that is the last we hear about him playing pro, aside from mentioning it to Jessie, coach Chadwick's sexy daughter, and Dean's love interest. From my experiences, any player in junior hockey who did not receive a fair amount of attention from scouts was quite likely not going anywhere, so there should have been some effort to include them to advance the plot of his odds of making it, because scouts would have certainly had more influence on Dean playing tougher than anyone in the film does, although in reality his teammates should have been getting on him too.

As for character interplay, Dean's relationship with Chadwick's daughter is entertaining, if far-fetched. Perhaps the most realistic relationship between characters in the film is the one between Sutton and Youngblood, as the top talents of hockey teams often have an appreciation for one another and pal-up off the ice. Not to mention, the Hollywood impact on the film is the only logical explanation for Youngblood leaving the team after Sutton's injury. In all my years as a player, I'd never heard of that one, although, I suppose it just explains Dean's irrational behavior resulting from his conflicts with coach Chadwick and his nemesis, Racki.

On the whole, I appreciate this movie, but I certainly wish it had more of an advanced pace and that it better explored and explained some of the typical stereotypes of hockey players that it shows (star player chases and gets the girl everyone wants, the bar scene, the initiation, the opposing team's heckling fans, etc.)

As a long-time hockey player and fan who now studies Scriptwriting at Ithaca College, I feel somewhat obligated to pen a true-to-life hockey film for the die-hard lovers of the game out there. Somebody needs to!! Youngblood, if nothing else, at least will make a decent reference.

It was with some trepidation that I watched this movie, I loved it as a kid, like I did "Crocodile Dundee" and it's sequel, both of which disappointed me, upon rewatching them recently.

Plot In A Paragraph: Dean Youngblood (Rob Lowe) a 17-year-old farmhand from New York, has dreams of playing in the National Hockey League. He is granted the chance to travel to Canada to try out for the Hamilton Mustangs. At the try-outs, Youngblood displays the talent which got him "92 goals in the New York League" but also displays a lack of physical toughness that is so prized in Canadian hockey. This weakness is pounced upon by a brutish player, Carl Racki (George J. Finn), who is also trying out for the team and engages him in a fight. Youngblood quickly learns that flashiness and pure athletic ability will not be enough to be successful in this league. Despite being beat up by by Racki, the coach opts to select Youngblood for a spot on the team. He ingratiates himself to the other players and particularly Captain Derek Sutton (Patrick Swayze) and the coach's daughter Jessie (Cynthia Gibb), its not long before Racki reappears playing for a rival team.

Rob Lowe is good as Dean Youngblood, he is pretty enough for the "pretty boy" tag and looks in good shape. Cynthia Gibb is very attractive as Jessie Chadwick, and what an ass she has!! I loved it!! Ed Lauter is a lot of fun as Coach Murray Chadwick and George J. Finn is imposing and does a good job as Carl Racki. However Patrick Swayze steals this movie (yes even away from Cynthia Gibb's wonderful ass) as Derek Sutton. He is brilliant, and a reminder of what a talent we have lost.

Keanu Reeves had a small role as Heaver, one of Lowe and Swayze's team mates.