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55 of 62 found the following review helpful:
 Mystery, Alaska is the place to be!Sep 23, 2000
By Caroline P. Hampton
This charming film didn't get the positive praise it deserved. It was absolutely wonderful. The small Alaskan town of "Mystery" has a quirky "Northern Exposure" feel to it, and a wonderful ensemble cast add a lot of fun and games. The "Saturday" hockey game leads off this fairy-tale story of David vs. Goliath, as their hometown boys go against the NHL'S New York Rangers. Former "townie" Hank Azaria starts this whole thing by writing a spotlight on the "Saturday Game" for Sports Illustrated and well.. Mystery is never the same after that. Russell Crowe turns in a great performance as "slightly older" town Sherif John Biebe, who is the heart and soul of the much younger hockey team. There are many wonderful smaller performances by faces you'll certainly know and love. It's a wonderfully sweet, charming and funny (with classic one liners from MANY of the young players) movie that only HAPPENS to be about hockey. There is so much more to it. You don't have to know a thing about hockey to appreciate this fun and lighthearted movie. It's right up there with my all-time favs. Definatley worth a look!
25 of 27 found the following review helpful:
Genuinely fun movieSep 01, 2000
By Hollis Boyd
I rented this DVD having never even heard of the movie.But after having watched it, Mystery, Alaska has become one of my favorite movies. This enjoyable tale about a town full of eccentric, hockey-obsessed people, moves along at a nice, steady pace. Unlike many movies these days, Mystery, Alaska doesn't rush through important plot points. When a former neighbor returns home bringing the New York Rangers to play against Mystery's legendary hockey team, the town sheriff, recently bumped from the team for a younger player who's got "jump", agrees to coach. The members of the team are fleshed out well by an ensemble cast of virtual unknowns, with the exception of Russell Crowe. The ending is exciting, and surprisingly unpredictable. For me, the actor that stole the show was Ryan Northcott, a barely credited character, who plays the pivotal role of the high school skating whiz who takes Russell Crowe's place on the team. He has a couple of the most amusing, and embarassing, scenes in the movie, and handles them with humor and grace. Overall, Mystery, Alaska was a funny, enjoyable movie that I recommend to everyone. You don't have to be a hockey fan to love Mystery, Alaska.
14 of 15 found the following review helpful:
The Pride Of Mystery.....Jan 15, 2003
By L. Shirley
"Laurie's Boomer Views"
This review refers to the Hollywood Pictures DVD edition of "Mystery,Alaska"....
The small close-knit town of Mystery, Alaska(pop.633), is obssesed with the game of Hockey. Everyone in the town is invovled. There's even a committee of the important men of the town whose sole job it is to decide who will be on the team in the all important Saturday games.There in their own little niche of the world, they go about their business, live their quirky little lives and all revolving around their hockey team.All that is about to change though...
An ex-Mysterian who has moved to New York and is now a sports promoter has lined up the game of a lifetime for this little town. They will play the New York Rangers in an exhibition game right there in Mystery.Will it turn into more than an exhibition game for these everyday people? The team is good but how good are they? Can they even score against the Rangers? What will it do to their pride if the Rangers annihlate them? You'll be smiling all the way through with these outlandish characters in this funny yet poignant story, as you find out.
The film has a tremendous cast. It stars Russell Crowe, Hank Azaria and Burt Reynolds.(Also look for a great cameo in the commentators booth!) It also includes Lolita Davidovich,Maury Chaykin, Mary McCormack and Colm Meany.A wonderful screenplay by David E. Kelley and Sean O'Byrne, beautiful photography by Peter Deming and expertly directed by Jay Roach all add to the enjoyment of this film.
It is presented on the DVD in the theatrical widescreen aspect of 2.35.1 and is beautifully transfered.I noticed on the technical information on the product page of this DVD, it has Dolby 2.0 for the sound, but you'll be happy to find out that it is actually in the 5.1, so those with a home theatre system will get the full effect of every slap shot! There's a short featurette on the filming, and it has closed captions for hearing impaired viewers. These are real nice, I checked them out and they are nice and clear and below the film(in the black bar portion under the widescreen).
The people of Mystery will melt your heart as the heat up the ice......have fun...Laurie
also recommended:
Northern Exposure Seasons 1 - 4 DVD Bundle
Diamonds
IF I NEVER GET BACK. A Novel.
20 of 23 found the following review helpful:
Mystery AlaskaMar 30, 2008
By Kelly
"Reviewer for The Sinfully Sensuous"
I wasn't sure if I would like this movie because I do not like Russell Crowe at all. The only reason I agreed to sit through it was that the rest of the ensemble cast was so good. I ended up enjoying this film. Who doesn't like a film where you can root for the underdog? The hockey team in Mystery, Alaska ends up playing an exhibition game against the New York Rangers. Everyone has the same question - can they compete? This is a movie that can appeal to many because while there are some very funny moments, there is also a lot of drama.
10 of 10 found the following review helpful:
The movie itself is 5 starsSep 21, 2001
By Evan Miller
"Hedonist and All Around Geek"
This is a great movie. No 100 million dollar budgets and wowee special effects. Just good writing and great characters. Oh yeah, and hockey. I love hockey. I think it's the sport of the gods. And I went to see this in the theaters because it featured hockey. But now I watch it because it's a great movie. and it would be a great movie no matter what sport it dealt with (even basketball, yuck!). It star s apre-Gladiator Russel Crowe who is the town Sherriff and player during the Saturday Game. The people in mystery love hockey. Their lives revolve around it. Colm Meany plays the town mayor who is for all intents-and-purposes, the general manager of the "team". Hank Azaria plays the town prodigal son who left town for the bright lights and big city of New York and returns promising a game against the New York Rangers as a publicity stunt. Admist all the fervor of playing against an NHL team on live TV, Burt Reynolds plays the towns Judge, who cautions them to think it through before agreeing to play a professional team. Eventually we get to see the game, and it was nice to see them not end it with a total "feel-good" ending. You can probably guess what I mean by that, but you should buy or rent it anyway. I only gave the DVD 4 stars because the DVD was woefully short on extras. Only the usual we have come to expect... commentary tracks and a very short "making of..." filmette. Still, it's a great buy.
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based on 143 reviews