Favorite/least favorite skating film?

Johar · Apr 12, 2006

None that I have seen come close to anything remotely realistic, but if I had to pick a favorite Ice Castles would be it.

Least favorite--some film where a girl played hockey and was an ice skater. On the night of her big ice skate, she had a hockey game and had to play. By the time she got to the arena it was too late and the crowd started chanting "Let her skate!" over and over. Of course they let her skate and she won.:sheesh:

Kwanford Wife · Apr 12, 2006

Fun thread...

Most favorite:Total Tie!

The Cutting Edge. Not too sappy, not too stupid... just cute. I don't even get pissy about the spotlight skating at the Olympics

Ice Princess: Just loved it... a perfect Saturday afternoon movie and of course it has a very glowy Michelle cameo. And who can't love: "Hey! It's Jumping Shrimp, actually!" :laugh:

Least Favorite: Ice Castles. Hands down. How much melodrama can you pack into a movie?!? That movie is more manipulative than 1000 Acres... Just go back to the farm already... :sheesh:

Lonewolf · Apr 12, 2006

Kwanford Wife said:
Ice Princess: Just loved it... a perfect Saturday afternoon movie and of course it has a very glowy Michelle cameo.

I would agree, I really enjoyed the movie.

Ravyn Rant · Apr 12, 2006

In almost total agreement with Kwanford Wife.
I loved "Ice Princess", but couldn't quite suspend enough disbelief to really enjoy "The Cutting Edge". Although the look on DB Sweeney's face when he says, "Those are...figure skates." was priceless.
I absolutely LOATHE "Ice Castles", as passionately as I loathe war, pestilence and rain (note my location, it's been raining for weeks here). When this movie first came out, all my best friend had to do to make me clap my hands over my ears and/or run away screaming was to start singing, "Please...don't let this feeling end..."
(*shudders*)
It's been 30 years, and I still loathe that movie.

julietvalcouer · Apr 12, 2006

I enjoyed "Ice Princess" a great deal. It was silly, and the physics is even sillier, but it's a fun popcorn movie. And not utterly clueless about skating.

Suspension of disbelief aside, I love "The Cutting Edge." So quotable!

Johar, the movie you're referring to is the Disney Channel movie "Go Figure". And while it IS abysmally stupid, it's not quite as bad as "The Cutting Edge: Going for the Gold", also known as the worst excuse for a sequel in a long time.

While I don't have the depth of hatred some people here seem to for "Ice Castles", I certainly sympathize. What a load of unappealing characters. I really didn't like or care about any of them. And it's less a skating movie, really, than, as critic Leonard Maltin put it, "disease/affliction" genre.

76olympics · Apr 12, 2006

I do love "Cutting Edge" --I bought a DVD copy at the grocery store not long ago. Moira is cute tossing back those margaritas and dancing; very fun chick movie for those stressed out days. I didn't mind lack of realism-and you just gotta watch those Weidermans!

I don't care for "Ice Castles", but I don't loathe it. I was about 12-14 when I saw it and it is just melodrama, pure and simple. My sister and I always wondered who would skate around cast iron furniture anyway? Robby Benson's voice has never been the stuff of dreams .

Johar · Apr 12, 2006

As I reacall in Ice Castles (It's been a good decade since I last saw this) wasn't the furniture in a courner of the ice, like it was there as part of a cafe? Who would literally eat ON the ice?

ALL skating films are cheesy to me. :laugh:

SingAlto · Apr 12, 2006

Kwanford Wife said:
Ice Princess: Just loved it... a perfect Saturday afternoon movie and of course it has a very glowy Michelle cameo.

And Brian Boitano.

Ice Princess was cute, harmless little flick.

I hated Ice Castles. Depressing and ludicrous. A blind girl who can't walk around the house without running into furniture can do a perfect double Axel? Uh... sure.

Alsace · Apr 12, 2006

Well, this isn't a feature film, but the made-for-TV movie On Thin Ice: The Tai Babilonia Story is probably my favorite.

(OT: I finally made "medalist"! No more "tripping" for me!)

SeaniBu · Apr 12, 2006

julietvalcouer said:
Seanibu, the movie you're referring to is the Disney................

What are you talking about? I haven't said anything on this post....?????

As far as entertainment goes I liked Ice Princes more then any pure skating movie I have ever seen. Ice Castles brought me into a new light of what competitive skating is all about - the drama was great back then and it was the age of "despite the diversity, you can do it." As far as standing the test of time, no. By todays standards it really is weak. But if people don't know what pressures are in skating, it can be informational via all the drama. Granted I am not one of those who is so judgmental of movies as soon as the title goes up the checklist starts - not such a critic of everything, I'd rather allow myself to be entertained. If it lasts in my memory as good or bad... I will let time be the judge of that.

I am curious about this upcoming Blades Of Glory, I am sure it might just be silly - and I believe a pic I saw had him wearing double bladed skates - so I don't plan on it being "good," yet possibly entertaining. Thank goodness we haven't seen anything like that new Gymnastics movie about figure skating.

Ladskater · Apr 12, 2006

Not a great fan of Ice Castles and anything that followed it, but am a huge fan of all the Sonja Henie flicks - they were great!

http://www.mnc.net/norway/henie.htm

SeaniBu · Apr 13, 2006

Ladskater said:
Not a great fan of Ice Castles and anything that followed it, but am a huge fan of all the Sonja Henie flicks - they were great!

http://www.mnc.net/norway/henie.htm

Making a trip to Video Station!!!! Called Mom and Dad, they knew all about her movies, Mom needs to tell me more about her past!!! Here I was watching Fred & Ginger, Bing & Hope from that era, and I could have been watching Sonja. I had NO idea she had movies. Where Have I Been!!!????

Thank you Ladskater once again!!!

Ravyn Rant · Apr 13, 2006

Alsace said:
Well, this isn't a feature film, but the made-for-TV movie On Thin Ice: The Tai Babilonia Story is probably my favorite.

(OT: I finally made "medalist"! No more "tripping" for me!)

Congratulations!
"On Thin Ice" was pretty good, but if we're going to get into made-for-TV movies that find a home on Lifetime, I'd have to give the edge to "The Oksana Baiul Story".
I've never seen the Tonya Harding story, but I know someone made one. Anyone have a review?
OT: the sun came out this morning! :clap:

Finally!
xoxo
Rave

SK8LUVR · Apr 13, 2006

I can't say that I hate "Ice Castles". It was a great story at the time when it was made. You know the tragic story where you fight to come back. Of course we could never get away with that today but as one poster said, that was the way competitive skating was back then. I watched this story last October and I still wanted to see it to the end. Very sappy for our more desensitized society now.

I loved "Ice Princess" and I wish that people would make more stories like this one. It is good clean fun and tells the story to work hard and if you have the talent you can do well. A good Saturday afternoon, popcorn movie. Like to see more of these kinds of movies to watch with my daughter.

I think it was better than a movie I started to watch with my 7 year old a few years ago but had to turn it off. I think it was called "On Edge". There was an overweight girl in a pink dress on the DVD cover. I had to turn it off due to a more mature subject matter. After I looked later it was rated 14+. OOPS!

I have not seen the Cutting Edge but I will and I will let you know whether I like this one or not.

gkelly · Apr 13, 2006

Any fans of Sonja Henie's films here?

Mathman · Apr 13, 2006

Fave: Snow White and the Three Stooges, with Carol Heiss. Nyuk, nyuk!

treeskater · Apr 13, 2006

I prefer the films with Belitta....and the original modern (1979) made for TV movie "Champions: A Love Story" by far the most realistic of the post 175 era.

But I also could watch the original 1992 "The Cutting Edge" forever.

Wolfgang · Apr 13, 2006

I'm not going to go as far as saying it's my 'favorite' , but it certainly is different from other skating films.
I just recently saw 'On Edge', which is a comedy/satire that takes just about every cliché that has ever (justly or unjustly) been associated with figure skating, blows it up for the screen, and runs with it.
There's the totally driven, celery stick munching local champion with the insanely obessed skater mom, the girl who actually almost thinks she is Madonna, the tough-talking, cigarettesmoking, beer guzzling 'trailer trash' who's in it for the money, a vastly overweight (but somehow extremly talented) girl in the pinkest, fluffiest tutus and dresses this side of Richard Simmons, an extremly accident prone 'hard worker', the Mafia connected, stressed out Russian former champion who owns the rink, there's also Jason Alexander as Zamboni driver , part time fan and mentor, and full time narrator.
The first half of the movie manages to stay true to the fact that in order for comedy to be funny and for satire to bite, there has to be an element of truth and realism in it.
Sadly, there comes a point where they lose their grip, slip overboard and drown in a sea of 'oh, come on...!'
A little more restraint would have done them good, the clichés get a little bit too overblown, and the biting satire turns into spiteful hack & slash, to the point where I started to wonder if perhaps the script writer, director, or both have some sort of axe to grind with skaters, the sport, or something......
Still, there aren't exactly very many skating movies out there, and this one isn't bad if you have a sense of humor and can get it for cheap, like I did....

julietvalcouer · Apr 13, 2006

seanibu said:
What are you talking about? I haven't said anything on this post....?????

Thread, not post, and sorry, misread who started the thread!

Re: "On Edge"--it has its moments, it really does. (Though the stuff about the fat girl and the anti-fat bias is a bit meh. I mean, yeah, the sport is too carried away with it--see the bashing of poor Emily Hughes for not being a stick like Sasha--but the reality is, the truly obese can't really succeed at skating.) The plot about the trailer-trash girl actually has a lot of potential and is the one place where they aren't always playing it for as much satire as they can possibly get.

Watching it, I had to wonder...first, who did Scott Hamilton have in mind, because no one does a caricature that over the top without having a target. And two--is the fact that Peter Carruthers is the judge roped into doing the 'dirty job' (I can't explain what the job is--spoiler) mean that the makers of the film and/or his peers playing the other judges feel about him much the way some viewers of his post-performance interviews do?

You know, I forgot Sonja Henie. I suppose I think of the film I've seen with her (Sun Valley Serenade) more in terms of Glenn Miller than her. And I've never actually seen "Snow White and the Three Stooges" with Carol Heiss--but then I'm a girl, and the whole "Stooge" thing might be the off-putter.

Jane2 · Apr 13, 2006

treeskater said:
I prefer the films with Belitta....and the original modern (1979) made for TV movie "Champions: A Love Story" by far the most realistic of the post 175 era.

.

OH! MY! GOSH!
I forgot about this movie!
I LOVED it!
LOL!!!!! :rofl:

Wasn't Jimmy McNichol in it?
It this EVER shown on tv?
I'd LOVE to see this again!

Favorite/least favorite skating film?

Johar

Kwanford Wife

Lonewolf

Ravyn Rant

Totally 80s Dance Party!

julietvalcouer

76olympics

Johar

SingAlto

Alsace

SeaniBu

Ladskater

~ Figure Skating Is My Passion ~

SeaniBu

Ravyn Rant

Totally 80s Dance Party!

SK8LUVR

gkelly

Mathman

treeskater

Wolfgang

julietvalcouer

Jane2

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