Mystery, Alaska Filmed
- Jan
26, 1998 – April 18, 1998
Mystery
is a tiny little burg on the edge of the tundra, where hockey is
religion, release & righteous fun all rolled into one. When
someone has the bright idea of pitting the local heroes against the New
York Rangers in a promotional deal, the citizens are a little wary Kelley's script
for Mystery, Alaska (co-authored by Sean O'Byrne) takes that level of
eccentricity to a geographical and spiritual extreme. The film revives
the hackneyed Rocky formula, setting a lopsided hockey match within a
remote, self-contained hamlet where the members of a tiny population all
have to wear multiple hats and still keep neighborly ties intact. The
story concerns the town's chief source of identity and pride: so-called
"Saturday games," in which local men divide into teams and
play pond hockey for the locals. When a prodigal son (Hank Azaria) of
Mystery shows up with a television network offer to bring the New York
Rangers in for a televised match against the homegrown team, the town
fathers agree. Coaching falls to the town sheriff, John Biebe (Russell
Crowe), an admirable man and a longtime player recently bumped from the
team. John, however, doesn't want the job: everyone knows the real coach
in those parts is Judge Burns (Burt Reynolds), but he wants no part of
it either. All of that changes after a sad tragedy forces everyone to
reevaluate their positions and pull together in order to beat the
Rangers. Mystery, Alaska is
a very good, wholesome movie. A little bit of something for everyone
here! Russell plays a small town sheriff, and also the informal captain
of his town's pond hockey team. Mystery may seem like your ordinary
little town, until you are confronted with the inhabitants tangible love
for hockey. People live and die hockey here!
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