SummaryA publicity stunt turns into the ultimate lopsided competition when the world-famous New York Rangers face off against the team from Mystery, Alaska, a hockey-loving town of only 633 people. (Hollywood Pictures)
Directed By:Jay Roach
Written By:David E. Kelley, Sean O'Byrne
Mystery, Alaska
Metascore
Mixed or Average
49
User score
Generally Favorable
7.5
My Score
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Top Cast
Metascore
Mixed or Average
34% Positive
10 Reviews
10 Reviews
55% Mixed
16 Reviews
16 Reviews
10% Negative
3 Reviews
3 Reviews
83
The humor sizzles.
70
Raucously funny.
63
Could metamorphose into an entertaining sitcom.
50
Crowe gives the kind of thoughtful performance that suggests what Mystery, Alaska could have been if it had stayed in focus.
50
Nothing's wrong with this movie--the hockey footage is exciting, the characters quirky, the subplots idiosyncratic--but nothing's special about it either.
40
There are people who eat this kind of thing right up -- if you're one of them, dig in.
25
Humdrum hybrid of stale sitcom characters and creaky sports cliches.
User score
Generally Favorable
71% Positive
12 Ratings
12 Ratings
29% Mixed
5 Ratings
5 Ratings
0% Negative
0 Ratings
0 Ratings
Mar 28, 2025
5
"Um, waiter? There, uh, heh-heh seems to be a distinct lack of hockey in my hockey movie."Seriously, I get that the best sports movies out there aren't **really** about the sport at the center of everything, but — man — I feel like this was 60% down-home gossip, 30% blue humor and like 10% hockey. Also, just look at the billing block and tell me what you're expecting as a filmgoer. Russell Crowe, Burt Reynolds and Hank Azaria, directed by Jay Roach. I mean, if you squint, you can kind of see what they were going for. Part "Slap Shot," part "Miracle." Maybe you could say this movie walked (limped?) so that "Goon" could run? OrmMaybe I'm just being too polite. It **** because there's nothing offensively bad about this. Everybody does an okay job performance-wise. For me, it honestly just comes down to there being too much homespun drama and not enough of what the poster promised.
