The Rocket

Before Wayne Gretzky and Mario Lemieux, before Gordie Howe and Bobby Hull, there was Maurice "Rocket" Richard, the first player to score 50 goals in 50 games and the man generally regarded as the Babe Ruth of the National Hockey League (he was a member of the Montreal Canadiens, the hockey equivalent of the New York Yankees). Directed by Charles Biname, written (in French and English) by Ken Scott, and starring Roy Dupuis as Richard, this 2005 Canadian production is more than a sports movie, as Richard's significance as a populist hero to French Canadians, the humble factory worker who fought against rampant cultural discrimination and risked his career for what he believed in, is given nearly as much weight as his remarkable feats on the ice. As such, The Rocket approaches the status of hagiography. It's more like watching The Natural than a bio of a real person, as the film is quite literally bathed in a reverent glow (the cinematography, both color and black & white, adds a gorgeous but unreal tint to every scene); even in his more dubious moments (he attacked a referee in 1955 and received a suspension, leading to a full-scale riot in and outside of the Montreal Forum), Richard is depicted as a hero-victim. That said, this is also a very entertaining biopic, with Dupuis excellent as the gritty machinist who was considered too frail and injury-prone to compete with the sport's tough guys but who, in the course of a career that lasted from 1942 to 1960, proved himself not only on the rink (where he more than held his own against various NHL goons while setting seemingly impossible scoring records), but also off it (where he stood up to the arrogant owners and league executives who regarded French Canadian players as lower life forms and refused to protect even Richard, the sport's best player, from dirty opponents and biased refs). The hockey scenes, which include various genuine NHL players, are exciting; and the personal moments, especially those involving Canadiens coach Dick Irvin (Stephen McHattie) are fine, if somewhat pat. Modest bonus features include deleted scenes and "A Tribute to Maurice Richard, the Rocket."