Red Army (2015)
90%RT Audience Score: 85%
Awards & Nominations: 5 wins & 11 nominations
Fun and fascinating, Red Army delivers absorbing documentary drama for hockey fans and sports novices alike.
Who knew a documentary about ice hockey could be so fascinating? Red Army takes viewers on a journey through the Soviet Union’s Red Army team and the political and cultural forces that drove them. Even if you’re not a sports fan, this film will keep you on the edge of your seat with its gripping interviews and slick interplay on the ice. Plus, you’ll learn a thing or two about the stages of the Cold War, Perestroika, and Putin’s reign. Don’t miss out on this touching and entertaining tale.
Production Company(ies)
Das Films, David Sonenberg Production Polygram Filmed Entertainment,
Distributor
Sony Pictures Classics
Release Type
Streaming, Theatrical, Theatrical (Limited)
Filming Location(s)
MPAA / Certificate
Rated PG for thematic material and language
Year of Release
2015
-
Color:Color
-
Sound mix:Dolby
-
Aspect ratio:1.85 : 1
-
Runtime:1h 25m
-
Language(s):English, Russian
-
Country of origin:United States
-
Release date:Release Date (Theaters): Jan 23, 2015 Limited
Release Date (Streaming): Jun 9, 2015
Genre(s)
Documentary
Keyword(s)
Red Army, hockey, Soviet Union, Russian Five, coach, Slava Fetisov, documentary, Gabe Polsky, PG, English, Sony Pictures Classics, box office, gross USA, $728.7K, critic reviews, reviewed by Simran Hans, Tara Brady, Mark Kermode, Philip De Semlyen, Kate Muir, Peter Bradshaw, Chris McCoy, Mattie Lucas, Patrick Gamble, Bernard Boo, MPAA rating, produced by Gabe Polsky, directed by Gabe Polsky, written by Gabe Polsky, Scotty Bowman, Viacheslav Fetisov, Anatoli Karpov, Alexei Kasatonov, Ken Kurtis, genre, sports, politics, culture, Cold War, Perestroika, Putin, Irish Times, Observer, Empire Magazine, Times, Guardian, Memphis Flyer, Way Too Indie, Bowling Green Daily News
Worldwide gross: $798,680
Worldwide gross (inflation-adjusted): $996,967
Worldwide gross ranking (inflation-adjusted): 2,599
Worldwide tickets sold (est.): 108,720
US/Canada gross: $694,600
US/Canada gross (inflation-adjusted): $867,047
US/Canada gross ranking (inflation-adjusted): 2,220
US/Canada opening weekend: $20,100
US/Canada opening weekend (inflation-adjusted): $25,090
US/Canada opening weekend ranking (inflation-adjusted): 2,433
Budget and Earnings Details
Production budget (est.): NA
Production budget (inflation-adjusted): NA
Production budget ranking: NA
Marketing and distribution budget (inflation-adjusted est.): NA
Box office net earnings to date (inflation-adjusted est.): NA
ROI to date (est.): NA
ROI ranking: NA
Viacheslav Fetisov – Himself, Voice
Anatoli Karpov – Himself, Voice
Alexei Kasatonov – Himself, Voice
Ken Kurtis – Himself, Voice
Gabe Polsky – Director, Producer, Writer
Director(s)
Gabe Polsky
Writer(s)
Gabe Polsky
Producer(s)
Gabe Polsky
Film Festivals
Cannes, Telluride, Toronto
Awards & Nominations
5 wins & 11 nominations
Academy Awards
All Critics (101) | Top Critics (41) | Fresh (93) | Rotten (8)
By focusing less on his characters and more on a supposed dark side of Russian hockey, Polsky’s film is less documentary than it is didacticism.
August 1, 2017 | Rating: 2/5
Simran Hans
Little White Lies
TOP CRITIC
There’s a lesson here for fans of any contemporary sport and an absolutely thrilling tale, impeccably assembled besides. Sporting glory awaits, even for those viewers who couldn’t tell a jockstrap from a jellybean.
February 25, 2016 | Rating: 5/5
Tara Brady
Irish Times
TOP CRITIC
Polsky’s documentary is nominally about ice hockey, but culture and politics provide the driving force as the Russians go head to head with the Americans in a battle of ideology, economics and art.
October 11, 2015 | Rating: 3/5
Mark Kermode
Observer (UK)
TOP CRITIC
The interviews are as entertaining as the slick interplay on the ice.
October 8, 2015 | Rating: 4/5
Philip De Semlyen
Empire Magazine
TOP CRITIC
Who knew that a documentary on the Soviet Union’s Red Army ice hockey team would be so gripping and provide a perfect microcosm of the stages of the Cold War, Perestroika and Putin’s reign?
October 8, 2015 | Rating: 4/5
Kate Muir
Times (UK)
TOP CRITIC
A fascinating and touching tale.
October 8, 2015 | Rating: 4/5
Peter Bradshaw
Guardian
TOP CRITIC
I’m not much of a sportsman, much less a hockey fan, but this meticulously crafted documentary is a knockout.
January 9, 2020
Chris McCoy
Memphis Flyer
Takes a strong subject and renders it toothless and forgettable.
August 7, 2019 | Rating: 2/4
Mattie Lucas
From the Front Row
Red Army ultimately fails to deliver anything other than a superficial account of the USSR’s sporting history and the role of sport in the Soviet Union.
April 8, 2019 | Rating: 3/5
Patrick Gamble
CineVue
Red Army is most stirring when it examines the painful inner-struggle of these men who left behind a country and government that took a heavy toll on their lives, but who could also never abandon their innate sense of nationalistic pride.
March 19, 2019 | Rating: 8/10
Bernard Boo
Way Too Indie
What makes “Red Army” so interesting is how it also works as a statement on what it was like from the Soviet perspective during the Cold War era.
January 23, 2019 | Rating: B
Micheal Compton
Bowling Green Daily News
The story loses some of its grip after Glasnost and the eventual move of many of the top Russian players to the big money ranks of the NHL, but Fetisov is a fascinating, complex character, a real Russian soul.
August 22, 2018 | Rating: 4/5
Alison Rowat
The Herald (Scotland)…
Plot
Red Army is a documentary about the Soviet Union’s Red Army ice hockey team, focusing on the story of hockey captain Slava Fetisov and four other players who form a nearly unbeatable unit known as the “Russian Five,” but their coach’s brutal regimen leads Fetisov and others to defect from the Soviet Union.
Trivia
Goofs / Tidbits
Viacheslav Fetisov, a former hockey captain, is the central figure in the documentary Red Army, which explores the rise and fall of the Soviet Union’s hockey team.
Gabe-Polsky.jpg
