I am an American guy in my mid-50s. I mention this because the events in "Fire and Ice: The Rocket Richard Riot" all occurred well before I was born. And, not being a Canadian or French-Canadian, I had a difficult time figuring out whether or not the documentary was accurate or if it had a strong bias. I just don't know about the truth and context to all this...and would really love to watch the film AGAIN with some older Canadian hockey fans.
The story is about an incident where the beloved Maurice Richard, the star of the Montreal Canadiens, was suspended for the remainder of the hockey season following a brutal fight on the ice...one where Richard ended up hitting the linesman as well as an opponent. The film seemed to say two things about this--that Richard had long been targeted by opposing players AND the NHL as well as that the ensuing riot might have been the result of French-Canadian resentment at the Anglos.
The sad thing about this film is that it came out just after Richard died. It sure would have been nice to hear from him in something other than archival footage. I know the filmmakers couldn't help this...but it would have helped make for a better story. Overall, mildly interesting but a film that also made you wonder just what DID happen...as no surviving footage of the hockey fight exists and it leaves you wondering exactly what did happen.
The story is about an incident where the beloved Maurice Richard, the star of the Montreal Canadiens, was suspended for the remainder of the hockey season following a brutal fight on the ice...one where Richard ended up hitting the linesman as well as an opponent. The film seemed to say two things about this--that Richard had long been targeted by opposing players AND the NHL as well as that the ensuing riot might have been the result of French-Canadian resentment at the Anglos.
The sad thing about this film is that it came out just after Richard died. It sure would have been nice to hear from him in something other than archival footage. I know the filmmakers couldn't help this...but it would have helped make for a better story. Overall, mildly interesting but a film that also made you wonder just what DID happen...as no surviving footage of the hockey fight exists and it leaves you wondering exactly what did happen.
