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Film Review - Goon
Hockey fans rejoice! A modern day Canadian hockey tale has come to cinemas and it will get your blood pumping and make you wonder if there is a hockey game playing tonight. I had the pleasure of attending the premiere in Montreal and got a chance to talk to the stars about their very Canadian oriented project. Director Michael Dowse was quite excited about premiering the film at the Amc Forum; it was a perfect fit for the night’s hockey theme.
The film is based on the novel Goon: The True Story of an Unlikely Journey into Minor League Hockey by Adam Frattasio and Doug Smith which tells the tale of Smith’s career as a hockey enforcer. Sean William Scott plays Doug Glatt, the uninspired bouncer who is very good at crowd control. Unfortunately he feels unfulfilled and bored with his life and wants to be a part of something where he feels wanted and important. Jay Baruchel, who also co-wrote the script, plays his vulgar and hilarious friend, Pat. Baruchel’s character brings him to a hockey game where Doug’s true talent comes out to shine. He gets into a fight with a hockey player and pretty much knocks him out cold within seconds. The coach notices his iron fists and offers him a chance to show him what he’s got on the ice.
A couple hilarious scenes later, Doug gets his footing down enough to start playing in games to help protect the more important players. He gets a gracious offer from the Halifax Highlanders to help protect their prime player Xavier Laflamme, played by the very talented and handsome Marc-André Grondin. He delivers his dialogue with humor and a ton of sex appeal; he definitely stirs up the hockey fantasy I have stored away. He makes it look like he belongs on the ice and feels comfortable leading the team to victory, but his career takes a nosedive because of drug use and the bad boy party animal he loves to release. The plot thickens when a crushing hit from Ross Rhea, played by the wonderful Liev Schreiber, injures Xavier. Laflamme has not been playing as well since the injuring and his performance is affected by his fear to be crushed against the boards again. Here comes the hero Glatt to protect the lesser confident Xavier. The story unfolds and Glatt becomes a part of the team and is destined to fight the legendary bone crushing Ross Rhea. They finally meet during playoffs and the payoff is a bloody good time.
There is nothing more exciting then when the players drop their gloves and it is on like Donkey Kong. Glatt fights his way to acceptance from the team and they become a hilarious dysfunctional family. The other team players are all characters on their own but they allow Grondin and Scott to shine through the vast amount of humor portrayed with some locker room shenanigans.
If you have ever enjoyed a hockey game then this film is for you. The dialogue is modern and vulgar, just like my own vocabulary during hockey games. The fights are realistic and fun to watch. The angles are closer than the ones we usually see during real hockey games, therefore we get to see the blood spatter much better, and a couple teeth are lost here and there, which is an image I associate with our love of the game.
The film was filmed in Winnipeg and should be very proud to be Canadian. I managed to catch an elevator ride with Baruchel and he mentioned how proud he was of this film; he was very excited and grinning from ear to ear. He mentioned his favorite hockey film was Slapshot and hopes that his own project will go down in hockey film history. I enjoyed it immensely and I laughed out loud more then twice, as I’m sure you will. Hockey is a huge part of our city and Goon made me want to lace up my skates on, grab a fluorescent orange puck and get to the rink with some buds and beer. See the film and have some fun!
3.5 out of 5 stars
-Andrea Boulet
Six student associations vote to strike
Six of Concordia’s student associations including one faculty voted to join the province-wide strike against rising tuition rates.
The School of Community and Public Affairs, Political Science, Geography, Philosophy, Women’s Studies and the entire Fine Arts faculty voted to join the 80,000 students already on strike throughout Quebec. The Women’s Studies Association made history voting to be the first department to start striking this morning while the other associations are set to start sometime next week.
That brings the total number of students on strike at Concordia to 6,300 according to the student Union. The CSU will be holding its own vote next Wednesday on a proposed four-day strike starting March 26.
Conservatives turn the tables on robo-call allegations
The conservatives are defending themselves in the face of the second wave of robo-call allegations. According to The Globe and Mail, the Tories claim that it wasn’t them but the liberal party that placed the annoying and repetitive calls made to liberal voters.
The Tories main line of defense is the connection between the Liberals and a voter-calling company that relays its calls from the United States.
According to the Tories, the Liberals spent a hefty sum on companies that call up voters to get their support. One of the companies is called First Contact. And according to one B.C. Liberal candidate, First Contact has its main call-computer in the United States.
Voters who received the late night calls say a North Dakota number appeared on their caller ID and a conservative MP claims that First Contact has offices in North Dakota. But the vice president of operations at Prime Contact says that they are a Canadian company.
Photo: Flickr, Mike Licht
March 1st, 2012
Read by: Kevin Gascoigne
Stories by: Sabrina Daniel, Esther Viragh and Carlo Spiridigliozzi
Produced by: Carlo Spiridigliozzi
Canada questioned on war on drugs
Canada's stance on marijuana has been questioned.
According to CBC News, the Global Commission on Drug Policy stated, in an open letter, that it is weird for Canada to be taking a tough stance on marijuana while other countries are reconsidering theirs.
The commission also stated on Wednesday that Prime Minister Stephen Harper should stop pursuing the outlaw of marijuana.
The open letter, which warns that Canada is making the same mistakes as other countries have in the past on this issue has been signed by former dignataries from around the world.
Flickr photo by: Tha Goodiez
Quebec doctor charged in U.S.
A former Quebec doctor is facing serious charges in the U.S.
According to CBC News, Dr. Jacques Roy and six other people are accused of defrauding the madicare system in the U.S. of 375 million dollars.
Dr. Roy is facing 10 charges of recruiting patients and having the medicare system pay for treatment which he never provided.
His practice Medistat Group Associates is alleged to have certified more than 11 000 patients from January 2006 to November 2011.
He is looking at a possibility of 100 years in prison if found guilty.
flickr photo by: meddygarnet
Anti-corruption unit targets Quebec mayor
The mayor of Saint-Constant, Que., and his son were targeted in a series of anti-corruption raids south of Montreal.
According to the CBC, Gilles Pepin had his home and offices at City Hall searched on Wednesday.
The province’s anti-corruption unit found nothing that would warrant an arrest.
Pepin’s administration has faced allegations of violating the elections act in the past. It is unclear if the search warrants are connected to that investigation.
Opus cards will soon need to be replaced
If you've had your Opus card for four years, it is time to get it replaced.
People who purchased a transit pass when they first came out will have to get a new one before April 2012.
Replacement passes are free as long as they are exchanged within three months of their expiration date.
You can check your card's expiration date at an Opus machine, a retailer who sells the cards or online. Fares remaining on the old card will be transferred to the new one.
You can purchase your new Opus card at Berri-UQAM, Honore-Beaugrand, Jean-Talon, Cote-Vertu, Lionel-Groulx and the Fairview shopping centre.
Anyone unable to visit those six service points can be reimbursed by mail. To get a refund, buy a new card and send your old one along with the receipt to the STM.
Since April 2008, the STM has issued around 3.8 million passes. Before the end of 2012, almost 200,000 people will have to replace their cards.
A new generation of Opus cards will be available this summer. They will be good for four years.
To check the expiry date of your transit pass or to find out where to send your old Opus cards, visit the STM website at www.stm.info
This Week In Sports: February 29th
NHL:
The trade deadline came and went without much fanfare for a second consecutive year, with only 15 trades being completed on the final day of wheeling and dealing. On the local front, the Habs refrained from a full-blown fire sale, only moving enigma Andrei Kostitsyn to Nashville for a 2nd round pick while also getting back the pick Montreal sent over in the Hal Gill trade. While the return seems underwhelming, Kostitsyn hadn't exactly made himself that endearing to other teams with his lackluster play over the last twenty games. The major changes will come in the summer when a new management team will no doubt come in and perform a clean sweep.
NBA:
The NBA All-Star weekend has come and gone, with no shortage of storylines. The weekend began with a volley of questions headed in Dwight Howard's direction, as the Orlando Magic's franchise player has been the subject of trade rumours since the beginning of the season. The basketball world then turned its attention to the Skills Competition, highlighted by Kevin Love's impressive win in the three-point challenge, followed by a victory for Jeremy Evans in the Slam Dunk contest. Evans underwhelmed with his first dunk, but then brought the house down with an unreal dunk of two balls tossed up by a teammate sitting under the basket.
But perhaps the most newsworthy thing to come out of the weekend happened in the actual All-Star game, when Dwayne Wade inadvertently hit Kobe Bryant in the face, resulting in a broken nose and a mild concussion for Bryant. Conspiracy theories are running rampant, but I think its safe to say that the injury was accidental.
NFL:
The biggest news in the NFL is coming out of Indianapolis, as it has been for the past month, except this time it's not about Peyton Manning. The NFL Combine took place in Indy this week and, as it has been for years, players' stocks are rising and falling as we approach the Draft in April. One of the biggest names has only helped himself this week, as Robert Griffin Jr. III ran a fantastic 40-yard dash while impressing every team he was interviewed by; this is sweet music to the ears' of the front office of the St.Louis Rams, who hold the 2nd overall pick and will probably get a massive return from the team who falls in love with Griffin and wants to move up to grab him with the Rams pick.
-Andrew Maggio co-hosts Game Misconduct every Sunday from 12pm-2pm and runs a dedicated Habs blog that you can check out here
February 29, 2012
Read by: Greg Wilson
Stories by: William Pelletier, Michael Lemieux, Joel Ashak and Alyssa Tremblay
Produced by: Jamie-Lee Gordon
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