REVIEW: 'Goon'

It's been my goal these past few months to see films in theaters as close to their release date as possible. My general theory behind this is two-fold. One, it lets me build an opinion about a movie early on, allowing me to actually talk to people about the movie. This was my main motive behind seeing Avatar opening weekend in 2009 — if I planned on bashing it, I better have actually seen it first. Two, as I've mentioned before, the further out from a movie's release date, the less of chance I have of getting around to seeing it.

Goon, a film written by Evan Golberg (half of the Superbad writing team) and Jay Baruchel, had it's official release date last Friday. It appears that it's only a super-select number of theaters and cities though, as Washington, D.C., still haven't the film a week later. While digging around on the Goon website, I discovered that Magnolia Pictures was offering the film on demand. So, for a mere $6.99, I watched Goon tonight through iTunes. (The Apple TV got a workout today — Yankees season opener and Goon. Thanks, Steve Jobs.)

If you haven't heard of Goon yet, here's the trailer so you can acquaint yourself before I go any further.



Seann William Scott plays Doug Glatt, a bouncer who finds his calling as a hockey enforcer. (This is where I feel I should point out that "goon" is another name for an enforcer. I'm going to just assume we all know that.) Scott, who is best known for his role as Stifler in the American Pie series, gives what has to be the best performance of his career in Goon. Now, I'm not saying this is an Oscar-worthy performance, I'm just saying that for Scott, it's his best work. His portrayal of Glatt is nuanced and humorous, and is a departure from his boisterous American Pie, Dude, Where's My Car? and Role Models type characters. Scott strikes just the right tone while playing the dim yet kind-hearted Glatt.

Live Schreiber has a small yet pivotal role as Ross Rhea, another goon who now finds himself at the end of career. Just like the Mighty Ducks always found themselves on a collision course with their nemeses — whether they were the Hawks, Iceland or the varsity squad — Glatt's course has him set up to face Rhea, the enforcer whose legacy Glatt now stands to inherit.

All in all, Goon was definitely worth my $6.99. It's a hockey movie that doesn't require you to actually know anything about hockey. The film moves briskly and is built on tight writing. I honestly would've loved to have seen it in theaters (but, then again, I would prefer to see just about every movie in theaters), but I'm glad I caught it anyways. Hop over to the iTunes Store and rent Goon for yourself. Like I said before, I see movies so I can talk to people about them. Watch Goon and come back here and let me know what you thought.