Rewatchables Reference

• Van Damme plays goalie in Game 7 of the Stanley Cup Finals, makes a glove save, then punches a player.
• Powers Boothe laying out the plan in the luxury suite.
• Van Damme vs. the Penguins mascot (terrorist in costume) in the kitchen – hand deep-fried, killed in industrial dishwasher.
• Van Damme kills everyone in the helicopter – longest helicopter crash ever.

• Van Damme being named 'Darren McCord' – hilariously mismatched for a Belgian actor.
• All the '80s/'90s action movie tropes – instant bank transfers, 'I think you ought to see this,' shooting a hostage to prove seriousness.
• Van Damme talking French to Luc Robitaille.
• Van Damme's actual performance – arguably his best acting role.

• Dead little girl with eyes open in the first 30 seconds.
• Bringing machine guns into a sporting event.
• Powers Boothe's performance – mailed in, 3 out of 10 on the 'Rickman scale.'
• The violence level – extremely casual, brutal '90s-style.
• Fake NHL players due to the hockey lockout. No Lemieux in the game.

The double roof fight scene – looks great visually.

McCord's son (Ross Malinger) – disrespectful to his dad, never notices his sister is missing, sits in his seat for 2 hours.

• Kyle: This is the fictional sporting event he'd most want to attend – Game 7, Stanley Cup Finals, overtime, terrorist attack, evacuation.
• Bill: It's time for another 'Die Hard at a sporting event' movie; baseball needs it most.

• Schwarzenegger turned it down (was doing 'True Lies').
• Stallone turned it down (didn't like the script, then made Daylight a year later).
• Bruce Willis turned it down (was doing 'Die Hard' with a Vengeance).
• James Woods was supposed to play the Powers Boothe villain role.

The Penguins hockey coach – 'some of the worst acting of any '80s/'90s action movie,' yelling at the goalie like an SNL sketch.

• The Secret Service agent in the suite – also in Shawshank Redemption (the guard who asks Andy to set up a trust fund) and 'The Truman Show' as Truman's father.
• Raymond J. Barry as the Vice President.
• Audra Lindley (Mrs. Roper from Three's Company) as the old lady who gets killed.

The female terrorist in the Iceberg mascot costume who fights Van Damme, gets her hand deep-fried, and gets killed in the industrial dishwasher.

• For Powers Boothe's villain: Kelsey Grammer ('evil Frasier'), Ron Perlman.
• For Hallmark: Samuel L. Jackson (consensus best choice – 'we lost the motherfucking vice president' is written for him).

• Budget $35 million, grossed $64 million.
• Released December 22, 1995 – one week after Heat.
• Karen Baldwin (Penguins owner Howard Baldwin's wife) produced it; had the idea about the retractable roof at Pittsburgh Civic Arena.
• Planned to film during a real NHL game but the lockout hit – used exhibition games, ~2,000 extras, and cardboard cutouts.
• Luc Robitaille took acting classes with Karen Baldwin while playing for the Kings.
• Van Damme's cocaine habit ($10K/week) effectively ended his theatrical career shortly after.

Nobody gets Apex Mountain – Powers Boothe ('Tombstone'/Deadwood are better), Van Damme ('Bloodsport' opened his career), hockey movies ('Miracle' is bigger), 'Die Hard' rip-offs (Speed/'Under Siege').

• Why is being a fire engineer at Pittsburgh's hockey arena treated as an unrespected job?
• Overtime was never part of Powers Boothe's plan – what happens to the bomb scheme?
• The villain's name (Joshua Foss) is never said in the movie.
• Nobody recognizes that Van Damme isn't the real goalie Tolliver.
• Dressing as a hockey goalie takes way more than 2 minutes.
• McCord can somehow make homemade explosives and dart guns as a fire marshal.

• Does Chicago protest the game because Pittsburgh used an illegal player?
• Does Darren McCord get a page on Hockey Reference?
• What's the sports media reaction the next day?

• The Iceberg mascot suit.
• The game-worn Brad Tolliver #35 Penguins jersey (worn by both Tolliver and Van Damme).

If your kids think you're an unemployed loser, the best thing you can do is foil a terrorist attack in front of them.

'Sudden Death' + 'Under Siege' 2: Dark Territory (1995 vs 1995, Van Damme vs Seagal).

Jean-Claude Van Damme.

Craig Horlbeck: first time seeing it, loved it. Says these cheesy '90s action movies are irreplaceable.