My Family's Most-Watched Video

Author's Rating:

Pros: very funny

Cons: none

Author's Review
At my house when the discussion turns to "What movie do we want to watch?", Cool Runnings is most often selected. Its a great comedy, a story of determination and hard work by young people and a story of an athlete who once cheated, but is ultimately redeemed. The story is based on actual events. I am not a Jamaican bobsled team historian, so I don't know how much is fact and how much fiction and sometimes I wonder. But I don't let my mind wandering into this issue hinder my enjoyment of this film.But, sometimes some of the characters seem a little too "stereotypical" of how people might view Jamaicans - colorful, singing, rhyming people. And I wonder if the individuals whom the movie is based on are really like that or if the producers/screenwriters "adapted" reality to make it more of what people might expect. But more than all this, it is a great story of the hard work of the bobsled team. I think its a great movie for young people because it shows people working and working together despite their differences and great obstacles.I like John Candy's character, too, the athlete who cheated, lost his gold medal, got depressed and became a drinking bookie. But, in the end he got his act together and led the team in their hard work, making a remarkable contribution to his sport and to the olympics. Too often, people who find themselves in some sort of trouble think that life is over. But we can all get a second chance of some sort and still "do good." I think this movie would be very encouraging to anyone facing hard times of any kind.Laughter is good for the soul and this is the main contribution of Cool Runnings, not the lessons about hard work and contributions. This movie is just hysterical, but ends with a great dramatic scene which always brings tears to my eyes. So for about three minutes, Cool Runnings is a sports drama of the highest caliber. Wonderful comedy and tear-jerking drama - a great combination!