Genre
Sports / Drama
Written By
Eric Guggenheim
Logline
The true story of coach Herb Brooks, who led the 1980 U.S. Olympic hockey team to a seemingly impossible victory over the world champion Russians.
Why break it down?
There's a movie coming out in a few weeks called 'Warrior.' And if word on the street is any indication, I might be the only film student on the planet who wants to see it. Call me a sucker (actually, don't. The
reviews so far have been stellar), but I can't help it…I just have a thing for sports movies.
Now, when I say "sports movies," I don't just mean movies where people smack each other and toss balls around (could have worded that differently...didn't); I mean films that follow
THE SPORTS MOVIE FORMULA - in essence, three-act structure with training montages, motivational speeches, and a "championship game" climax. 'The Great Debaters?' Sports movie. '8 Mile?' Sports movie. 'The King's Speech?' Really good sports movie. In its own way, each of these films is drawn from movies like 'Rocky' and 'The Karate Kid,' just without the boxing gloves and kimonos and subtle hints at homoeroticism. So what sports films can we break down to get a better understanding of three-act structure? Enter my favorite sports film of all time - directed by the same guy who did 'Warrior' - 2004's
'Miracle.'
'MIRACLE' IS AN EXAMPLE OF THE SPORTS MOVIE FORMULA, a form of three-act structure that distinctly lays out where the important beats and plot points are supposed to appear. As an added bonus,
IT CAN ALSO TEACH US HOW TO HIDE THE STRUCTURE OF OUR FILMS INSIDE COMPELLING SCENES, so that audiences will stop watching for technical handiwork and become immersed in the story and characters onscreen.
So read up, keep an eye out for the beats, and we'll look at the film's structure after the jump. (Click the
[+] button for a summary of each scene.)
ACT I
00:00 - 03:15 (3.25 pages) [+]MONTAGE
Montage over credits and music. We see clips of the 1970s United states, from the Olympic basketball game against Russia to disco fever to the Watergate scandal. The music swells, the montage ends, and we're given the title of the film:
03:15 - 04:00 (0.75 pages) [+]INT. AMATEUR HOCKEY ASSOCIATION OF THE U.S. - DAY
HERB BROOKS
(Kurt Russell) sits in the lobby, passing time by drawing hockey plays.
WALTER BUSH
(Sean McMann) - director of the U.S. Olympic Committee - comes out to greet him, and the two make their way to the boardroom.
04:00 - 06:15 (2.25 pages) [+]INT. BOARDROOM - DAY
An interview.
Herb talks with the U.S. Olympic Committee about his plan for coaching the U.S. hockey team.
06:15 - 07:15 (1.00 pages) [+]INT. HERB'S HOUSE - MINNESOTA - DAWN
Herb arrives home to his wife,
PATTI
(Patricia Clarkson). They talk about
Herb's interview:
Patti reminds
Herb of the costume party they're hosting tonight, and brings him a costume to wear.
| ⇡⇣ OPENING EXPOSITION
07:15 - 08:45 (1.50 pages) [+]INT. HERB'S HOUSE - NIGHT
A costume party in full swing. The phone rings and
Patti answers; it's the U.S. Olympic Committee, and they're looking for
Herb.
Patti finds
Herb playing table hockey with their son. She interrupts to tell him the Olympic Committee is on the phone. Excited, they run upstairs to his office.
08:45 - 10:45 (2.00 pages) [+]
10:45 - 14:00 (3.25 pages) [+]INT. HOCKEY RINK - COLORADO - DAY
Tryouts are in full swing. The players run drills while
Herb and
Walter watch.
Jim
shows off his goalie skills by blocking a few shots, and
Herb takes notice.
Up in the coach's box,
Herb is joined by his assistant coach
CRAIG PATRICK
(Noah Emmerich), who takes a look at the roster
Herb has put together:
14:00 - 16:15 (2.50 pages) [+]INT. HOCKEY RINK - COLORADO - LATER
Craig and
DOC
(Kenneth Welsh) - the team doctor - read the official roster out loud to the players. One by one, they sigh in relief. Everyone who didn't make the team leaves the building.
Herb appears and gives an inspirational/scary speech:
Craig dismisses the team, giving them a multiple-choice test to finish by the next time they show up.
| INCITING INCIDENT
16:15 - 17:45 (1.50 pages) [+]EXT. PARKING LOT - MOMENTS LATER
Walter catches up to
Herb in the parking lot.
17:45 - 20:15 (2.50 pages) [+]INT. BAR - NIGHT
Ralph
,
Rizzo
,
O'Callahan
, and a few other guys hang at the local bar, celebrating.
Mac
shows up and waves at
Rizzo (they met earlier, in 08:45 - 10:45), but
O'Callahan is pissed:
20:15 - 23:45 (3.50 pages) [+]INT. BLOOMINGTON ICE ARENA - MINNESOTA - DAY
The team runs practice scrimmages. One of the players doesn't pass the puck, and
Herb gets on his ass about it (because he's all about
teamwork). Then,
O'Callahan does something unexpected: He body-checks
Mac into the ice, and the two get in an all-out fistfight.
Herb lets them go at it. When they're finally done, he gives a speech.
⇡⇣ PREPARE FOR ADVENTURE
23:45 - 25:45 (2.00 pages) [+]INT. / EXT. DORM - NIGHT
Herb knocks on
Jim's door and asks him why he refused to take the multiple-choice test (14:00 - 16:15).
Jim follows
Herb outside and they talk about why
Jim tried out for the team. Turns out,
Jim's mom recently died, and she wanted him to play in the Olympics.
Herb leaves, telling
Jim to bring his A-game at practice tomorrow.
25:45 - 27:15 (1.50 pages) [+]EXT. GAS STATION - DAY
Craig and
Doc wait in line at a gas station. They talk about how hockey players from Boston and Minnesota will never get along. Then,
Craig asks
Doc a question:
27:15 - 33:00 (5.75 pages) [+]INT. HERB'S HOUSE - NIGHT
Herb watches tape of the Russian hockey team in his office.
Patti asks if he can pick up the kids tomorrow, but he's too absorbed in his work to hear what she's saying. They get in a fight, and she accuses him of chasing a dream he never achieved as a kid. Knowing
Patti is right,
Herb goes back into his office and pulls an old picture out of his desk:
The 1960 U.S. Olympic Hockey Team (Herb was on it)
Herb returns to his bedroom and apologizes, admitting
Patti was right. She takes his hand, forgiving him, and lets him know she'll support him.
ACT II
33:00 - 35:30 (2.50 pages) [+]INT. BLOOMINGTON ICE ARENA - DAY
The first official practice.
Herb introduces
"Herbies," an exhausting conditioning drill in which the team has to skate back and forth on the ice until they essentially die.
Craig blows the whistle, and training gets underway.
MONTAGE of the team practicing over the next two months. They scrimmage, review plays, and run tons of "Herbies." All the while,
Herb repeatedly pauses practice to ask the players a
series of questions:
35:30 - 37:45 (2.25 pages) [+]INT. Herb'S OFFICE - NIGHT
Craig and
Herb call a few players into the office to talk strategy. The players leave, and
Craig tells
Herb about a concern he has for the team:
37:45 - 47:00 (9.25 pages) [+]INT. HOCKEY ARENA - NORWAY - DAY
FIVE MONTHS UNTIL OPENING CEREMONY
The team plays against Norway in a scrimmage. They get their asses kicked, and
Herb overhears the players talking about pretty girls in the stands (when they should be concentrating on the game in front of them). The game ends, but
Herb makes everyone stay in the rink, forcing them to run "Herbies" (33:00 - 35:30) as punishment for their laziness.
Walter watches from the stands, concerned. Montage, as the drill goes on for hours and hours…
The rink closes, but the team keeps skating. Exhausted,
Rizzo finally gets the point, and declares his allegiance to the team (instead of his college) out loud. Satisfied,
Herb finally lets everyone go home, and
Craig sees what he was trying to do all along.
|
47:00 - 48:30 (1.50 pages) [+]INT. AIRPORT - NORWAY - NIGHT
The team waits in the lobby to board their plane, which has been delayed by a storm.
Herb talks to
Patti on the phone, but gets distracted when he sees a news story on TV: The Russian hockey team just played the NHL All Stars, beating them 6-0. It's a bad omen for
Herb, who is suddenly reminded of what he's up against…
| ⇡⇣ FUN AND GAMES
48:30 - 51:00 (2.50 pages) [+]INT. SCREENING ROOM - DAY
Herb and the team review footage of the Russians, studying how they play. Everyone is intimidated, but
Herb gives a speech that rouses their spirits:
51:00 - 53:30 (2.50 pages) [+]TRAINING MONTAGE
Over the next several months, the team improves through hard work.
• Jim gets faster and faster with his goalie-hands.
• O'Callahan and Mac start to set aside their differences.
• Everyone gets stronger/faster/better at life in general.
• Five more players are eliminated from the team (only one more to go).
The scene ends with
Craig looking at the team schedule, confused:
53:30 - 54:45 (1.25 pages) [+]INT. HERB'S HOUSE - DAY
Herb and
Patti talk at the dinner table.
Herb is upset that he has to cut another player, but
Patti encourages him. Their conversation is interrupted when a riot breaks out on TV.
54:45 - 55:45 (1.00 pages) [+]EXT. BLOOMINGTON ICE ARENA - NIGHT
THREE MONTHS UNTIL OPENING CEREMONY
The players pack their bags into a bus, getting ready to leave.
Jim hugs his dad and they have a father/son moment:
Midpoint
55:45 - 58:00 (2.25 pages) [+]INT. ICE RINK / LOCKER ROOM - DAY
The team kneels on the ice, waiting for practice to start. They smile and joke with each other because they've become friends.
But suddenly, another player - ASSFACE McDOUCHER - shows up, greeted by
Herb and
Craig. Everyone glances around -
who is this guy?? - as McDoucher takes the ice. Looks of concern abound…
In the locker room, the team talks about what
Herb might be up to. Clearly, they're all scared:
MIDPOINT REVERSAL
58:00 - 59:15 (1.25 pages) [+]INT. HERB'S HOUSE - NIGHT
Herb gets a phone call from
Walter, who informs him that the team will have to scrimmage against the Russians…in Russia.
Herb hangs up, pissed.
Patti tries to ask
Herb about his day, but
Herb is in a bad mood and treats her like shit. She gets angry and storms out of the room.
Herb eats a sandwich.
59:15 - 59:45 (0.50 pages) [+]INT. ICE RINK - DAY
The team runs practice drills.
Rizzo misses a shot, and
Herb threatens to send him home:
59:45 - 60:45 (1.00 pages) [+]INT. BLOOMINGTON ICE ARENA - DAY
A scrimmage match: USA vs. IHL All Stars. Fans pack into the arena.
A player we've never met - Timmy - makes a great shot and everyone celebrates. He returns to the bench, where
Herb tells him how great he's playing.
Rizzo watches, frightened.
"Don't tase me, Coach..."
⇡⇣ ROLL DOWNHILL
60:45 - 63:00 (2.25 pages) [+]INT. BUS - NIGHT
The team boards the bus, exhausted.
Craig calls
Herb outside, where a few players -
O'Callahan,
Mac,
Rizzo - are waiting to talk with him:
63:00 - 67:45 (4.75 pages) [+]INT. / EXT. DOC'S HOUSE - NIGHT
Christmas Eve. The team eats/celebrates/gives each other presents. For
Herb, they get something extra special:
"A bullwhip? Boys, you shouldn't have."
Herb thanks the boys for the gift and bows out. Everyone feels the love.
As
Herb drives home, he listens to
Jimmy Carter's "A Crisis of Confidence" speech on the radio. It serves as a voice-over as the team plays football together, laughing and running in the snow, finally a real family.
|
67:45 - 71:00 (3.25 pages) [+]INT. LOCKER ROOM / Herb'S OFFICE - DAY
The players take off their gear after practice.
Craig approaches
Ralph, telling him to go see
Herb in his office. Everyone looks sadly at
Ralph, knowing what's about to happen…
Ralph enters
Herb's office and sits down.
Herb feels terrible, but he lets
Ralph go from the team.
Ralph leaves, and
Herb gets a call from
Walter:
71:00 - 74:45 (3.75 pages) [+]INT. MADISON SQUARE GARDEN - NIGHT
THREE DAYS UNTIL OPENING CEREMONY
The big exhibition match: USA vs. Russia. The stadium is packed and the boys are nervous.
The game gets underway, and it's a slaughter. The Russians manhandle the United States, winning 10-3.
|
PLOT POINT #2
74:45 - 78:00 (3.25 pages) [+]INT. MADISON SQUARE GARDEN - LATER
Herb dodges past the press and enters the infirmary, where
O'Callahan is lying on a table with an injured knee.
Herb tries to comfort him, but it's no use…they both know
O'Callahan won't be able play in the Olympics anymore.
Herb pats him on the back and strides into the locker room, where he threatens to demote
Jim to backup goalie.
Jim follows
Herb outside, arguing.
Herb gets
Jim riled up, bringing out the stubborn Boston kid he saw the day
Jim was recruited.
|
78:00 - 79:15 (1.25 pages) [+]INT. HOTEL - NIGHT
Herb and
Patti talk on the phone.
ACT III
79:15 - 80:45 (1.50 pages) [+]EXT. / INT. HOTEL - LAKE PLACID - DAY
OLYMPIC WINTER GAMES XIII - LAKE PLACID, NEW YORK
The team hops off the bus in Lake Placid, heading into the hotel to get their room keys.
O'Callahan approaches
Herb on crutches, promising he'll be able to play.
Doc, however, has a different opinion:
80:45 - 83:15 (2.50 pages) [+]INT. STADIUM - DAY
Herb finds
O'Callahan standing on the ice, contemplating his fate. He walks out there to join him, and unveils some great news:
O'Callahan is ecstatic, and hobbles off to join the rest of the team.
Herb stays on the ice, looking around...
83:15 - 88:45 (5.50 pages) [+]INT. STADIUM / LOCKER ROOM - DAY
The first game: USA vs. Sweden. Right away, the USA is down 1-0 and
Mac gets injured.
Doc tells
Herb that
Mac should be out for the rest of the game.
Herb marches into the locker room, pissed, and flips over a table. He accuses
Mac of being a quitter and yells at everybody, getting the entire team extremely fired up.
|
The game resumes, and the USA
really turns it on.
Mac plays through the pain in his leg, and the USA scores at the last second to tie the game 2-2. Even though it's a tie, it's a huge victory for the team. Everyone celebrates.
| ⇡⇣ BUILD-UP
88:45 - 92:00 (3.25 pages) [+]MONTAGE
News footage of the 1980 Olympics. A reporter announces that the USA won their second game, upsetting the #2-ranked Czechoslovakia.
Herb talks to the press about the victory. He refuses to let them talk to his individual players, insisting they're a
team and should be looked at as such.
In the next game, the USA defeats Romania, largely due to
Jim's excellent goalie skills.
Again,
Herb talks to the press about the victory, and again, he refuses to let them talk to his individual players.
The USA beats West Germany, guaranteeing them a place in the Medal Round.
92:00 - 92:45 (0.75 pages) [+]INT. PRESS ROOM - DAY
Walter announces that the USA will play Russia in the first game of the Medal Round.
92:45 - 95:15 (2.50 pages) [+]EXT. LAKE PLACID STREETS - NIGHT
Herb and
Patti sit together drinking hot chocolate.
Herb is nervous about the game tomorrow, but
Patti comforts him. Side Note:
Patti is the best wife ever.
95:15 - 127:45 (32.50 pages) [+]The following short scenes in THE OLYMPIC STADIUM are part of one larger scene, which is why they're grouped together.
INT. HALLWAY
The Olympic Committee asks to enter the locker room and wish the USA good luck, but
Craig won't let them in because
Herb doesn't want any distractions.
INT. INFIRMARY
Craig enters the infirmary and finds
O'Callahan, who is having his knee looked at by
Doc. He tells
O'Callahan to suit up, because he's playing in the game tonight.
O'Callahan is ecstatic.
INT. LOCKER ROOM
The team puts on their gear, waiting anxiously for the game to start. Nobody speaks.
Herb walks in, and gives the speech of his career, motivating the team to rise up and beat the Russians.
|
Ready to get fighting, the team grabs their sticks and makes the walk out to--
INT. ARENA
--the ice rink, where they're greeted with thunderous applause. They skate around, getting ready, until...
...the puck drops, and the game begins. Almost right away, the Russians score off a cheap shot. But the USA answers with a goal of their own, tying it back up.
Jim blocks shot after shot, showing his true skills, but Russia scores again, bringing the score to 2-1. The crowd, however, isn't deterred; they only get louder, riling the boys up and prompting them to score yet another goal at the end of the period, tying the game 2-2.
In the second period, Russia starts playing dirty, barraging the USA with cheap shots. One player body-checks
Jim, knocking him to the ice and scoring another goal.
Jim is shaken, but eventually gets up, and the second period ends with Russia up 3-2.
As the third period starts,
Herb calls the team into a huddle, rousing them with one last motivational speech. They take the ice, freshly motivated and no longer scared. Right away, the Russians get a penalty, putting the USA at an advantage for two crucial minutes. And the USA makes use of this time; with only four seconds left in the power play, they score yet again, tying the game at 3-3. Minutes later,
Rizzo scores another goal, putting the USA in the lead 4-3 and sending the crowd into a frenzy.
Pissed, the Russians attack the goal. But
Jim blocks everything they shoot, proving once and for all that he's on par with the best goalies in the world. As time wastes away, the game gets tougher and tougher, as the Russians become more desperate with each passing second, until finally…
…the clock runs out, and the USA wins! The bench clears and the crowd goes wild. Hugs and high-fives abound;
Herb Brooks and his boys have just beaten the best hockey team in the world.
| CLIMAX
127:45 - 129:45 (2.00 pages) [+]INT. OLYMPIC STADIUM - DAY
The USA goes on to beat Finland to win the gold. As they receive their medals at the closing ceremony, coach
Herb Brooks watches with pride; the players gather on the podium, throwing their fingers in the air:
THE END
RESOLUTION
Analysis
What's impressive about
'Miracle' is that despite its being a three-act film, the plot points are so seamlessly blended together that you never actually feel its structure at work. Which is what great movies are supposed to do -- create a story so powerful that at a certain point, you completely forget you're watching a movie. But at the end of the day,
'Miracle' goes through the same three-part progression we know and love, so without further ado, let's take a look at where the plot points show up and briefly discuss why they are where they are:
Opening Exposition [+]WHERE IT HAPPENS: 00:00 - 14:00
Remember how in
'The Road To El Dorado', the Opening Exposition clipped along unusually fast? Well,
'Miracle' works the same way; within the first fifteen pages,
Herb already has applied for the coaching job,
gotten it, and held tryouts for the team, which puts him on the path toward picking his roster (the Inciting Incident). Plot-wise, here's what happens:
1. Herb applies for the coaching job.
2. Herb gets the coaching job.
3. Herb holds tryouts for the team.
4. Herb picks the team (Inciting Incident).
But remember: The primary purpose of the Opening Exposition is to
introduce us to the characters and their relationships to each other. So by that token, here's the information we get (according to the scenes above):
1. Herb is the coach; he's passionate about hockey.
2. Patti is Herb's wife; she's very supportive and loving.
3. Ralph, Rammer
, O'Callahan, Jim, Mac, and Rizzo are the players; some of them hate each other. Craig is Herb's assistant coach.
4. Doc is the team Doctor.
Inciting Incident [+]WHERE IT HAPPENS: 14:00 - 16:15
The Inciting Incident in
'Miracle' happens when
Herb announces the team roster.
Simple stuff. The team is now picked, and the first official practice will happen at the beginning of Act II. For the next fifteen or so pages, we will get to know the characters as they prepare to start training.
Prepare For Adventure [+]
Plot Point #1 [+]WHERE IT HAPPENS: N/A
Did you notice there's no Plot Point #1 in this script? That's because
'Miracle's' first Plot Point is actually an
implied thing; like every other sports movie, Act II will begin when the team starts training, but in this particular story it's already assumed that this is going to happen (after all,
Herb did pick the team and tell them they will be training for several months). For that reason, the Prepare For Adventure section consists solely of
character relationships instead of
a series of events that leads us toward the First Plot Point; The players'
training (aka Act II) starts around Page 30, so we should become familiar with the characters involved in the time between now and when that happens.
Fun and Games [+]WHERE IT HAPPENS: 33:00 - 55:45
The Fun and Games in this film is masterfully done. Watching it unfold, it's difficult to tell how things are organized because it all bleeds together so seamlessly; but upon closer inspection, it's clear that this section is more or less divided into three distinct parts:
≈ 14 pgs: Training [+]In this section, the team is out of shape, unmotivated, and in a general state of disarray.
• The team begins to train (montage).
• The team underperforms against Norway.
• The team is punished by Herb for sucking (montage).
≈ 7 pgs: Preparing for Russia [+]In this section, the team begins training specifically to beat Russia, the supposed "greatest team in the world."
• Herb watches the Russians on TV, getting scared.
• The team watches tape of Russia, also becoming scared.
• Training montage, during which the team drastically improves.
≈ 2 pgs: Ancillary Relationships [+]This section consists of two short scenes, during which relationships
outside the hockey rink are touched upon:
• Herb and Patti watch the riots on TV.
• Jim and his dad hug it out.
Midpoint Reversal [+]WHERE IT HAPPENS: 55:45 - 58:00
The Midpoint Reversal in
'Miracle' happens when
Herb brings a new player (Assface McDoucher) onto the team.
From here, everything will start to go wrong;
Rizzo will become scared of being cut,
Herb and
Patti will get in a fight,
Ralph will get dropped from the team, and everyone will lose confidence after getting their asses kicked by Russia.
Roll Downhill [+]
Plot Point #2 [+]WHERE IT HAPPENS: 71:00 - 74:45
Plot Point #2 happens when Team U.S.A. gets its ass kicked by Russia in an exhibition match.
This scene serves as a low point for the protagonists;
O'Callahan is injured,
Jim's confidence is shaken, and
Herb thinks he's losing control of the team. After this, we spend a few minutes building toward the climax, in which Team U.S.A. will face off against Russia for realzies.
Climax [+]WHERE IT HAPPENS: 95:15 - 127:45
The Climax happens when Team U.S.A. plays against Russia in the Olympics.
This scene lasts over thirty minutes, but in reality it's quite simple: The good guys face off against the bad guys and (against all odds) actually beat them.
Resolution [+]127:45 - 129:45
Team U.S.A. gets the gold medal,
Herb monologues about how proud he is of his boys, everyone hugs, Josh cries, movie ends.
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