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Sudden Death

110 minutes

Cast

Selected cast credits · Film reference

Jean-Claude Van Damme Darren McCord
Powers Boothe Joshua Foss
Raymond J. Barry Vice President Daniel Bender
Dorian Harewood Matthew Hallmark
Whittni Wright Emily McCord
Ross Malinger Tyler McCord
Faith Minton Carla
Paul Mochnick Andrew Ferrara
Audra Lindley Angeline Ferrara
Jack Erdie Scratch
Kate McNeil Kathi McCord
Jeff Howell Usborn
Raymond Laine Mullard
Kane Hodder Murphy
Brian Smrz Demsky
Ed Evanko Baldwin
Bernard Canepari Jefferson
Bill Dalzell George Spota
Steve Aranson Dooley
Jennifer D. Bowser Joan Cometti
Brian Delate Thomas Blair
Milton E. Thompson Sergeant Kurtz
Jay Caufield Brad Tolliver
Bill Clement Pre-game announcer
Mike Lange Himself / play-by-play announcer
Luc Robitaille Himself
Paul Steigerwald Himself / color commentator

Sudden Death | The Rewatchables

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Roger Ebert's review

In the discussion (1)
Approx. transcript time · 00:22:49Read transcript
  • Ebert’s two-and-a-half-star review is read; its description of the mascot victim as a man is corrected to a woman.

Rickman Villain Scale

Rickman 10; Jones 9; Lithgow 8; Oldman 7; Hopper 6; five open; Bogosian 4; Booth 3; Passenger 57 villain 2; Toy Soldiers villain 1

In the discussion (12)
Approx. transcript time · 00:29:30Read transcript
  • Booth’s villain is disputed: initially called fine, then criticized as insufficiently charismatic and lacking the comic timing needed for sarcastic threats.
  • Rickman in Die Hard receives 10 out of 10.
  • Tommy Lee Jones in Under Siege receives 9 out of 10.
  • Lithgow in Cliffhanger receives 8 out of 10.
  • Hopper in Speed receives 6 out of 10.
  • Bogosian in Under Siege 2 receives 4 out of 10.
  • Booth receives 3 out of 10.
  • Passenger 57 villain receives 2 out of 10.
  • The Toy Soldiers villain’s performance is mocked despite affection for the film; zero is floated after the initial one-out-of-ten score.
  • Toy Soldiers villain receives 1 out of 10.
  • Oldman in Air Force One receives 7 out of 10.
  • The five-out-of-ten slot remains unfilled.

Casting What-Ifs

Schwarzenegger, Stallone or Willis as McCord; Woods as Foss

In the discussion (4)
Approx. transcript time · 01:08:52Read transcript
  • Schwarzenegger reportedly declined while making True Lies and Junior.
  • Stallone reportedly declined because of script quality, which is questioned given Daylight.
  • Willis reportedly declined while making Die Hard with a Vengeance.
  • James Woods reportedly rejected the villain role; he is considered a better fit around his Lester Diamond performance.

Recasting Couch

James Caan, Kelsey Grammer or George Wendt as Foss; Tupac as Hallmark

In the discussion (4)
Approx. transcript time · 01:12:23Read transcript
  • James Caan is proposed as the villain, but another view thinks he would have fit ten years earlier rather than at this career stage.
  • Kelsey Grammer is proposed as an evil Frasier-style villain.
  • George Wendt is proposed as an evil Norm-style villain; sitcom performers turning sinister is an appealing idea.
  • Tupac is proposed as Hallmark, with doubt about buying him as a federal agent in 1995.

Half-Assed Internet Research

Baldwins’ roof premise and films; Robitaille classes; lockout filming; extras and cutouts;36 deaths

In the discussion (8)
Approx. transcript time · 01:14:43Read transcript
  • Karen Baldwin reportedly developed the premise around the Civic Arena’s retractable roof.
  • Howard Baldwin’s film company and other hockey films are discussed alongside his financial failure with the Penguins.
  • Robitaille reportedly attended acting classes with Karen Baldwin before joining the Penguins.
  • The lockout prevented filming the intended NHL opener; exhibition and minor-league games were tried before substitute players in jerseys were used.
  • About 2,000 extras and cardboard spectators reportedly filled the arena; the cutouts are considered convincing.
  • The reported body count is 36, after a guess of 30.
  • The Penguins announcers are reported to be the real announcers, using their authentic catchphrases.
  • The other hockey films attributed to Baldwin’s company are Mystery Alaska, Mr. Hockey: The Gordie Howe Story, and Odd Man Rush.

Picking Nits

Job respect; overtime deadline; Foss name; son’s concern; Hallmark delay; goalie identity and equipment; daughter hostage; hanging; concussion

In the discussion (11)
Approx. transcript time · 01:19:17Read transcript
  • The lack of respect for an arena fire-engineer job is questioned.
  • Overtime delaying the explosions is questioned because that exception was not part of the villain’s stated plan.
  • The villain’s name Joshua Foss is said never to be spoken and is criticized alongside McCord’s name.
  • The son’s lack of concern for his missing sister is questioned, with jokes about future psychological damage.
  • Hallmark repeatedly failing to kill McCord before talking is criticized.
  • Teammates failing to notice that McCord has replaced their goalie is questioned.
  • The unattended sick goalie’s fate and the time needed to exchange equipment remain questions.
  • Booth taking the daughter while escaping is questioned as needless added risk.
  • The young daughter hanging on and pulling herself up over a fatal drop is considered physically and emotionally implausible.
  • McCord making the save while concussed compounds the absurdity; the commentator’s joke about his children feeling the hit is criticized.
  • Having McCord score too is imagined as the only missing escalation of the hockey joke.

Probably Unanswerable Questions

Game protest/replay; goalie fate; McCord’s hockey celebrity or hidden identity

In the discussion (6)
Approx. transcript time · 01:24:13Read transcript
  • The sick goalie’s possible death is raised as an unanswerable question.
  • Chicago protesting McCord as an illegal player and demanding a forfeit is proposed.
  • Resuming the interrupted game or restarting it entirely are debated.
  • A neutral Detroit venue is proposed because arena repairs would take weeks.
  • McCord might become a sports-media celebrity and receive a hockey tryout.
  • Alternatively his goalie substitution might remain an early-internet mystery until reporting reveals it.

Producer review

Joyful, cheesy 1990s entertainment

In the discussion (3)
Approx. transcript time · 01:30:56Read transcript
  • Cliffhanger is favored among the earlier action episodes as a legitimately good and entertaining movie.
  • The film is enjoyed as turn-off-your-brain 1990s action, prompting a wish for a dedicated free channel.
  • Baywatch is another affectionate 1990s time capsule, with a clip-sharing channel proposed.