Childhood movie revived

After recently watching a childhood movie again, the Mighty Ducks D2, I came across an unlikely romantic find that most people would find to be that cliché aha movie moment, but I have decided to pay tribute to it here where the example is fitting. For those unfamiliar with the Mighty Ducks movies, it is about a group of misfit children that come together to work hard and create an unlikely team of excellent hockey players. The movie itself is entirely cheesy and overdone for children, but the ending featured the overall selfless deed of putting others before oneself in order to help out another. It fulfills the basic child over adult idea that is featured in romantics. Although it is not technically child over adult, it is maturity in a child over immaturity. One of the players is severely injured in an earlier game and could not play. The main character, Charlie Conway, manages to find a replacement player (Russ Tyler aka the famous knucklepuck creator) in time for the games. Upon the beginning of the big final game against Iceland, the injured player’s wrist is healed, just in time for the scouts to come look for him for better teams and for college. The team roster, however, is full with the addition that Charlie found. Because the other player has more invested in the game than Charlie does, Charlie selflessly offers up his spot to the other boy.

Although it is something that happens all the time in movies, where the main character sacrifices them or something special to them in order to help out another, I feel like seeing it in this setting changes it. It is obviously a child who is choosing to make such a mature decision, against the wishes of the team and the coach in order to put the needs of the one player ahead of the needs of the rest of the team and himself. It is a very moving scene, despite the cheesy storyline and obvious childish appeal of the entire movie, because it is so emotional to see someone give something up at the expense of something great. The viewers of the movie are forced to become invested in the lives and storyline of the characters, and seeing one make such a major decision in order to advance the career of the other is very touching, especially taking into account now that they are supposed to be young kids and not mature adults. It was excellent to watch such a classic from my childhood again, and also to appreciate the overall storyline in a different light which looks past the childish quality to the film and into the actual story.