We've all heard of the Jamaican bobsled team, right? It was the ultimate miracle story of the Olympics. COOL RUNNINGS tells the story of how the Jamaicans managed to mount a bobsled team, and John Candy plays the coach of that team, Irv Blitzer.

COOL RUNNINGS opens with the story of a young man named Sanka Coffie (yes, that's the name of the character, played by Doug E. Doug), an Olympic hopeful living in Jamaica. As is fairly standard for someone living in Jamaica (given the Jamaican climate), young Sanka aspires to the Jamaican Olympic track team. Sanka takes the initial steps toward this aspiration by watching fellow Olympic hopeful Derice Bannock (Leon) in track trials.

Derice himself gets the idea for fielding a bobsledding team from a certain Mr. Coolidge (Winston Stona), after losing big at his track meet. Coolidge had suggested Jamaican bobsledding as something of a joke, but Derice takes the idea seriously, and starts talking up the idea to a number of friends. Things go on from there, to their inevitable conclusion at the 1988 Olympics in Calgary.

Those of us who are Olympics addicts are fully aware of the conclusion of their sojourn in Calgary. Therefore, there is no real suspense. The fun is in the journey; we see a cantankerous, disagreeable character named Yul Brenner (again, another real character name, played by Malik Yoba) learning how to play nicely with others, including a teammate with whom Yul (so named because he's bald) has never gotten along in his life. We see Blitzer whip four young Jamaicans into shape, reminding them just what his qualifications are, and try to get them funding (from Coolidge, of all people) for their trip to Calgary. (When Coolidge refuses to help fund their venture, the team tries any number of stunts - including a kissing booth, in a sequence I found extremely funny - in an attempt to raise money for their trip to Calgary.) We even see them learning to cope with cold weather, as they must, for they are competing in a winter sport.

These sequences are what make the film, in my opinion. It is, after all, a comedy, for who can believe the idea of a Jamaican bobsled team, for crying out loud? The premise is so outlandish on its face that if it hadn't actually happened - complete with documented results which were obtained in 1988 in Calgary, in the country of Canada - the average person would not be inclined to believe it. The very idea would generate laughs in many Olympics fans if it hadn't really happened.

In short, COOL RUNNINGS is not your standard, hackneyed inspirational plot. It could have turned out a great deal worse, if they had stuck to the nauseating cliches - the coach's pep talk, the seemingly insurmountable obstacles, and all the other elements of the formulaic "inspirational sports movie." But they didn't. Instead, the writers and producers worked in enough laughs to make this worthwhile family viewing, as long as you don't put very tiny wee ones in front of this film.

I know the temptation is to park very tiny youngsters in front of anything with the Disney brand name on it, and this is a Disney-produced movie. But these are young men, as opposed to cute little Thumper, and they do let slip the occasional Jamaican equivalent of blue language while competing and dealing with personal problems. The average Thumper wannabe, being pediatric and presumably normal, might want to let slip those same four-letter words in imitation of the screen heroes. That's why I don't particularly want to see very young wee ones watching COOL RUNNINGS.

If your youngsters are a bit older, however, COOL RUNNINGS is just different enough to warrant having them view it. They are smart enough to see past all the hackneyed inspirational cliches, and this is far from a cliche movie. I'd also recommend this for Olympics junkies who remember the Jamaican bobsled team's first foray into the five-ringed world of medals. It's the ultimate fun film about a bunch of guys you wouldn't think were Olympic athletes, but were.

Recommended:
Yes

Video Occasion: Good for a Rainy Day
Suitability For Children: Suitable for Children up Ages 8