Erik Smith

This is the best sports drama ever made. Then again, I love authenticity and irony. And that's what this film is. The realities of being on a touring team in a sport that isn't really a team sport (e.g., skiing, tennis) are keenly captured: The self-centered, talented guy you must tolerate because he really is good. The neutral number two guy who loves the sport but isn't consumed by it. The cute groupie who plays with the guys, but has no real plans. The good, well-meaning but impotent coach who can't be a parent but can't let the athletes act like idiots either. The parent who thinks sport is a waste of time. The unavoidable isolation. (e.g., Each man waxing his skis.) The irony is that the negative qualities Chappellet possesses that give him the drive and will to achieve are the qualities that isolate him and leave his victory pyrrhic. He is racing downhill.