D3: The Mighty Ducks

This was an OK sequel to the Mighty Ducks trilogy, as the team gets sent to an exclusive prep school, loaded with scholarships, and winds up with a new coach as Bombay gets a "promotion" of sorts. The new one starts off like Bombay did, and it will remind you a bit of they way they did in the first movie, except this guy is tougher. I will admit that this movie is not quite as good as the other Mighty Ducks movies, but it does has its moments, like the restaurant scene, the pranks scenes, and the hockey scenes. It is passable and harmless entertainment. You might like it.

** 1/2 out of ****

Starting with the good things, it is nicely filmed with crisp cinematography and nice scenery. The soundtrack is great, and Jeffrey Nordling steps into the coach's shoes with enthusiasm with Emilio Estevez making a brief appearance. The Mighty Ducks themselves are performed with real spirit also and the few ice hockey scenes are well choreographed. However, where the film is lacking is in the plot, the plot weren't the greatest in the first two films but here it was really predictable and uninspired coupled with uneven pacing. And while I liked the scripting in the first two, it is fairly weak here. Joss Ackland's role is rather cartoonish, more to do with how the character was written rather than acted, and the direction is nothing special. Overall, merely average and worth seeing, but there are a few components here that make it the weakest of the franchise. 5/10 Bethany Cox

Well, looks as if the gang is off into a new-adventure into a highly uptight high-school on an athletic scholarship. That was about my biggest turn-off right now. The fact that it was a bunch of preps just dealing it out on the ice, giving out some hard-knock schooling on the ice.

The fact is, most of the original characters apparently no longer exist, and that is probably a major downfall. The plot wasn't the greatest plot of all-although it does show actual realistic details, such as the treatment of new freshman on the campus. The pranks that these the varsity and junior varsity teams pull are completely ridiculous, and most likely, wouldn't be found in such a highly scholar school.

The coach was a complete loser, and that is completely impossible that one man can change or mature within a small time of frame.

Another turning point is that there is no-mention of Han's companion (who went back to the Old Country in D2) but, Han's dies. This is a very upsetting time, and does take the comedy effect off of the Mighty Ducks series which appeared to be the main reason for the creation of the series to begin with.

As Theodore Taylor once told Gary Paulson, Never create a prequel or following up to an excellent work, they usually end up with a foul feeling in the audience, and it can really ruin ones career. This same advice goes for the director (Robert Lieberman).

This is an okay threquel, but what I like most is its appeal to the younger members of my household. My daughter is 8 years old and into sport, so it works for her.

I am not personally a huge fan of the franchise, but like the original and D2 this is generally a lighthearted and fun experience. I think the hockey scenes look technically better this time round. They are a predictable cheese fest, but enjoyable nonetheless. However, the associated character drama involving the coach and players feels as forced and implausible its predecessors. Mighty Ducks films do not do character conflict well at all.

I have no issues with the new coach and in fact find Jeffery Nording a more plausible hockey coach than Emilio Estevez. The script is not great, but Nording delivers his dialogue convincingly. Estevez you feel is there on name alone and appears to go through the motions.

This time round the young characters are not quite as appealing as they were previously, but there are some good scenes of misbehaviour, pranking and off ice shenanigans that are pretty entertaining. The Prep school setting and cliched antagonistic characters make you role your eyes, but if you do not take it more seriously than you should and accept it for what it is, there is no reason not to enjoy.

It it a 5.5/10 for me but I round upwards.

I'm not sure exactly why so many people think of the Mighty Ducks movies as silly and pointless. I was never good at sports, but I have always believed that, with proper coaching, any sport could teach children and teenagers about life. The third installment of this series, directed more toward teenagers than anyone else, really shows how teamwork and positive thinking can overcome obstacles and help them grow. I have seen D3 many times and yet as I recently bought the DVD and watched it again, I couldn't help but cheer for the Ducks.