Cool Runnings review

It sounds unbelievable, but it’s true – in 1988 a team from Jamaica competed in the Winter Olympics bobsleigh event, even though they had never seen snow before. This comedy Cool Runnings, which does play a little fast and loose with the facts, is based on their story, and is a feel-good delight.

When runner Derice (Leon) fails to qualify for the Jamaican Olympic team as a sprinter, he decides he’s going to compete in the Winter Olympics by forming a bobsleigh team with the help of a coach, Irv (Candy). No matter that there is no snow in Jamaica (a bathtub with wheels becomes the alternative to a real bobsleigh) or that he doesn’t have a team (he rounds up an old go-karting pal and two other misfits) or that they are laughed at by all the other teams when they arrive in Calgary to compete. It’s funny stuff about a quartet of plucky underdogs, and for those who scoff that it couldn’t possibly have happened, there’s also some footage of the real team included in this sweet little movie.