Entertainment

‘The Last Gladiators’ review

To a non-hockey fan, the enforcer concept is bizarre: a man whose main job is to fight anyone from the opposing team who tries to hurt a (usually more talented) teammate.

Alex Gibney’s latest documentary focuses on former Montreal Canadien Chris Nilan, nicknamed “Knuckles” for obvious reasons, although after years of punching, he has only nine left.

Despite his well-earned rep — he’s described with some admiration as having “a screw loose” — Nilan’s an endearing guy. He’s a Boston-accented tough with a forthright manner and a dry sense of humor, even when describing how his post-NHL career went into a tailspin of lost jobs and addiction.

The bleak fates of Nilan and other enforcers interviewed here belie their gleeful tone. Upper lips tucked down over what must be extensive bridgework, they reminisce over grainy footage.

They enjoyed beating up people, and they miss it.

Gibney deserves credit for making a hockey film that the uninitiated can watch with interest, and for focusing on an issue even some hockey fans can’t make up their minds about.

But he is awfully coy here. When “The Last Gladiators” treats brawls like greatest-hits clips for more than half the movie, then suggests fighting is behind Nilan’s decline, it feels like trying to have it both ways.