LOOPS, FLOPS AND LUTZES

“I, Tonya” may well be the “Citizen Kane” of skating movies, although the competition isn’t all that fierce: As often happens in sports films, the sport is the center of the cinematic action while the storyline stays largely on the bench. But there have been some interesting-bordering-onludicrous entries in the arena of the ice-skating film.: SUN VALLEY SERENADE (1941) Sonja Henie, the threetime Olympic champion from Norway, was one of Hollywood’s highest paid stars of the 1930s. “Sun Valley Serenade” featuring Glenn Miller Orchestra, the dancing Nicholas Brothers and co-stars John Payne, Milton Berle and Dorothy Dandridge, is probably her best film. It also features the diminutive star doing what she does best, and we don’t mean acting. SNOW WHITE AND THE THREE STOOGES (1961) The Messrs. Howard and Fine joined Carol Heiss, 1960 Olympic Figure Skating Champion, in a variation on the old fairy tale. Instead of Dwarfs, we get Stooges. ON THIN ICE: THE TAI BABILONIA STORY (1990) Rachael Crawford and Charlie Stratton starred in this biopic of the first African-American skater to compete at the Olympics. With her longtime pairs partner, Randy Gardner, she was expected to win at the 1980 Lake Placid Games, until an injury to Gardner scuttled that plan. ATTACK OF THE 5’ 2” WOMEN (1994) A National Lampoon production for Showtime, Julie Brown’s quickly made comedy was based on two sensational stories r from the ‘90s headlines and presented as a double bill “Tonya: The Battle of Wounded Knee” and “He Never Gave Me Orgasm: The Lenora Babbitt Story.” BLADES OF GLORY (2007) Two gold-medal goofballs (Will Ferrell and Jon Heder) play rival top-ranked men’s skaters who are banned from single’s competitions for life after a meltdown on the podium, but decide to team up after they realize they can still compete in pairs. Exactly what you’d expect.