Soccer Movie Reviews and Recommendations.

[Deuce]

Can anyone recommend any good soccer movies?

I saw Mean Machine (Vinnie Jones) and A Shot at Glory (Robert Duvall) this passed weekend.
This is my review of them.
I do not claim to be a movie critic so bear with me, if you will...

A Shot at Glory
Glory being the better of the two with very good footy sequences, and based somewhat more in a realistic world. Very good acting, Robert Duvall's performance, although largely ignored by critics, was academy award calibre, he also had a very realistic and believable accent. Which is very far removed from the cheesy ****ney(a london accent) accent in Oceans Eleven. (Mentioned only as a reference!) Some language but most of the foul language is lost in translation.(meaning it uses a great deal of regional slang!)
A brief scene with an unfortunate sexual sequence... unfortunate because, although no nudity, it was not necessary to further the story so it naturally excludes children and young adults from viewing an otherwise fine movie!
An understanding of the history behind Rangers v. Celtic rivalry a plus but not necessary!

Mean Machine was a remake of the 70's Burt Reynolds Classic the Longest Yard with a soccer rather than pointy ball twist. From the same people that brought you Snatch and Lock, Stock & two smoking barrels.
Very funny English Humor... not recommended for people that object to strong language (prison language) and gratuitous violence. Typical of the film makers style.
Brash, shocking and generally funny.
However the soccer sequences seemed contrived and formulaic. Some good, not great, soccer action. Although I like Vinnie Jones' other works this was a disappointing Vinnie Jones outing.

Recommend Mean machine as good soccer movie, But A shot at Glory is definitely a diamond in the rough.

[Arelius]

Originally Posted by Deuce

Can anyone recommend any good soccer movies?

One of my favorites is “Victory” (1981) with Pele, Sylvester Stallone, Michael Caine, etc.

[Czar Jake]

Bend it Like Beckham was super-cheesy and girly, but it actually was done pretty well. It's not on my top 100 films list or anything, but I have seen it. Deuce I'm unfamiliar with Vinnie Jones. The only name I associate with Snatch and LockStock is Guy Ritchie... who is Jones? That caught my attention though because I'm a big fan of the two aforementioned films.

[Deuce]

I am going to post a review of Bend It Like Beckham to the chagrin of many truly devout footy fans that have a natural aversion to anything Beckham 'ish
It is this belief that to be a fan of David Beckham, is to be a poser footy fan. I say Rubbish!!!

People feel the same way toward Freddy Adu... which is unfortuante... The beautiful game and its fans owe a great deal to David Beckham and Freddy Adu for bringing the sport into the mainstream. These two are widely recognizable players that only bring attention to the game.

This movie was shunned automatically and unanimously by anyone that claims, in public, to be a true 'fan of the game'
Although, in the begining I naturally shunned it as well, believing that no true fan would buy into the obvious product maketing of the Beckham Merchandising Empire. It is popular to hate Beckham and Adu.

please forgive me, I digress...
I broke down when my son asked me to watch it with him.
David Beckhams only appearance in this movie is in the form of Man United clips and posters depicting him. The sequence that portrays Posh and Becks in the airport is done by celebrity look-alikes and is not David and Victoria Beckham.

This is a relatively good movie. (Academy Award material, not a chance in heck... 😉 )
The soccer sequences are choreographed well...

The real story is the interaction between the two girls and their families.
One family believing the daughter is a lesbian... with a classic quip "there is a reason why that Sporty Spice does not have a fella!"

The other family forbidding their daughter from playing soccer at all. Relying on family traditions and pigeon-holing the girls into stereotypical roles for women in Asian communities in Britain.

It is a typical east meets west... generation gap busting, feel good movie... oh yeah it has some good soccer as well...

Recommend this to all over 13's... it is not for kids... some mild language and adult situations...

Go ahead rent it when no one is looking... and your friends won't see you watching it.

If for no other reason than to see Keira Knightly in those leather pants.. oh and it has some good soccer sequences in it too... you will find yourself cheering on the inside... where it counts.

[Deuce]

Originally Posted by Czar Jake

Bend it Like Beckham was super-cheesy and girly, but it actually was done pretty well. It's not on my top 100 films list or anything, but I have seen it. Deuce I'm unfamiliar with Vinnie Jones. The only name I associate with Snatch and LockStock is Guy Ritchie... who is Jones? That caught my attention though because I'm a big fan of the two aforementioned films.

Vinnie Jones is an ex English Football player turned actor...
Very good actor I might add...

Here are a few pics... I am sure you will recognize him... if not... look at the pics and watch the movies again... you can't miss him...


He is to the left of Johnie Boy Travolta

[Deuce]

Originally Posted by Arelius

One of my favorites is “Victory” (1981) with Pele, Sylvester Stallone, Michael Caine, etc.

Nice one... I completely forgot about that one. I have not seen it since probably 1983... will have to rent it this weekend.

[Neil]

Vinnie Jones was also in Eurotrip, where he plays a soccer hooligan in a Manchester United fan pub, even though he never actually played for Manchester United.

http://www.imdb.com/name/nm0005068/

He's in quite a few films.

He also holds the record for being the quickest player ever to be yellow-carded in a game of professional soccer. He was booked 3 seconds into the game.

[Czar Jake]

Originally Posted by Neil

He also holds the record for being the quickest player ever to be yellow-carded in a game of professional soccer. He was booked 3 seconds into the game.

That is hilarious, seeing his characters... Yeah I know him, I didn't know his name, thanks guys... So Mean Machine, it has Jones in it, does it have any other connection to the Guy Ritchie films?

[Deuce]

Originally Posted by Czar Jake

That is hilarious, seeing his characters... Yeah I know him, I didn't know his name, thanks guys... So Mean Machine, it has Jones in it, does it have any other connection to the Guy Ritchie films?

Don't know exactly the connection but it says on the cover that it is "from the people that brought you Snatch, and Lock stock & Two Smoking Barrells" that is a quote from the cover.

Other than that I don't know!

[Neil]

I caught "Fever Pitch" on the Independent Film Channel yesterday. The film is based on the book about a school teacher who is obsessed with Arsenal. Very good movie.

Also, the screenplay was written by the author of the book which was nice.