This autumn is the FIFA World Cup, usually a summer event that would take place later in the year with the venue being in Qatar. While it is a desert nation built on sun and sand, soccer does not need to be played in a certain type of place. It is played in the cold and indoors, the wet, at high altitudes, and within terrain that has a flat surface. Every four years, the world’s best countries (except the Italians recently, for whatever reason) get together to fight for the world championship. As we get close to being soccer fans temporarily out of national pride, here are some movies that stir up these passions from all over.
Escape To Victory (1981)
Loosely based on the fictitious “Death Match” story in Ukraine, John Huston directed Sylvester Stallone, Max von Sydow, Michael Caine, and a group of former professional footballers in a tale of survival between the Allies POWs versus the German officers. Pele, Bobby Moore, Osvaldo Ardiles, and other former veteran stars came out in various roles, but most importantly, to actually show real soccer instead of faking it. The film itself is a remake of the Hungarian drama Two Half Times In Hell which has its own spin on the story, one that is a repeated myth of what really happened yet remains part of soccer folklore.
Fever Pitch (1997)
There is the Farrelly Brothers version regarding the Boston Red Sox, but screw that, the original version starring Colin Firth is a lot better. Based on Nick Hornby’s memoir about being a lifelong fan of soccer club Arsenal, he creates a story about a passionate Arsenal fan and school teacher who balances his fandom and his new romance with another teacher. Set prior to the formation of the Premier League, it is a piece of soccer fandom from another era weaved in with a romantic comedy on showing passion with your partner as much as a whole squad of men.
One Night In Turin (2010)
If you want to know what heartbreak in soccer feels like, look no further than this moment-in-time narrative following the England national squad during the 1990 World Cup semifinals. (Or, you can watch the replay of the 2020 Euro finals with England, but that’s the Euros, this is the World Cup.) The socio-political climate in England and their opponent, West Germany, is apparent and the footage is archival, coupled with Gary Oldman’s narration. No interviews, just the action as it happened. All of the key figures in this story are neither given support nor made to be villains in James Erskine’s gripping documentary.
Next Goal Wins (2014)
Yes, there is the anticipated feature from Taika Waititi starring Michael Fassbinder and Elizabeth Ross which is now slated to come out next year, but the original documentary has the story behind the upcoming film. Thomas Rongen, who had a successful playing and coaching career up to 2011, was hired to take up the American Samoa squad, a team at the bottom of the barrel in teams’ global rankings. A decade earlier, they lost 31-0 in a World Cup qualifier; that is not a typo, that was the score. The documentary captures the team’s resilience in the face of defeats to keep playing as Rongen seeks to lead the major underdogs all the way in qualifying for the World Cup.
Diego Maradona (2019)
After winning the Oscar for his documentary Amy, director Asif Kapadia went after one of the most beloved soccer players in the world and one of the most controversial ones, too. Maradona, who led Argentina to win the World Cup in 1986 and led the Italian club Napoli to multiple titles in Serie A, is shown through actual footage with a voiceover by the man himself and by those who knew him the best. Covering his time playing throughout the 1980s until his fall from grace due to drug abuse in the early 90s, Kapadia captures in a timeframe the genius, the greatness, and the religious furor Maradona was, and still is decades later.
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