Friday 9 May 2014

"Next Goal Wins" (The Guardian 09/05/14)


Next Goal Wins ****
Dirs: Mike Brett, Steve Jamison. With: Thomas Rongen, Jaiyah Saelua, Nicky Salapu. 97 mins. Cert: 15

In 2001, American Samoa suffered international football’s worst defeat, losing 31-0 to Australia. As underdogs go, there were literally none more under – they were still bottom of FIFA’s rankings when the 2009 tsunami waterlogged their pitch – and this deluge of misfortune blows Mike Brett and Steve Jamison’s buoying doc off the predicted trajectory: for much of it, you can’t see this lot scoring, never mind winning. Instead, time is spent painting an unfailingly warm and generous portrait of a community determined to move on: the signing of exuberant Dutch coach Thomas Rongen nudges everybody forward, while tightly edited match footage highlights the players’ improving workrates. Progress ensues elsewhere, too: there’s a narrative supersub in Jaiyah Saelua, a transgendered centreback who, by her own admission, runs “like a girl”, yet tackles like Chopper Harris – and is embraced by her teammates without snickering or suspicion. As an antidote to Premier League cynicism, it really couldn’t be bettered. 

Next Goal Wins opens in cinemas nationwide today.

No comments:

Post a Comment