2014 British documentary film
Next Goal Wins
|
---|
British poster for Next Goal Wins
|
Directed by
| Mike Brett
Steve Jamison
|
---|
Produced by
| Kristian Brodie
|
---|
Cinematography
| Mike Brett and Steve Jamison
|
---|
Edited by
| Julian Quantrill
[1]
|
---|
Music by
| Roger Goula
|
---|
Production
companies
| Archer's Mark
Agile Films
K5 International
|
---|
Distributed by
| Icon Film Distribution
[2]
[3]
|
---|
Release dates
|
- 19 April 2014
(
2014-04-19
)
(Tribeca)
- 9 May 2014
(
2014-05-09
)
(UK)
|
---|
Running time
| 97 minutes
|
---|
Country
| United Kingdom
|
---|
Languages
| English
Samoan
|
---|
Next Goal Wins
is a 2014 British documentary film directed by Mike Brett and Steve Jamison. The film chronicles the
national football team of American Samoa
as they try to recover from the indignity of being known as one of the weakest football teams in the world, and to qualify for the
2014 FIFA World Cup
.
Synopsis
[
edit
]
In 2001, American Samoa
lost 31?0
to Australia, the worst loss in international football history, and have been dogged by defeat ever since. They want to qualify for the
2014 FIFA World Cup
, but
continue to lose on the pitch
. To help turn their luck around, the
Football Federation American Samoa
hire Dutch-born, America-based coach
Thomas Rongen
.
[4]
Over the next three weeks, Rongen trains the team, and introduces some players based overseas, until they can acquit themselves with pride at the qualifiers at the
OFC World Cup Qualification
.
Jaiyah Saelua
, a member of the squad since 2003, is a
fa?afafine
and is the first
transgender
player to compete in a
FIFA World Cup
qualifier.
[5]
[6]
Production
[
edit
]
The American Samoa football team had refused permission to numerous film and TV crews before being approached by Brett and Jamison, the directors were given permission to film the team because they aimed to celebrate the fact that the team continued to play in the face of their defeats. The film was shot on 5k resolution using a
RED Epic
camera over two visits to the island of six and eight weeks respectively.
[7]
Release
[
edit
]
The film had its premiere at the
Tribeca Film Festival
on 19 April 2014.
[8]
It was released in the United Kingdom on 9 May.
[4]
Critical response
[
edit
]
Next Goal Wins
received overwhelmingly positive reviews from both critics and audiences. The review aggregator website
Rotten Tomatoes
gives it a 100% approval rating based on 30 reviews, with a rating average of 7.6/10. The website's critics consensus reads: "Finding beauty in sports beyond the mere satisfaction on winning,
Next Goal Wins
is a moving documentary filled with a lovable array of underdogs".
[9]
On
Metacritic
, the film has a score of 71 out of 100, based on reviews by 10 critics, indicating "generally favorable reviews".
[10]
In the UK, the film was admired by those who loved football and those who did not. Representing the latter,
Mark Kermode
reviewed the film twice. In
The Observer
he gave
Next Goal Wins
four stars out of five and wrote that "whether or not you give two hoots about "the beautiful game" (and I don't), this charming and uplifting documentary will have you cheering for the underdogs and wishing that all footballers were this humble, determined and just plain decent."
[11]
While on his
film review programme with Simon Mayo
on
BBC Radio 5 Live
he admitted that the film made him both cry and punch the air.
[12]
In the
New Statesman
,
Arsenal
fan
Mark Lawson
called
Next Goal Wins
, "one of the best films about football",
[13]
because it will appeal to football fans and the football indifferent alike.
Across the rest of the world the coverage was also positive. In
The New York Times
Anita Gates called the film "splendid celebration-of-humanity documentary" comparing its best moments to an
Edith Wharton
novel.
[14]
A number of reviewers remarked that interest in soccer or even sport was not necessary to enjoy the film.
[15]
[16]
Despite their largely positive reviews, Liam Lacey in
The Globe and Mail
noted that the film was predictable
[17]
and in the
Los Angeles Times
Sheri Linden wrote that there is nothing exceptional about the film cinematically.
[16]
Awards
[
edit
]
Next Goal Wins
won the Special Jury Award as part of the Documentary Film Competition at the 2014
Abu Dhabi Film Festival
and was also nominated for a Black Pearl Award for Best Documentary Feature at the same festival. The same year it won the Best Documentary award at the
British Independent Film Awards
. In 2015 the film was nominated for Documentary of the Year at the
London Critics Circle Film Awards
2015.
Feature film adaptation
[
edit
]
In August 2019,
Variety
reported that director
Taika Waititi
would oversee a
feature film adaption of
Next Goal Wins
for
The Walt Disney Company
under their
Searchlight Pictures
banner. Waititi co-wrote the script with
Iain Morris
.
Garrett Basch
,
Jonathan Cavendish
,
Andy Serkis
, Mike Brett, and Steve Jamison served as producers. The production was a joint venture between
Searchlight Pictures
and
The Imaginarium
. Principal photography began in late 2019.
Michael Fassbender
was announced to star in the film adaption in the role of Thomas Rongen.
[18]
The film was released on November 17, 2023.
[19]
See also
[
edit
]
References
[
edit
]
- ^
Next Goal Wins
- British Films Directory
film.britishcouncil.org
- ^
McNary, Dave (6 February 2014)
"Berlin: Soccer Documentary ‘Next Goal Wins’ Gets U.S. Distribution"
Variety.com
- ^
"Next Goal Wins (2014)"
BBFC
- ^
a
b
Kev Geoghegan (6 May 2014).
"Next Goal Wins for 'world's worst football team'
"
.
BBC News
. Retrieved
6 May
2014
.
- ^
"VIDEO: "Next Goal Wins" trailer details 'worst team in the world'
"
.
NBC Sports Radio
. 20 February 2014
. Retrieved
28 February
2014
.
- ^
"Hollywood treatment for American Samoa"
.
FIFA
World
. 13 March 2013. Archived from
the original
on 3 May 2014
. Retrieved
23 February
2020
.
- ^
Mitchell, Wendy (3 February 2014)
"Making Next Goal Wins"
Screen International
- ^
"Next Goal Wins"
.
Tribeca Film Institute
. Archived from
the original
on 6 May 2014
. Retrieved
6 May
2014
.
- ^
Next Goal Wins
Rotten Tomatoes
- ^
Next Goal Wins (2014)
. Metacritic
- ^
Next Goal Wins review ? uplifting documentary about world's worst football team
- ^
(9 May 2014)
Mark Kermode reviews Next Goal Wins
Kermode and Mayo's Film Review. BBC Radio 5 Live.
- ^
Lawson, Mark (29 MAY 2014)
Next Goal Wins: for once, a football film people might actually watch
New Statesman
- ^
Gates, Anita (April 23, 2014)
A Badly Bruised Soccer Team Tries to Beat a Reputation
The New York Times
- ^
Gant, Charles (May 5, 2014)
Film Review: ‘Next Goal Wins’
Variety.com
- ^
a
b
Linden, Sheri (April 24, 2014)
Review: 'Next Goal Wins' turns losing soccer team into champs
latimes.com
- ^
Lacey, Liam (July 11, 2014)
Next Goal Wins: Predictable, but shamelessly heart-warming
theglobeandmail.com
- ^
Kroll, Justin (13 September 2019).
"Michael Fassbender to Star in Taika Waititi's 'Next Goal Wins'
"
.
Variety
. Retrieved
31 October
2019
.
- ^
McClintock, Pamela (12 April 2023).
"Taika Waititi's 'Next Goal Wins' Kicks Box Office Release to November 2023"
.
The Hollywood Reporter
. Retrieved
12 April
2023
.
External links
[
edit
]