Goal! The Dream Begins (2005)

Rating: * * ½ (out of 5)

One cannot help but wonder what Goal! The Dream Begins would be like if Michael Winterbottom, the originally planned director, actually helmed the production. Now directed by Danny Cannon, whose credits include Judge Dredd and I Still Know What You Did Last Summer, Goal! The Dream Begins is filled with every cliché imaginable in a sports movie. Nonetheless, the film is still mildly enjoyable, simply because it is really the first big budget movie about soccer. It is surprising that there have not been many films about the most popular sport in the world. It could be because soccer was never a popular sport in the US, or it could be because the sport itself is difficult to film. However, with the rising popularity of the sport in the US, and the global market becoming more significant, I hope there will be more films about the beautiful game in the future.

Goal! The Dream Begins tells the story of Santiago Munez, who as a boy follows his family to sneak into America illegally. As a young man, he works in a Chinese restaurant in Los Angeles, he works for his father cleaning pools for the rich, and he plays amateur soccer on the weekends. One weekend his soccer skills catch the eyes of an ex-soccer scout for Newcastle United, Glen Foy, who believes that Santiago has the talents to become a professional in England. Glen invites Santiago to England for a tryout, but the young man's father does not approve of Santiago chasing a dream. It is not until his grandmother lends a helping hand that Santiago finally gets to go to England. Up to this point, there are enough recycled plotlines that pretty much forecast the other recycled materials to come in the rest of the movie.

Unaccustomed to the weather and surface, Santiago does not do well at the tryout, but of course he is given a second chance. Anna Friel plays the token love interest, Nurse Roz Harmison. Almost without any explanations, Santiago is taken under the wings of Newcastle's new multimillion pound signing, Gavin Harris (played by Alessandro Nivola). They share a flat; they go clubbing, while the Arsene Wengeresque manager, Erik Dornhelm (played by Marcel Iures) is less than impressed with Santiago. Almost inevitably in this kind of movies, Santiago is given a chance to play in the first team. His father watches the match in Los Angeles, and is finally proud of his son. Then the climax is of course, the last match of the season, the most important match for the club. And do I have to tell you who is the hero of that match?

Aided by impressive CGI graphics, the matches look authentic in Goal! The Dream Begins. They really look like the actors are actually playing on the pitch with the real players in real matches. It is a thrill to watch those sequences, especially if you are a soccer fan. The apperences of famous football celebs such as Alan Shearer, Sven Goran Eriksson, David Beckham, Zinadine Zidane, and Raul, also adds a touch of authenticity to the film. Newcastle is a soccer mad city in England, and my Geordie friends told me they cried during the movie. Full of cliches? Yes. Utterly predictable? Absolutely. But put St. James's Park on the big screen, and show Newcastle winning? It is bound to make any Geordie believe this is the greatest movie ever made.

A Buena Vista release of a Walt Disney Pictures, Milkshake Films production. Produced by Mike Jefferies, Matt Barrelle, Mark Huffam. Executive producers, Lawrence Bender, Peter Hargitay. Co-producers, Danny Stepper, Jo Burn, Chris Ouwinga. Directed by Danny Cannon. Screenplay, Dick Clement, Ian La Frenais; story, Mike Jefferies, Adrian Butchart. Running time: 119 mins. Santiago Munez - Kuno BeckerGavin Harris - Alessandro NivolaGlen Foy - Stephen DillaneRoz Harmison - Anna FrielErik Dornhelm - Marcel IuresBarry Rankin - Sean PertweeChristina - Cassandra BellKieron Dyer - HimselfMal Braithwaite - Gary LewisMercedes - Miriam ColonHernan Munez - Tony PlanaBluto - Lee RossHughie McGowan - Kieran O'BrienCarl Francis - Ashley WaltersCarol Harmison - Frances BarberJamie Drew - Kevin Knapman


Visit my blog at http://allaboutfilms.blogspot.com/