Once in a while, there comes a movie that can touch the tender corners of a person so that they can gain some strength to rise against their struggles. An up against all odds theme that is becoming more popular in many films. Sharrock’s latest film, The Beautiful Games, is built around that idea. A gem of a film, it exclaims that life is harsh and some do not deserve a second chance but in the end, it all works out even if you fail.
From sleeping in his car to being called a former soccer pro, things moved fast for Winny. Things haven’t been looking up for him and his luck has been nearly non-existent. One day, out of the blue, he catches the chance of a lifetime to take part in the Homeless World Cup, which although sounds crazy, is something that many dream of.
The tournament brings together most of the homeless people who come from various places to play soccer games and overcome the challenges and hardships of life. This is an opportunity to offer hope to the hopeless and bring back the lost faith. For Vinny in this film, he is not a goal scorer on the field but rather someone who is out to find a footing and takes up his position properly in this dynamic world.
Character development can sometimes be an asset to a film while at times, it can equally be a liability. For The Beautiful Game, character development is an asset for the movie. As early as the introductory stage, you become interested in the lives of Vinny, Nathan, Aldar, Cal, and others, with each character having his or her own story and some forms of challenges they go through. In this case, the reason why the characters sparkle is because of the absence of half-hearted effort in telegraphic writing.
Unfortunately, you won’t find stereotypical, cardboard cut-out caricatures but characters that are more complex. Let’s begin with Vinny. He’s not your typical washed-up sportsperson. He is a man on an odyssey trying to regain a breath of life from the despair of his surroundings. Then there is Nathan, a young man trying to live with his parents’ expectations while being an addict in recovery.
Also, Cal wishes to demonstrate to the authorities that he has improved enough to be allowed access to his son unsupervised. Each character in the magnificent film The Beautiful Game has been well crafted with their story and the reason for them participating in the Homeless World Cup. This is one of the reasons why it is difficult to choose a single character to support.
Bill Nighy is what we can now call a fine wine. With every year he’s becoming better and better, and his role in The Beautiful Game is not an exception to the rule. Still, despite being a supporting character, he manages to dominate the scenes which make you remember that he’s not the lead character. As a retired football scout with an idealistic personality, it’s believable when he portrays Mal who is eager to help his character Vinny redeem himself.
Nighy interacting with Michael Ward, the actor playing Vinny would light up the screen with their presence. The scene when both are present is always a blend of comic relief and a bond from banter and it’s hard to not root for them. In a nutshell, one can feel that these two characters are meeting after a long time and are just catching up on what has happened in their lives.
Most remarkably the way Mal goes from just being a mentor to becoming almost a father like figure to Vinny and the rest of the players.
The Beautiful Game offers a perfect visualization of football as a unifying game in every sense of the word. Hood element or old war horse, it doesn’t matter on the pitch. What matters is your passion and your urge to the game. It lets people know that in first place in football, there are no losers.
With that in mind, yes, indeed, The Beautiful Game does not have a unique plot or storyline for itself. We have seen this template of a story quite a lot, but it’s surprising how it is presented which makes it different. This particular film is represented as a quest film but it is not so much about a quest or a journey, it’s also about what needs to be done even if life is not in your favor. Taking everything into consideration, if you are somebody looking for inspiration and a warm-hearted story, The Beautiful Game is quite recommendable.
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