Next Goal Wins

Does Taika Waititi's new film score a win?

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The Good: The comedy was great nearly every time. There were times my whole theater was laughing out loud. While I do think it can take you out a few scenes, I do think the Waititi humor adds to the film.

I think Michael Fassbender was the perfect cast for the role of Thomas Rongen. He was able to embody the distance, the anger, and the hope of Rongen throughout the film. Without him, I don’t think the film could have sustained itself.

The Meh: I think Rongen’s struggles should have been displayed earlier in the movie. I think having more of his struggles with alcohol, the death of his daughter, and separation from his wife could have been mention earlier before the halftime speech. By doing so, I think it would have been able to emotionally ground the film significantly earlier than that half time speech.

The Bad: Only the story of Jaiyah and Nicky (the goal keeper) were really fleshed out in the movie. I definitely needed more stories from all of the players. Throughout the movie it was always being said that the players were sacrificing so much to play for the team. What were they sacrificing? What all were they doing to play on the team? We don’t know, and I think it was a missed opportunity to really show how dedicated the players on the soccer team were.

Overall: I think Waititi was able to give a heartwarming story with a sprinkle of comedy. While I do think that there could have been a little less humor and more focus on the characters. I think this is definitely a good-feeling story that I will come back to.

Rating: 4/5