Hey, everyone. "Moriarty" here with some Rumblings From The Lab.
Last week, my girlfriend and her friends convinced me to go to a soccer game at the Los Angeles Coliseum down by USC. It was Mexico versus Argentina. My girlfriend is Argentinian, so we were all decked out in light blue and white. There were maybe 500 or so fans there for Argentina, and the rest of the 8000 fans in attendance were rooting for Mexico. Needless to say, when Argentina won and we had to get back to our car that was parked five city blocks away, it was a little like a street theater production of THE WARRIORS. “Real football,” as my girlfriend calls it, certainly inspires deep passion in fans, and I’ve heard the same kind of passion from the people who have fallen under the charms of this film, which Fox Searchlight is releasing later this year here in the US following a long and successful trek on the festival circuit. Check out this review:
Hello, you can call me 'Rikki-O', and this is my first time writing in to "Aint-It-Cool-News". I first wanted to thank you VERY much for your site, and all the updates/scoops it brings. I enjoy it immensely, and, well, keep up the great work. But anyhow...I saw an advance screening recently and wanted to send you my take on the flick.
The movie is Bend It Like Beckham, a movie about British footballers. It's actually in release already as I understand it - that is, everywhere but here in North America - save for Sundance (the No. American release date for the film is March 14), but I figured you and your co-contributors might like to hear about this film just the same. So... here goes, & enjoy...
Well, I recently caught a screening of the new international hit Bend It Like Beckham, which has yet to play in the U.S. - save for the Sundance Festival - but has been a box office success seemingly everywhere else. Of course this seems as little surprise as the film focuses on football - and no not the football of the of the National Football League here in the U.S. and of the Hall of Fame in Canton and the kind that made Notre Dame U. famous. Nope this is soccer, aka football, and it is fanatically popular round the world including (And especially) in England. Fans over in that country (as in others) root fervently -some certainly much more than others - for their favorite teams in something called the Premier League. Soccer certainly is THE sport in the UK, and among the more popular players is David Beckham of the Manchester United (for more info on this team, go here - the site even lists the amount of time left before the team's next game). He is a soccer/football superstar, and there is even a playing style that has been named after him. Plus some here in the U.S. might just know him as the husband of "Posh Spice" (Victoria Beckham, formerly Victoria Adams) of the Spice Girls.
But... Bend It Like Beckham, is not about the namesake athlete, though his name is mentioned. It certainly does involve people who want to emulate Beckham, the way basketball players in America want to be "Like Mike"=play like Michael Jordan (hmmm, how about "Like Mike" as a movie title...nahhhhh :)). But the film's real focus is not so much on soccer, but on one (or two really) individual's search for identity, with love of the game on one hand and pursuing a more traditional life as set by parents.
Having said this though, the film is very lighthearted, and in an ironic way seems geared specifically to an American audience. Strange since, as I mentioned above, the movie hasn't played in the U.S. as yet. Still Bend It... follows a very Hollywood format, especially when it comes to sports-themed flicks. The basic "person overcomes obstacles to play a sport, does very well, then everything suddenly goes downhill... and then it all turns around - and there is a last minute save by the main character". In addition to the plot format, there are other things that seem geared towards Americans...but more on that in a bit. First, the plot...
Jess (Parminder K. Nagra), whose formal name is Jesminder Bhamra, is part of a very traditional Indian family living in Hounslow - an area of West London near Heathrow Airport (the family's house is right in a flight path it seems). She has dreams of playing professional soccer - especially playing alongside fav player David Beckham – but has to settle for playing pick-up games in the park with her male friends. Her family, however, are not pleased with her leaning toward soccer. As a traditional Indian family, they feel she should focus on her studies, get into a good college, marry a nice Indian guy - also from a traditional family--and do domestic duties like cooking. Her older sister Pinky (Archie Panjabi) is about to get married, and so Jess gets a lot of pressure from her parents to drop ideas of playing soccer, and instead pursue a more traditional Indian woman's role. For one thing, they want to make a good impression on the family of Pinky's fiance, which means having a daughter playing a sport, and not violating modesty codes (i.e. no soccer uniform of shorts and T-shirt), is not a good thing. But Jess sit back and give up on soccer - nope, of course not. She meets someone named Jules Paxton (Keira Knightley, who among other roles played Queen Amidala's double in The Phantom Menace, and will soon be in The Pirates of the Caribbean) who tells her about a women's soccer team. This team is called the Hounslow Harriers, and after showing off some of her skills and, after overcoming a personal obstacle (she is afraid of people seeing one of her legs - won't tell the reason but it is not the modesty issue), she joins the team. Of course this means lying to her family, as they forbid her to play soccer. Jess is really good, she certainly attracts the attention of the coach, an Irish dude named Joe (Jonathan Rhys-Meyers, among other things he was in The Magnificent Ambersons) - and in more ways than one. One thing he does bring up with her, as well as with Jules, is the possibility of playing in America. Yup, that's right. Well, the U.S., you see, has this women's soccer league, the WUSA (Women's United Soccer Association). Thus the members of the Harriers look forward to the possible arrival of a scout from the U.S. and in turn a potential professional soccer career.
In addition to Jess and her family, Jules has some issues at home as well. Seems Mum (Juliet Stevenson, who has been in a number of films including the recent Nicholas Nickleby) is not happy with her daughter playing soccer either. In fact, she wishes Jules would wear more feminine clothes, rather than things like sports bras and sweatpants, and also not spend so much time on sports. Jules' father Alan (Frank Harper), much to his wife's disliking, fosters their daughter's love of soccer and encourages her to keep playing and even practices with her in the backyard. Yep he is a big fan of the game - one of the funnier moments in the film for me is where he tries to explain to his wife the rules of soccer using table condiments to represent players. So Jules keeps on playing, as does Jess. The latter keeps having to make excuses to going off to participate in games - when the summer job cover job is blown, she makes up other excuses like faking an illness or going to a relative's house. Well, soon the Harriers are off to Germany for a match there, and then things get really interesting....
Actually, not all that interesting - as I mentioned the plot is basic. Rather than continuing with the plot, I'd like to mention some pros and cons, but more importantly how the movie is really gearing itself to appeal to Americans. Again, the plot is formula for more than just sports films - things go well despite some early challenges, then things go sour, then everything comes together at the last minute. There is also a romance, a bit of a love triangle, and one kinda know how that will turn out. Jess, the main character, has to decide whether to follow the traditions of her parents, the customs of the "old country", or follow a more secular, modern path. Since this is a comedy, a lot of these issues are tackled in a more humorous vein. Jess' mother for instance is very very very pushy in terms of having her daughter not stray too much from practicing the old ways. To me the mother character could be in any number of American films about immigrants adjusting to a different life style, and the matriarch becomes overprotective and overbearing. Anyhow... as I said this is a comedy and some of the jokes are a little too silly - they follow the "Three's Company"-esque/misunderstanding format: this is where someone overhears a conversation and comes to a wrong conclusion ("what's that I heard? Character X is gay? But of course I'll now act like I didn't hear anything."). Yup there are a couple of moments like this. Also, although soccer may not be big in the States, it is presented in the film in a way that Americans might relate to. For instance, Jules' dad the soccer fan comes across as similar to his American brethren - one can easily see his U.S. counterpart plopped in front of the TV watching American football, kicking back and guzzling a couple of cold ones. In addition, early in the film, there is a glimpse of a TV sports program (which actually features real-lfe announcers playing themselves) that could just as easily be ESPN's SportsCenter. And the moments when we do see the women playing soccer... they look kinda like TV commercials in the U.S., for products like NIKE and Gatorade. On a final note on this... the closing credits feature outtakes where - There's Something About Mary-style - the cast and crew (director included) are singing along. The song in this case is "Hot!Hot!Hot!" only it is in Hindi!
Now why do I mention all these things - well, it is because I found the film entertaining... but that is it. It is certainly not deep, and the plot... well I told you about that already. I understand this movie has played at a number of international festivals already, winning acclaim and such. For me it is nothing special, just something that will be for a fun outing - a "popcorn" film as it were. Yes it does cover some Indian traditions, particularly in regards to wedding preparations. It also sheds light on the prejudices within that community - this includes things like skin hue (one should marry someone relatively light-skinned but definitely not white), whether one comes from a good i.e. traditional family, and religion (dating a Muslim is a BIG no-no). I liked the moments dealing with the Indian traditions, mentioning arranged marriages and such.
The wedding scene for Pinky is well-done, there is a lot of music and dancing, with a band and even a DJ who is spinning - suffice to say that Bollywood fans will not be disappointed with the reception sequence. Speaking of music, this movie has lotsss of it: from rock/pop to techno - like when the Harriers visit a nightclub in Germany – to plenty of Indian songs. Mrs. Beckham herself even contributed a couple of songs, as did Shaznay Lewis (who is in the film as one of the Harriers). I really liked the music in this flick, though I could have done without the Indian (!!!) version of Celine Dion's "The Power of Love" that gets played a couple of times. Yuck. Still most of the music is good. The stars of the film do well with what they are given. I thought Juliet Stevenson in particular did well as Jules' mother, who is trying to push her daughter to be more lady-like, and spends time trying to be the proper British housewife (the bit where she goes to a soccer game wearing a fancy hat is funny). On another tack, the soccer bits seem a little brief for me - for a movie dealing with the sport the scenes of the matches seem very brief. I was a little disappointed and wanted to see more coverage in the film of the games. Maybe that is a concession to us Americans since we find the sport boring (LOL). Still, with hearing so much about the Jess' and Jules' talents it would have been nice to see more of their playing - to show us how good they really are. Anyhow... on a final note about that - there are two moments that come to mind that might not as understood in America. One is where the Harriers are in the German nightclub, and coach Joe makes a joke in regards to the outcomes of previous soccer matches between Germany and England. Another - and more interesting one - is where an opposing player makes a racial slur towards Jess during a match. An altercation ensues and Jess is thrown from the game. Obviously upset, she tells Joe what happened, and he responds with "I understand Jess, I'm Irish." I understood the nature of the comment but am curious as to how that will play in the U.S. where racial/ethnic politics are different than in the U.K. I think some people at the screening I attended snickered at that line - too bad since it's one of the few (intentionally) serious moments in the film, which is otherwise a comedy.
Soooooo, to sum up, I found this film light and entertaining, but that's about it. If you are looking for a film that reveals more about Indian culture, or even soccer - a.k.a. a film that is truly different from most fare - you probably need to look elsewhere (the title athlete and the Manchester United are little to be found here). Bend It Like Beckham might make for a nice outing, and I do give it small pts. for showing footage of the Washington Freedom (of the WUSA), Mia Hamm and all :). Now my own feeling is that the movie, despite being about soccer, will be a surprise hit here in the U.S. It has similarities to plenty of American movies, sports and otherwise, with just the right amount of a twist (that the main character is a girl of Indian descent who wants to play soccer). I suppose I expect big things ($$) when it comes here, but that really depends on its marketing. The thick British accents might deter some - but it didn't deter audiences Stateside from seeing The Full Monty - and that took place in Northern England, not London. So Bend It... will do well here then, and who knows - even though it isn't hinted at specifically, I could even see there being a sequel (yep, I can see it now, Jess and Jules are soccer players who fight crime on the side - "They do more than kick around in soccer - they kick BUTT!"). Seriously though, if you are looking for simply a fun film, then Bend It Like Beckham will fit the bill.
So go Reds---beat the Blues and the Wanderers this month!
Thanks, and I look forward to checking this one out as soon as possible.
"Moriarty" out.
