‘Next Goal Wins’ is inspirational - and funny

Category: Blu-ray's and DVD's

Now available on digital (and coming February 27, 2024 on Blu-ray and DVD) Next Goal Wins is the cute story based on real events. Taken from a documentary of the same name, this is the story of the American Samoa soccer team that has never won a game. Not one in 17 years. They had lost all 30 of their matches. 

Enter Thomas Rogen (Michael Fassbender), an unconventional coach who has no other career options than to undertake the Samoan team and hopefully turn them into winners. This story is not a new one. Think about the Kevin Costner film McFarland, U.S.A in which an unconventional coach turned a group of young migrant workers into a winning cross-country team. Like that story, Next Goal Wins also adds the cultural elements of the players, in this case of American Samoa and Polynesia.

With the Samoan infrastructure difficult to get around, the production had to film the movie in Hawaii, but that really wasn’t an issue. They worked tirelessly to present the life and culture of the Samoans and bring their lifestyles and dress to the film. 

There is plenty of humor in the film. There are cultural differences between Rogen and the Samoans that are laugh-out-loud moments. And when he is in a car being driven on the island, the snail’s pace frustrates him nevertheless he is told the speed limit on the whole island is 20 mph. Yikes. For someone from the mainland U.S. this is not easy to get used to.

The American Samoa team was famous for their 31-0 loss in 2001. These players have not scored a goal, yet they continue to try as they bring their own philosophies to their play.  Throughout it all they never push aside their cultural traditions like praying, etc. when it is time to do so.

The Academy Award winning director, Taika Waititi, made sure the Polynesian culture was represented in every scene. He took the lifestyle, look, and philosophy of Polynesia and sunk them into this story, and rightly so. The combination of characters represent the actual team, as the story meant to be as factual and actual as possible.

There is a deleted scene included in the digital release but what viewers will most likely find very interesting as well as entertaining is the 26-minute bonus feature “The Pitch of Life.” This might be a good feature to watch before viewing the film. It adds a lot of background to the production and quite frankly whets the appetite to view the entire movie. It is cute and descriptive and brings viewers right into the production itself. 

Watching the characters rejoice when they actually score a goal is heartening. It is a joyous event.

If you want a fun, uplifting story that is based on reality, check out Next Goal Wins.

 

About the Author

Francine Brokaw has been covering all aspects of the entertainment industry for over 30 years. She also writes about products and travel. She has been published in national and international newspapers and magazines as well as Internet websites. She has written her own book, Beyond the Red Carpet The World of Entertainment Journalists, is the entertainment correspondent for Good Day Orange County, and has her own TV show, Beyond the Red Carpet, on Village Television in Orange County. She is a longstanding member of the Television Critics Association and is accredited by the MPAA.