Goal! (film)

''Goal!'' (also known as ''Goal! The Dream Begins'') is a 2005 British sports drama film directed by Danny Cannon from a screenplay by Mike Jefferies, Adrian Butchart, Dick Clement, and Ian La Frenais. It is the first installment in the ''Goal!'' trilogy and stars Kuno Becker, Alessandro Nivola, Marcel Iureș, Stephen Dillane, and Anna Friel. In the film, Santiago Muñez (Becker), an amateur player, earns an unlikely chance to play professional football.

''Goal!'' was made with co-operation from FIFA, which enabled the inclusion of FIFPro likenesses of real teams and players. Adidas contributed a reported $50 million towards the film's budget and marketing campaign, marking the then-biggest deal between a corporate brand and a film production.

''Goal!'' was theatrically released in the United Kingdom by Buena Vista International on 1 October 2005. The film received mixed reviews from critics, with praise for the sports sequences and Becker's performance but criticism for the screenplay, with many labelling it cliché. ''Goal!'' underperformed at the box office, grossing $27.6 million worldwide. Despite this, ''Goal!'' is considered to be a cult film, with Newcastle United, the team featured in the film, seeing a direct rise in popularity as a result. The sequel, '' Goal II: Living the Dream'', was released in the United Kingdom in February 2007.

Plot

Santiago Muñez, a Mexican undocumented immigrant living in Los Angeles, is a skilled footballer who plays for his local team and works as a gardener with his father, Hernan, and as a busboy in a Chinese restaurant. During one of his matches, Santiago is approached by Glen Foy, a former player and scout for Newcastle United, who helps arrange a trial with the club. To afford travel to England, Santiago saves his earnings, which Hernan steals to buy a truck for the business, being dismissive of Santiago's chances at becoming a professional. Santiago's grandmother, Mercedes, secretly hands him money and urges him to depart for England before Hernan can find out.

Arriving in Newcastle, Santiago stays with Glen and begins his trial. In muddy conditions, Santiago struggles under pressure from Hughie McGowan, a teammate, during a training match. Although unimpressed, Erik Dornhelm, the club's manager, acquiesces to Glen's request that Santiago's trial last for a month. During a medical, Santiago lies about his asthma to club nurse, Roz Harmison, fearing it will damage his chances of being signed; he is then given a one-month contract.

Despite facing some bullying by Hughie, Santiago becomes friends with Jamie Drew, another player on trial. Santiago soon adapts to English conditions and a reserve match is scheduled at the end of his trial to determine his signing on a full-time basis. Before the match, Santiago tries to use his inhaler but Hughie destroys it, leading to an asthma flare-up. After another disappointing performance, Newcastle let Santiago go.

On his way to the airport, Santiago's taxi picks up Gavin Harris, an indisciplined, struggling yet talented player who recently joined Newcastle. Gavin, late for training, finds out about Santiago's asthma, and informs Erik. Erik lets Santiago stay, contingent on him seeking treatment for his asthma. Santiago then moves in with Gavin and they form a friendship. After impressive performances in the reserves, Santiago makes his debut for the first team, coming on as a substitute against Fulham. Santiago earns a penalty, which helps them win the match, a moment proudly seen on TV by Hernan.

Despite the victory, Erik criticizes Santiago's selfishness on the pitch, urging him to pass the ball more. That night, he and Gavin go out partying and their drunken picture winds up in ''The Sun'', enraging Erik. Jamie suffers a career-ending injury as Santiago and Gavin's friendship starts to crumble. Hernan suffers a sudden fatal heart attack, and Santiago prepares to return home. However, at the airport, Santiago abandons his flight, instead training until the early hours at St James' Park after a conversation with Roz, with whom Santiago begins a relationship. Erik then informs Santiago he has been selected to start the season's final game against Liverpool, who are due to play in the 2005 UEFA Champions League final against AC Milan 10 days after the game.

On match day, Newcastle scored early but Liverpool soon took the lead. In the final minutes of injury time, Santiago assists Gavin for the equalizer, however, a draw will not be enough to earn Newcastle a place in the UEFA Champions League. Minutes before the end of the game, Newcastle earns a free kick, which Gavin hands to Santiago, who scores and Newcastle wins 3–2 to secure a berth in next season's UEFA Champions League. Liverpool eventually qualified for that tournament by beating AC Milan (see Will (2011 film) for details). After the match, Glen relays a call to Santiago from Mercedes, informing Santiago his father watched his match against Fulham.

Cast

Production

The film was the first of a planned trilogy. Originally the lead role was supposed to be played by Diego Luna but he left to pursue other projects and was replaced by Kuno Becker. Michael Winterbottom was also slated to direct the film but after creative differences he was replaced by Danny Cannon. Shooting for the film commenced in January 2005 and locations included Pinewood Studios, London, Newcastle, and Los Angeles.

Soundtrack

The musical score for ''Goal!'' was composed by Graeme Revell, who previously collaborated with director Danny Cannon on '' Phoenix'' (1998).

A soundtrack album was released on Oasis

HOME


Content is Copyleft
Website design, code, and AI is Copyrighted (c) 2014-2017 by Stephen Payne


Consider donating to Wikimedia



As an Amazon Associate I earn from qualifying purchases