MOVIE REVIEW: Goal!

This might be an ordinary inspiring soccer film. Yes, indeed, it is but wait, there is more than the expected. This movie rocks bigtime.

Goal! The Dream Begins. This movie inspires me. I learned things about life. Without a doubt, this is one of my favorite movies of all time.

Insights

“Believe in yourself,” this is the most important lesson you can learn after watching the film. Like Santiago Munez (portrayed by Kuno Becker), he never quit in the game of life although he got screwed several times. Life is a wheel of fortune, filled with failures and confusion. However; we decide the fortune we want. Psychologically, our fortune is our choice, not our destiny. Once we get the correct decisions, confusion melts away! For this reason, our choices are the ticket to the paramount of our dreams.

On the other hand, life is not all about choices and decisions. I understand that at some points of our life, we feel languid even though we don’t exactly know why. Sometimes, we call it as “bad karma” or “God’s wrath.” Don’t worry, I experienced it too, more than what you can think. In this case, luck plays as the spice of our life.

Some people may not really believe in luck because it is unscientific. While watching “Goal,” I get to realize there is nothing wrong if we believe in luck. Luck might also bring us hope.

Review

There’s a scene in the film when Santiago is about to leave England after series of unsuccessful trials for Newcastle United. However, upon discovering flat tires in his car, Gavin Harris (Alessandro Nivola), a promiscuous and prominent soccer player, instantly calls a taxi cub.

Chasing the time to attend his regular soccer practice, he’s riding the taxi with his new soccer pal- Santiago. This lucky event gives Santiago another chance to play professional soccer.

Insights

Luck. We oftentimes ignore its presence but it exists around us. Luck is probably like a falling star. It comes unexpectedly but it works like a magic. Nothing is perfect. Oftentimes, we hardly accept our weaknesses. We think that our weaknesses are our liability. An obstacle in life.

Review

Despite of having asthma, Santiago Munez never loses his grip of becoming a professional soccer player. At first, he was in denial. He even lied during his physical examination. Yet, when his league manager, Mr. Dornhelm, learned about his condition, he immediately advised him to see a physician for a thorough check-up. Santiago’s morale lifted up.

Insights

Denial is a parcel of life. Everybody lies. We are born to be liars whether we like it or not. It is a common mechanism we do to cope with our difficulties. We love to deny things until we get to realize there is no authenticity inside us. Facing our weaknesses might be a liability but not an obstacle.

When I was young, I kept a tremendous amount of embarrassment inside me only because I couldn’t accept my physical disability. There were many questions inside my head. Questions that I thought have no answers. I prayed but I was still confused. Believe me or not, I thought of suicide to end it all.

Now, I realize living in reality is not a question of how but why. It took years before I understand and accept the real me. It sucks to accept our weaknesses but things will be okay once we know to manage our insecurity.

Life is more beautiful if we are authentic. There are no perfect formula techniques in knowing ourselves however, if we could learn how to evaluate our weaknesses from our strengths- it is easier to move on. Miracles do happen.

Review

Santiago Munez fell in love with his Nurse Roz (Anna Friel).  An active man who kicks a ball outfield and a prim and proper warm-hearted Samaritan inside the hospital. Ironic.

Insights

Years ago, I was torn because of love. How it happens? That’s another topic. All I can say, love is a force of life no matter how puzzling it is.

People. We live in a world socializing with different people in different races and color. The famous saying says, “You can’t please everyone.” This is true bo matter how Santiago Munez proves his worth to his father, his father does not believe him. He doesn’t give his son a chance to show what he is capable of.

Perhaps, Santiago’s father is only too preoccupied with all the stress of life which results to stringency. He’s also weak to accept change, that’s why; he becomes overprotective of his children. A father-and-son conflict is inevitable.

An iceberg of confusion emerge between them. This dilemma happens all the time. Believe me, I experienced it too. It is not really easy to get rid of the iceberg. I did get envy with my dad’s new wife and son. I hated my dad. With God’s help, I get to understand the real problem was on me. I realized I was not a little boy to earn my dad’s attention all the time.

The role of a father is no joke. Fathers are only human beings with burdens of their own. Some of them may even have a trauma. They deny their weaknesses but truth is, they also hurt. Bruise inside. It’s too difficult to reach out to them but that’s all we could do to make things easier. No matter what you do, change is the only permanent thing in life.

There are also negative people around us. It is painful to think that there are people who regularly criticize, manipulate, envy, label and degrade us.

Review

Being a new member in the soccer league, Santiago Munez is also the center attraction of mockery and jealousy. He had no friends. His presence seems to be a threat to everyone. However, as days passed by, things went out fine for him at the end. Even the famous Gavin Harris became his good friend.

Insights

People are judgmental. We don’t know what others think. Gossips and rumors are inevitable among a group. In this case, paranoia easily sets in. Self-control diminishes. Some people are like that, they are still bitter no matter how we please them. Know-it-all people criticize us even to the smallest detail of mistake.

Others only nag to put us down. These obnoxious people possess guilt inside them. They may be aware of their aggressive actions but they can’t somehow control it. That’s why; their easiest way to cope with this aggression is through displacement (transferring of negative emotions to others) and projection (attributing one’s own unacceptable feeling to others).

Sometimes, life also has these good people who are like Heaven’s Saints and Angels! We exactly don’t know them however, they really believe in our skills and capabilities.

Review

There are two great Samaritans behind Santiago’s initial success. First is his grandmother. Despite the odds, she gave Santiago the airline ticket to his dream. Second is Mr. Glen Foy (portrayed by Stephen Dillane). Mr. Foy, a retired professional soccer player, immediately discovers that Santiago got all the inner guts and skills of a professional soccer player. Despite of failures and frustrations, he still helps Santiago in any means.

Insights

Have you ever experienced this certain event in your life? We tend to ignore the presence of these people but they exist. It is an exhilarating feeling to have someone, who trusts us for not what we are but for who we are. They don’t judge but comprehend our weaknesses. We don’t completely understand why they exist yet their presence is a blessing. So what we are waiting for, let’s grab the opportunity while they are still there.

Of all the God’s gifts to us, our intuition is the best. There are episodes in our life that we need to go beyond the facts. We don’t know if it’s that’s the correct decision but we feel it’s the right thing to do. Santiago Munez has been successful in soccer because of his intuition. Thank God that he’s basically got the spunk to outplay his opponents.

Some of us may not trust our intuition because we tend to forget its real purpose. If only we could use and follow our intuition properly, we could realize that God truly whispers to us the ways. It pays to follow our intuition most of the time.

Review

I am not related to Danny Cannon (director of this film, “Goal”) yet I conclude that he has done an incredible job. Goal is such a must-see-film for all people especially for those who have leave their innermost dreams behind. 4 OF 5 STARS.

Photo Courtesy of: IMDb