This is the one film I pass along to my friends. Not because they are football/soccer fans. It doesn't matter if they are or not. Forget the synopsis. The central story is that of the England Manager. Let's admit it, he's a bit of a screw up. He picks the wrong players for his team, picks his assistants for the wrong reasons. He only gets the England job because the men the FA really want to give it to refuse to accept it. But there is something very very likable about him. He is in a way, an everyman. Someone who tries hard but life seems to give a few kicks to. Like most of us.
This is a comedy, make no mistake. But what separates it from average is it's heart. When England struggle game after game and the dream job turns to a nightmare for the manager we watch as the stress takes hold. It even starts to tear apart his personal life. It culminates at the media center just before England final group stage match and just after Mr. Bassett has been caught in a display of public drunkenness.
There, the men of the press, the self appointed voice of the public, demand his resignation. When he refuses, it causes a riot with cat calls from certain reporters. Quietly, while the reporters scream, Bassett reads the Kipling poem. A poem that has been his personal mantra through life. Which basically says stay true to your heart and do what you know is right. His poem silences his critics and upon completion he utters the now famous (for us Mike Bassett lovers) "England will be playing four, four, fu**ing two!" Which really is an exclamation mark for the poem. Stay true to your heart. And in this case, England do what you do best.
If I have made a mess of explaining why I love this film I only say this. Thank you to the filmmakers for this little bit of brilliance. It's hard enough to find a film that makes you laugh. But finding one that makes you laugh and touches your heart at the same time is indeed rare.
This is a comedy, make no mistake. But what separates it from average is it's heart. When England struggle game after game and the dream job turns to a nightmare for the manager we watch as the stress takes hold. It even starts to tear apart his personal life. It culminates at the media center just before England final group stage match and just after Mr. Bassett has been caught in a display of public drunkenness.
There, the men of the press, the self appointed voice of the public, demand his resignation. When he refuses, it causes a riot with cat calls from certain reporters. Quietly, while the reporters scream, Bassett reads the Kipling poem. A poem that has been his personal mantra through life. Which basically says stay true to your heart and do what you know is right. His poem silences his critics and upon completion he utters the now famous (for us Mike Bassett lovers) "England will be playing four, four, fu**ing two!" Which really is an exclamation mark for the poem. Stay true to your heart. And in this case, England do what you do best.
If I have made a mess of explaining why I love this film I only say this. Thank you to the filmmakers for this little bit of brilliance. It's hard enough to find a film that makes you laugh. But finding one that makes you laugh and touches your heart at the same time is indeed rare.