Customer Reviews

The Great Match

5 star:		(13)
4 star:		(0)
3 star:		(0)
2 star:		(0)
1 star:		(0)

 

 

Several startling sequences make this film one you'll dream about for a time. Each of the three groups -Mongolian nomads, Brazilian natives, and Niger tribesmen- endeavor to view a World Cup soccer game on television. The stories expand, then, on the circumstances on which they view the grainy images and the comradery that develops between otherwise coldly-considered neighbors. The color palettes represented in these three stories are incredible.

The "Great Match" is not only a spectacularly photographed film, but it offers fascinating glimpses of otherwise invisible cultures(unless you're a Discovery Channel addict!)in a charmingly offbeat and engaging way.

The scenes from the Mongolian steppes are my favorite, but overall the film serves to demonstrate once again that regardless of culture, physical location or language, guys around the world are all "wired" the same! If you ever questioned the veracity of pseudo-national events like the "Superbowl" & the "World Series", this makes clear that the World Cup Final is a truly planetary sports competition.

LO

Thank god my husband Netflixed "The Great Match". It was a pure joy to watch the three communities scramble to watch the World Cup. And as my husband continually reminded me, the next WC is right around the corner. What made the film fantastic was the dialogue. The cultural nuances and references woven seamlessly throughout the movie kept the film incredibly fast paced. By the end, it seemed as if the viewer (me) had known the individuals and their quirks for years. The best part is that you wanted to know these characters, they were hysterical.

Not in a million years would I ever have watched this from the description. For no other reason than I've got many others that seemed more interesting to watch first. But I came back to the description again, noticing all the 5-star reviews. My interest piqued, I thought I had nothing to lose - I'd just stop if I didn't like watching yet another boring topic revolving around sports. Wow, was I wrong!

This film had me at the opening scene. Breathtaking expanse of Mongolia, I thought for a second that I had mistakenly switched the Discovery Channel on. The eagles, camels, landscapes of all the countries... amazingly beautiful. So much so that my Hollywierded brain wondered at first if it was CGI!

The music was delightful, as was the clever writing and comedic lines. My fave was the grandma saying (with deadpan face), "Another day of witnessing existence in bewilderment." Yes, I wrote it down.

I'm in awe of this movie and wondered several times how they filmed all of this in the natural surroundings. What a terrific surprise this movie was! I've gotta tell friends about it.

The initial sequence in Mongolia is worth the purchase price. The scenery is amazing. The vibe of the movie reminded me of "The Gods Must Be Crazy." Wonderful movie.

This is a happy, fun film, to enjoy and take for the ride. The music and photography are wonderful. I have shared this with a number of friends, and enjoy watching them, delight in the movie and anticipate their laughter. We are the same the world over when it comes to soccer and comaraderie.

As a football fan (World football, US soccer), I loved this movie. Great way to show the pasion for the event, especially when it comes to a World Cup Final match. It is an awesome cultural portrait of three social groups that live far away from the sports glamour, but that enjoy it and certainly don't want to miss a slice of history that comes every four years. You will learn something else besides football watching this nice comedy.
The movie itself is not an original idea, The Cup (1999), shows exactly the same motivation in a group of Tibetan monks to watch France 1998 Final Match. Both are worth every second watching.

Five stars aren't enough to describe the fun we had watching this film. How they made it, I'll never know, with three wild and disparate locations: Mongolia, the Sahara, and the Amazon jungle. In it, people who live in yurts and hunt with Golden Eagles; people who travel desert dunes in camel trains; and people who use blowguns and eat monkeys, all do their utmost to view a World Cup soccer match. Don't care about soccer? Never mind. You won't see much of it. (Nor will they.) Just get this movie, enjoy the charmingly real people, the wonderfully scripted action, and the amazing scenery, and laugh until it hurts. The Great Match definitely took our minds off the "Where is Noah when you need him?" winter downpour at our Hawaiian rainforest home. Lynne Farr, author of Off The Grid Without A Paddle and Off The Grid And Over The Hill

If you enjoy foreign films showing the unusual and humorous along with everyday life, this film is for you!
It is full of unexpected twists and turns and the actors could be true-to-life citizens of their countries.
This would be great to show your guests just before the "Big Game" comes on TV.

This beautiful film has some unforgettable shots of remote landscapes that you otherwise would hardly come across. It's a feel-good story of three men from these remote communities who've set themselves a goal to get to watch the final match of the World Cup. They use their witty inventiveness to access the so-desired point where they can fully enjoy the spectacular game of football.

The characters are great and the film is great fun to watch - and a pure visual feast!