Parminder Nagra stars as Jess, a Londoner of Indian descent who has loved playing soccer (or football, to the rest of the world) all her life. She lives and breathes her sport, so much so that every night she tells all her hopes and dreams to a giant poster of British soccer phenom David Beckham that hangs above her bead. Her parents, though, are less than approving, and when Jess uncovers a female soccer team that is willing to let her play in "real matches" she must weigh fulfilling her dreams against tearing her family apart. There is also the matter of her gorgeous Irish coach (Jonathan Rhys-Myers) and her new best friend (Keira Knightly); two girls and one cute guy can sometimes cause problems.

The script is more deeply layered than you might expect; I especially liked the interaction between Jess and her parents. Jess' mom is horrified by her daughter's passion because she feels nice Indian girls should be thinking of marriage and not "running around half naked in front of men", but her father for a subtler reason; he still remembers when he came to England and was not allowed to play cricket because of his race. He cannot bear the idea of sport breaking Jess' heart too.

The supporting cast is uniformly great; with standouts being Juliet Stevenson as the mother of Jess' new friend ("There is a reason Sporty Spice is the only one without a boyfriend!") and Jonathan Rhys-Myers as the coach. Rhys-Myers, in fact, spends what screen time he has looking incredibly sexy and practically daring the audience to call him on his Irish accent. Everyone else plays their roles to perfection and a good time is had by all, including the audience. Highly recommended!

GRADE: A-

In the center of the story is Jessminder Bhamra (Parminder Nagra), a young Indian girl living in England who desperately wants to be a football (soccer) player. On the one hand, she is incredibly talented, but on the other, she has very traditional parents who believe that Jess should (a) go to university, (b) become a solicitor, and (c) marry a nice Indian boy. But Jess has dreams of her own and when she is approached by Jules Paxton (Keira Knightley) while playing soccer with the boys at a local park, she secretly joins Jules' local all-girls "football" team. Jules and Jess become close friends but conflicts arise when both girls fall for the same boy - their coach Joe (the handsome Jonathan Rhys-Meyers).

There are many, many highlights to this film. First of all, it is incredibly entertaining and funny. There are definitely parallels to "My Big Fat Greek Wedding" as Jess' family life is thrown into chaos as they plan for her sister Pinky's "big fat Indian wedding" (complete with quirky, colorful relatives and friends). Secondly, it has a very talented cast led by newcomer Parminder Nagra (who is wonderful and earnest as the young woman in conflict between her dreams and her family traditions), the beautiful Keira Knightley (who will soon become a household name once "The Pirates of the Caribbean" opens this summer), handsome heartthrob Jonathan Rhys-Meyers (rumored to be in the running to be the next James Bond), the hilarious Juliet Stevenson (as Jules' prissy mom who is appalled that her daughter would rather play sports than go shopping with her) and Shaheen Khan (as Jess' no-nonsense mom who is equally appalled that her daughter would rather play sports than learn the finer art of Indian cooking). Thirdly, the production values, script and acting are top-notch, bringing to mind similarly quirky, enjoyable coming-of-age and feel-good films like "Muriel's Wedding" and "Princess Diaries."

I honestly cannot find fault with this film. I came into the theater without any pre-conceived expectations and came out loving it and wanting to see it again! This movie is definitely on my DVD must-have list. I can't wait to own it so that I can watch it again and again. Anglophiles, soccer fans and anyone who enjoys top-notch romantic comedies must see this movie. It is a film that crosses cultural boundaries and will make you smile and laugh from beginning to end. What a gem!