This movie's theme (and period setting) is too interesting to not be successful. A really clueless amateur would have been needed to make a bad film with this solid budget (in Balkan terms) and this fun premise. Dragan Bjelogrlic isn't a particularly gifted director, but with the help of a solid script and a very decent acting crew, the result is fairly entertaining.
The first positive thing I'd point out is that this isn't yet another modern Serbian production in which the same, predictable, and generally not particularly good stable of actors dominate. In other words, Dragan himself isn't in it (not a bad actor, but hardly an acting great); the overrated Srdjan Todorovic only has a minor role, and he doesn't find the opportunity to clown around in it (as he usually does, and badly); Djuricko is even quite solid because he'd toned down his overacting as well; only Sergej Trifunovic gets more screen time than I'd prefer, even though his role is also fairly marginal. Sergej is highly overrated, unlikable, uncharismatic, and even though he is suitable to be cast in the role of an arrogant jerk, I believe many other domestic actors could have done the job better than him. It doesn't surprise that Mima Karadzic, Marko Nikolic and the guy playing the barber are among those who offer the best performances in this cast of mostly young actors. Although to be fair, the roles of the football players have been quite well cast, which I didn't expect. It seems that nepotism and other such forms of you-scratch-my-back-I'll-scratch-yours didn't dominate the casting process nearly as much as they usually do in Serbian TV or movie productions. Hence a much better film than one would normally expect.
It's also positive that female roles were also not necessarily allocated according to the increasingly domineering rules of it's-who-you-know-not-how-good-you-are. (No Katarina Radivojevic, just to mention one of many inferior nepotist Serb actresses.) On the other hand, the TV-series version of the movie does feature a lot of sub-par actresses many of whom obviously have family connections to thank for starting movie careers. I guess Bjelogrlic tried to save the best for the big screen.
The story unfolds well. The only criticism I have is the exaggerated and unrealistic love-square between the team's two star players, Rosa, and the sleazy artist wannabe. That whole commotion centered on the "love letters" didn't make much sense. Plus, the character of the femme-fatale night-club floozy is over-the-top, her behaviour being even more absurd in the TV series.
Period detail is kept as well as the budget allowed. The only minor criticism is of the lyrics of the song performed in the hipster night club; I believe they might be too racy for the 20s. I realize that this night-club represents the height of sleaze of that period and that such people were already pushing the boundaries of good taste, but the sexual nature of the song seems out-of-place i.e. out-of-time, especially since this song is then played again during the credits. I also doubt that regular waitresses of the period showed nearly as much cleavage as Tirke's love-interest Rosa does. She works in a regular café, not a night-club. Perhaps the writers, the costume department or the director got a little carried away, forgetting that this is set in Yugoslavia's post-WWI period.
There is a certain amount of political commentary, which may or may not be justified. Certainly, looking for the King to finance the trip to Uruguay automatically has to involve a degree of politics, and if the team's main defense player really was an outspoken Commie, then that's perfectly valid to mention as well. The important thing is that the script offers differing viewpoints on the dominant hot-potato issues of the day, and doesn't take sides. Personally, I would have kept the ideological subtext to a minimum, because this is a sports comedy, essentially.
Any movie that shows football as it used to be ("rich people watching poor people play" – which is slightly exaggerated by has some ironic truth to it) and as it's supposed to be is welcome. While the match and practice scenes may be a tad inundated with over-skillfulness (which doesn't bother me, i.e. a legitimate cinematic exaggeration), they show a beautiful game that was a far cry from the injury-faking, the acting-out (fake emotions, players performing as in a Greek theater), the unnecessary brutal tackles that slow down the game, the lack of goals, all the tattooed morons with moronic haircuts – i.e. all that stuff that pollutes modern football, making it so appealing to blood-thirsty plebs. The modern version of this once-great game has turned into a gladiator sport in which the outdated, easily-bent rules are subject to global misuse by mobsters and corrupt politicians who rule FIFA and UEFA like dictators. This is part of the movie's charm; reminding not just of a more innocent time culturally, but football-wise, as well.
I would like to know how true the film is historically, as far as the accuracy of how events leading up to the World Cup unfold, and how many liberties the screenwriters took when it comes to the football characters and those around them.
All in all, a well-made movie which never gets boring in spite of its length of well over two hours, which is a success in itself.
The first positive thing I'd point out is that this isn't yet another modern Serbian production in which the same, predictable, and generally not particularly good stable of actors dominate. In other words, Dragan himself isn't in it (not a bad actor, but hardly an acting great); the overrated Srdjan Todorovic only has a minor role, and he doesn't find the opportunity to clown around in it (as he usually does, and badly); Djuricko is even quite solid because he'd toned down his overacting as well; only Sergej Trifunovic gets more screen time than I'd prefer, even though his role is also fairly marginal. Sergej is highly overrated, unlikable, uncharismatic, and even though he is suitable to be cast in the role of an arrogant jerk, I believe many other domestic actors could have done the job better than him. It doesn't surprise that Mima Karadzic, Marko Nikolic and the guy playing the barber are among those who offer the best performances in this cast of mostly young actors. Although to be fair, the roles of the football players have been quite well cast, which I didn't expect. It seems that nepotism and other such forms of you-scratch-my-back-I'll-scratch-yours didn't dominate the casting process nearly as much as they usually do in Serbian TV or movie productions. Hence a much better film than one would normally expect.
It's also positive that female roles were also not necessarily allocated according to the increasingly domineering rules of it's-who-you-know-not-how-good-you-are. (No Katarina Radivojevic, just to mention one of many inferior nepotist Serb actresses.) On the other hand, the TV-series version of the movie does feature a lot of sub-par actresses many of whom obviously have family connections to thank for starting movie careers. I guess Bjelogrlic tried to save the best for the big screen.
The story unfolds well. The only criticism I have is the exaggerated and unrealistic love-square between the team's two star players, Rosa, and the sleazy artist wannabe. That whole commotion centered on the "love letters" didn't make much sense. Plus, the character of the femme-fatale night-club floozy is over-the-top, her behaviour being even more absurd in the TV series.
Period detail is kept as well as the budget allowed. The only minor criticism is of the lyrics of the song performed in the hipster night club; I believe they might be too racy for the 20s. I realize that this night-club represents the height of sleaze of that period and that such people were already pushing the boundaries of good taste, but the sexual nature of the song seems out-of-place i.e. out-of-time, especially since this song is then played again during the credits. I also doubt that regular waitresses of the period showed nearly as much cleavage as Tirke's love-interest Rosa does. She works in a regular café, not a night-club. Perhaps the writers, the costume department or the director got a little carried away, forgetting that this is set in Yugoslavia's post-WWI period.
There is a certain amount of political commentary, which may or may not be justified. Certainly, looking for the King to finance the trip to Uruguay automatically has to involve a degree of politics, and if the team's main defense player really was an outspoken Commie, then that's perfectly valid to mention as well. The important thing is that the script offers differing viewpoints on the dominant hot-potato issues of the day, and doesn't take sides. Personally, I would have kept the ideological subtext to a minimum, because this is a sports comedy, essentially.
Any movie that shows football as it used to be ("rich people watching poor people play" – which is slightly exaggerated by has some ironic truth to it) and as it's supposed to be is welcome. While the match and practice scenes may be a tad inundated with over-skillfulness (which doesn't bother me, i.e. a legitimate cinematic exaggeration), they show a beautiful game that was a far cry from the injury-faking, the acting-out (fake emotions, players performing as in a Greek theater), the unnecessary brutal tackles that slow down the game, the lack of goals, all the tattooed morons with moronic haircuts – i.e. all that stuff that pollutes modern football, making it so appealing to blood-thirsty plebs. The modern version of this once-great game has turned into a gladiator sport in which the outdated, easily-bent rules are subject to global misuse by mobsters and corrupt politicians who rule FIFA and UEFA like dictators. This is part of the movie's charm; reminding not just of a more innocent time culturally, but football-wise, as well.
I would like to know how true the film is historically, as far as the accuracy of how events leading up to the World Cup unfold, and how many liberties the screenwriters took when it comes to the football characters and those around them.
All in all, a well-made movie which never gets boring in spite of its length of well over two hours, which is a success in itself.