YNOT at the Movies

Even though American Samoa has been part of the United States for a long time, most Americans hardly have heard about this island nation in the Pacific Ocean. However, Some might have known its national soccer team's record 31-0 loss to Australia during the Oceanian qualifying match for the 2002 FIFA World Cup. To turn this worst soccer team around, an outsider, Dutch American coach Thomas Rongen, was hired and the team made a triumphant first ever win against Tonga in 2011 for the 2014 World Cup qualifier. This extraordinary underdog story was told in a documentary "Next Goal Wins" (2014). Based on this documentary and with deep affections to the Polynesian people and culture, the Academy-award winning director Taika Waititi's hilarious dramedy "Next Goal Wins" (UK/USA 2023 | 103 min.) is an immensely entertaining crowd pleaser. Not only will you root for this unique soccer team, but you will also appreciate the Polynesian culture you learn from this movie.

After the devastating and embarrassing 31-0 loss to Australia, with his wife Ruth's (Rachel House) support, the wise and humorous Tavita (Oscar Kightley), Head of the Football Federation of American Samoa (amongst many other job titles), decides to replace the coach to turn the team around. The gentle mannered coach Ace (David Fane) is replaced by hot-tempered outsider Thomas Rongen (Michael Fassbender) who has no desire to be there, and has been dealing with alcoholism and his anger issues after losing his daughter in a car accident and divorcing her ex-wife Gail (Elisabeth Moss).

In a town next to the magnificent ocean beaches with a 20 miles per hour speed limit, the national soccer team's members are all non-professionals. Wanting to win a game but are unable to, they play mostly for the passion of the sport and for the spirit of the community. The non-binary team captain Jaiyah (Kaimana) is the soul of the team, who is also a waitress at Tavita's family restaurant. Other team members include Tavita's stubborn son Daru (Beulah Koale), a policeman Rambo (Semu Filipo), a high-school student Jonah (Chris Alosio), the always smiling Smiley (Ioane Goodhue), the original handsome goalie Nicky Salapu (Uli Latukefu) and the new obese goalie Pisa (Lehi Makisi Falepapalangi), the non-English speaking Samson (Hio Pelesasa), among other colorful characters.

Thomas doesn't really have any magic to make these amateur players win a game, and the expectation from Tavita is to just have one goal during a game. But together, they achieve great progress with an exhilarating win eventually. In the process, instead of Thomas coaching the team to play soccer, the Polynesian people teach Thomas to find happiness, as Tavita puts it: "like finding a little lost white kid at the mall and telling him which way to go."

From beginning to the end, the writer-director Taika Waititi kept the joyful and comical tone up and filled the movie with hilarious moments. The love for the Polynesian people and culture is evidently embedded in his storytelling. It's a delightful and eye-opening experience to see the lives portrayed based on real people on this exquisite island.

All the Polynesian cast are terrific in the film. While Michael Fassbender does a decent job playing the angry coach Thomas, he is obviously a miscast for this role. He is not quite the comedy type and many others such as Jeff Bridges, J. K. Simmons, or even Robert Downey Jr. could have been a better fit for this role.

This isn't really a movie about soccer, it's a love letter to the Polynesian people and their culture. When they play soccer on the lush green field surrounded by beautiful mountains, they are actually writing meditative poetry in their own language, with elegant songs, dances, and the warmth in their hearts.

"Next Goal Wins" opens in the San Francisco Bay Area on Friday, November 17, 2023.