Elisabeth Moss

Next Goal Wins (2023): Taika Waititi Misses the Goal

Posted on by Jack Drees

“Next Goal Wins” is directed by Taika Waititi (Thor: Ragnarok, Jojo Rabbit) who also appears in the film as the character “American Samoa Priest.” The film also stars Michael Fassbender (Steve Jobs, X-Men: First Class), Oscar Kightley (Sione’s Wedding, Hunt for the Wilderpeople), Kaimana, David Fane (Sione’s Wedding, Love Birds), Rachel House (Moana, Soul), Beulah Koale (Hawaii-Five-0, Dual), Will Arnett (The LEGO Movie, Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles), and Elisabeth Moss (The Invisible Man, Mad Men). Based on the 2014 documentary of the same name, this film is about what happens when an arrogant coach and one of the world’s worst soccer teams come together with the hopes of making the latter do something they are not necessarily known for doing. Scoring goals and winning.

Taika Waititi is one of those Hollywood personalities that I can respect, but I think he also has his moments of taking said personality too far. I think he has a knack for humor at times, even if I think his “Thor” movies are inferior to Kenneth Branagh’s 2011 MCU installment. In recent years, I thought “Jojo Rabbit” has proven he is both a great storyteller and just about as good of an actor. His portrayal of Adolf Hitler in that film was one of the best of the year. In 2021, one of my favorite films of the year, “Free Guy,” starred Waititi as Antwan, the greedy executive who serves as the film’s antagonist. No disrespect to Ryan Reynolds, there is an argument to make that Waititi stole every scene he was in. He had this swagger to him that I was not expecting out of a character of this nature. I cannot imagine anyone else playing the character. That’s how good Waititi was in the film.

His latest film prior to this one, “Thor: Love and Thunder” got a thumbs up from me, but perhaps just barely. I think the film did an alright job mixing comedy and drama together, but the comedy sometimes becomes too silly to the point where it almost tarnishes the more dramatic elements. I was also not a fan of when Waititi publicly and perhaps mockingly called out his distaste for how the VFX turned out. I am all for recognizing your own faults, but when you are trying to sell a movie, I don’t think mocking a great span of the people who made it is the best move. It would be like if I were a delivering a Domino’s pizza, handing it off to the customers, and leaving them off by saying I worked for Papa John’s and I think the people over there usually put more care into their pies. That’s why I went into “Next Goal Wins” with lukewarm expectations. How did the movie turn out? Well, I’ve seen worse this year. But the way I saw this movie is the way most of my country sees soccer. A snoozefest that makes me wish I were watching something else.

I appreciate the concept of “Next Goal Wins” because it is not just an underdog story, it is one that celebrates failure in a such in an embracing manner. It reminds me a bit of “The Disaster Artist,” one of my favorite A24 movies that goes into the making of “The Room.” Similarly, there was another sports film I saw last year called “The Phantom of the Open,” where an unlikely man participates in professional golf, much to the dismay of those involved with the sport. “Next Goal Wins” recognizes the lowest points of both its protagonist coach and the team he has to reluctantly oversee. Unfortunately, when the reluctant coach is put together with the below par group of athletes, the on-screen chemistry is iffy at best. There are certain matches between the coach and the team. Not to mention, there happen to be certain relationships throughout the film that are well developed, but the movie spends most of its time devoted to one tired comedy gag after another. The film may call itself a comedy, but it is subjective as anything deemed artistic. I failed to find it funny. Sure, maybe I had a couple laughs here and there during the film. But I would not be able to tell you what it that got me to laugh. Overall, I found a good portion of the film forgettable and that is not a word I was expecting to use out of a picture like this. If you know me in real life, perhaps one of my weaknesses, though I personally call it a strength, is my resistance to take some things seriously. Everything is a joke to me. That is almost the mentality that Waititi takes to heart throughout “Next Goal Wins,” and it only hurts the final product. Between “Thor: Love and Thunder” and now “Next Goal Wins,” Taika Waititi is practically overdoing his comedic efforts to the point where they feel in your face, and therefore unfunny.

This film is not going to win any Oscars. Does it look competent? Perhaps. Is the acting okay? Sure. Does the story make sense? Yes. But the movie is bombarded with negatives to the point where those stand out a lot more than the positives. It does get better as it goes along, because I started off this movie not liking anyone. I thought the coach was not a great center of the story as it started. I found the characters on team uninteresting. It was not an easy task latching onto this film’s ensemble. Michael Fassbender does an okay, albeit far from awards-worthy job with the material given to him, but it is not enough. If I had to guess, it ultimately comes down to direction, because almost every choice in the film comes off either as some semblance of a joke. “Next Goal Wins” is basically what happens when a joke is taken too far. Although in this case, the joke is never offensive, it just lingers much longer than it should to the point where it leaves a bad aftertaste.

I will give credit where it is due because despite the somewhat predictable structure of the film, there are some unexpected and unique creative choices brought to fruition in the film whether it is through writing, editing, or narration. I cannot say I was a fan of all these choices, but despite finding the movie dull, these choices kept some banality out of the final product. And that is kind of what this movie is in multiple ways. A series of halfway marks. I found the story boring, but great in concept. I found the characters to have personalities, but they just didn’t leap off the screen for me. I found the movie to be heartfelt, but it is sullied by bad humor.

But I must add, one of those creative choices becomes a driving force in the climax, and it honestly took whatever fun I was having in the movie, if any, and lessened it to such an unbelievable degree. It resulted in a conclusion that was not as satisfying as it could have been. When it comes to this vision, Taika Waititi is like a class clown, but in this case as I watch him, I am the teacher telling him to stop joking around and focus on his studies. “Next Goal Wins” is far from this year’s worst picture, but it is easily one of the most forgettable.

In the end, “Next Goal Wins,” much like the American Samoa national football team, fails to score any goals. It is not a travesty that will go down in history as one of the most awful pieces of crap Hollywood has ever produced, but I do not know if I will be thinking about this movie in about five years from now. I have not seen all of Taika Waititi’s work, but I think after watching this film, I cannot say I am looking forward to whatever feature film he does next as much as I previously expected. Hopefully he turns things around. I am going to give “Next Goal Wins” a 4/10.

Come to think of it, “Next Goal Wins” might not even the worst sports movie I have seen this year, because “80 for Brady” exists. So congratulations, Taika Waititi! Tom Brady and four elderly women just saved your butt! And yes, if you read that review, you’ll notice the score for “80 for Brady” is higher than what this film got. I wonder if I was too generous on that review. But at the end of the day, they’re just numbers. What can I say?

“Next Goal Wins” is now playing in theaters. Granted, none of them are near me at this point. But if you live in a certain market, it could be playing near you. Tickets are available now.

Thanks for reading this review! My next review is going to be for the brand new Alexander Payne-directed film, “The Holdovers!” I have been looking forward to this movie for quite some time, and having seen it, I cannot wait to share my thoughts with you all. Also coming soon, I will have my thoughts on “Napoleon,” “Godzilla Minus One,” “Ferrari,” “The Boy and the Heron,” and “Dream Scenario.” If you want to see this and more from Scene Before, follow the blog either with an email or WordPress account! Also, check out the official Facebook page! I want to know, did you see “Next Goal Wins?” What did you think about it? Or, what is your favorite Taika Waititi movie? Let me know down below! Scene Before is your click to the flicks!

Us (2019): This Is “Us”

Posted on by Jack Drees

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“Us” is directed by Jordan Peele (Get Out, Keanu) and stars Lupita Nyong’o (Star Wars: The Force Awakens, 12 Years A Slave) Winston Duke (Black Panther, Person of Interest), Elisabeth Moss (The Handmaid’s Tale, Mad Men), and Tim Heidecker (On Cinema, Decker) in film where a family takes a trip to Santa Cruz. While trying to enjoy their vacation, they eventually encounter doppelgangers of themselves. Once this happens, scares, hijinks, blood, and gore are all to be witnessed.

This movie is helmed by Jordan Peele, whose work I have been exposed to in the past, but I was never truly invested in him. In fact, I have still yet to see “Get Out.” Admittedly, I was debating on watching “Get Out” the day before I went to see this film in the theater since I own the 4K for it, but that ultimately did not happen. But I did manage to catch “Us” on its opening Friday in RPX, because it was better for me timing-wise, despite being pricier than a standard theatre, I figured maybe it would probably provide some enhancements in the scares, and I have never seen an RPX movie before, so I figured I might as well start now. There were definitely some enhancements to be had, but I don’t want to dive too deep into the experience itself, but as far as the movie goes, I was definitely impressed. But part of me wonders… was I impressed enough?

To me, I am beginning to wonder if Jordan Peele is going to be the next Alfred Hitchcock. It is a little hard to tell given how he hasn’t directed too many films, but based on the reception “Get Out” has previously gotten, plus the thoughts given thus far on “Us,” including my own, I am thinking that is definitely possible. Although that will ultimately depend if Peele decides to continue writing and directing for films, which direction he decides to take, and if he comes out with more films that are well received. Granted, this movie is not perfect, and while there is a part of me that is saying this film is f*cking amazing, there’s another part of me that is a tad disappointed by particular aspects.

“Us” by itself is a scary, thrilling, and intriguing horror flick. There are definitely scares to be had, and it is also very mindbending. Based on the box office (this movie set a record for original horror films), this movie definitely has gotten a hand of general audience members out of their homes and into the cinema, but regardless of which demographics go out and see “Us,” it kind of felt like something I’d watch in an art house at certain points. Granted, there are a lot of elements that add up to mainstream horror, and luckily, those elements don’t appear to be the oldest cheap tricks in the book. But I feel like this movie had a sense of flavor that it probably wouldn’t have gotten if it weren’t for Jordan Peele.

I don’t follow Jordan Peele all that much but when it comes to “Us,” I really felt something from him. Not emotionally speaking, but I felt that his work on the film was a contribution to something that didn’t feel like it came out of a studio. This movie was distributed by Universal, and I am willing to bet based on “Get Out’s” success, they probably told Peele he can make whatever kind of movie he wants. I mean, what other guy would create a scene in a movie that is supposed to be scary, and the background music happened to be NWA’s “F*ck the Police?” And to my surprise, it somehow worked!

Let’s talk about Lupita N’yongo in this film. I’ve seen her in a number of films before including the newer “Star Wars” installments, “Black Panther,” the 2016 adaptation of “The Jungle Book,” and while she has proven herself to be a decent performer in those films, they weren’t exactly fantastic. This is especially true when you compare these performances to the one she gave in “12 Years a Slave.” It’s a movie I don’t often watch, but having watched it, it’s hard not to recognize the absolute talent of N’yongo. Her performance in “Us” honestly is more on par with the performance she gave in a movie like “12 Years A Slave.” That may be an overstatement, but to me, it’s true. Again, going back to imperfections, just because I think the performance was really good, didn’t mean I thought there was a lack of error. After all, there is one part in particular that I found to be rather awkward in terms of dialogue delivery, which occurs around the first third of the film. But overall, this is one of the better performances I personally have witnessed from N’yongo.

I also admired some of the scenes with Winston Duke’s character because he manages to pull off the role of that crazy, hyperactive father who always wants to, I dunno, live life. There’s a scene where he makes his family watch him on a boat, exclaiming for joy. He is willing to speak up against his opponents, and he just has this charm to him that again, goes back to Peele’s excellent writing ability. Without Peele as the nucleus operating everything, this could be a decent movie, but I think it got an uplift just because Peele was here.

And I will point out once again, despite the well deserved box office records, despite the positive reception, despite everything about this movie that can associate with lying in a pile of gold with no worries, the film is ultimately imperfect. While there is a lot to like, the one thing that drags this film down just a tad is the way the ending plays out. While there are definitely worse endings out there, it kind of left me feeling icky. Not grossed out, in fact, this is a horror film we’re talking about, so if I felt grossed out that might actually be a compliment. When I say I feel icky I mean that I feel like I have just caught a cold or something. I don’t want to get into spoilers, in fact, not only did this movie just come out, but if you haven’t seen it already, I highly recommend you do, especially on a big movie screen like I did. While a lot of the climax plays out in a way I actually admire (in fact, the best part of the score is in that portion of the film), the part I don’t particularly enjoy comes in around the tail end. If they changed that, not only would the ending be better, but I’d probably consider this film a master work. I have faith in Jordan Peele however, he seems to present himself as a showman, and if he continues to make horror films, or a film in another genre for that matter, chances are I’d be willing to check it out. In fact, one of the biggest praises I can give to “Us” is that it got yours truly, one who has yet to see “Get Out,” to become more curious as to giving that film a shot in the near future.

In the end, when I saw “Us,” I thought it was the movie for me. Possibly even for you, y’all, them, he, she, and we. Jordan Peele has demonstrated here that he is more than a comedian, kind of like John Krasinski successfully managed to do with “A Quiet Place.” And these aren’t exactly my words, I don’t know who I first heard them from, but they are still pretty relevant. I feel like a reason why these two are making good horror films has a lot to do with timing. As a couple of people who know how comedy tends to work, they seem to know that timing is everything when it comes to joke delivery. It’s almost like they’ve applied those same principles when it comes to scaring people. So… Seth Rogen? Stephen Merchant? Seth MacFarlane? Where’s your horror movie? I’m not asking for one, but seriously, where’s your horror movie? I’m going to give “Us” an 8/10. Thanks for reading this review! As someone who considers every attempt possible to keep up with the latest news provided in the film industry, I have been thinking about discussing one of the heaviest topics in said industry during recent days. As some of you know, Disney finally completed their 21st Century Fox acquisition, and part of me wants to come on here and discuss it simply because I am rather worried for the direction of the film industry in the near future. If I don’t have time to do that within the next week, I could talk about something else, because as mentioned, I just saw “Us” in RPX, which marked my first time in one of those auditoriums, so if I cannot talk about Disney and Fox, I have my backup topic. Stay tuned for whatever I do in the future regarding content, maybe it’ll be something completely different, I don’t know! Be sure to follow Scene Before with an email or WordPress account if you haven’t already! I want to know, did you see “Us?” What did you think about it? Or, did you see “Get Out?” Which of the two films is superior? Let me know down below! Scene Before is your click to the flicks!