Thirty One Nil

When I interviewed James Montague at the tail end of last year in relation to the release of his book, When Friday Comes, my last question to him was, What advice do you have for a young writer? His answer was go out and find the stories. Taking heed of his own advice and endorsing the quote on the front of new book ' The Indiana Jones of football writing', Montague travels around the world from 2011 throughout the qualification period for the 2014 World Cup in Brazil.

Montague travels to all corners of the globe from the now famed American Somoa team (who garnered world attention after being defeated by Australia 31-0) which gives the book it's title. Other outposts visited include Lebanon, Curaçao as well as returning to the Middle East, a place of which he wrote with such authority.

Montague is an affable writer, and by placing himself at the heart of the action amongst such eccentric players and equally fanatical fans whilst experiencing the problems of travelling the globe and being an outsider in a strange land.  Often he had little money, often he is up against the clock; he makes clear that it is not all warm beaches and glamour, the dedication to the craft of journalism is never in doubt.

While some call him Indiana Jones, for me he is Michael Palin - the polite Englishman ever respectful and yet universally liked by all, able to infiltrate previously restricted areas with ease and gaining access and interviewing those who rarely gain exposure from the world media.  Whilst football provides the overall framework for the book, the locations and their residents provide the page-turning material. The final score is not the most important result, more so the bus journey to the ground.

Mixing in top rate observations of new landscapes as well as explaining the sometimes qualifying procedures for these lonely nations; Montague has again written a book that is more travelogue than tome to football.

It got me thinking that if Shakespeare had been born in the twentieth century, he may well have written, 'All the world is football' and with writers like Montague who venture to all corners and continents to cover it with such aplomb, the passion for football will never diminish.

Thirty-One Nil is out on 22 May 2014 from Bloomsbury priced £12.99 for paperback and available on eBook

www.bloomsbury.com

Ginga

Released in time for the 2014 World Cup in Brazil this summer, the new documentary from Mr. Bongo films Ginga: The Soul of Brazilian Football tells the story of the ongoing love affair between Brazil and the most popular sport in the world.

Ginga follows seven young footballers from a diverse range of ethnic and social backgrounds which helps explain the passion for the sport.

Through the exploits of these youngsters we can see how such stars like Pele, Socrates, the original Ronaldo and now Neymar are created.  The argument may be made that great sportsmen are born, however, the argument of nature over nurture has a closing argument in Brazil.  Men and women are born into this exuberant nation, and nurtured to play football from a young age in favelas, in streets and on the beach even.

Startling photography adds a travelogue portrayal to the film, yet the spirit of football and the magic of the sport we hope that will come across during the month long tournament in June and
July of this year, is fittingly in the home of Ginga football.

As Ronaldo says, 'Ginga, it's in our blood, it's a gift given by God especially to Brazilians who play football and learn to dance from an early age.'

Ginga is out on DVD from Monday 12th May at £12.99rrp

www.ginga2014.com

The Future's Oxlade

England drew valiantly with Brazil 2-2 in the Maracana Stadium in Rio last night, and no doubt would have lost on penalties if this was a tournament match-up.

However, following on from the drab encounter against the Republic of Ireland last Wednesday, England came away with some much needed credit to their name after being described as going backwards as they stuck to a 4-4-2 formation.

In this day and age of fluency and flexibility, the requirement of players and coaches to adapt to in game changes must be prevalent and the need of utility and adaptability is paramount from all concerned.  Players need to have many strings to their bow and not just be very good at one facet of play.

Roy Hodgson should be applauded as well for going for broke in Brazil, with the Samba stars taking the lead  through Hulk, many expected either Brazil to push their advantage home or for England to wilt in the stifling conditions.

Yet the England manager decided to be bold and took the initiative substituting Glen Johnson for Alex Oxlade-Chamberlain of Arsenal, this allowed Phil Jones to revert to his more familiar right back position having been a part of England's three man midfield - along with Michael Carrick and Frank Lampard - and struggling to maintain possession.

This allowed Oxlade to play his preferred central position behind Wayne Rooney with James Milner and Theo Walcott threatening from the wings.

Oxlade was exceptional in his brief time on the field, he played with passion, a desire to get the ball and distribute it keenly and with intent to those around him.  Rooney appreciated this play to feet as for much of the first half - link play was disrupted by Walcott's wasteful possession and poor decision making.  Oxlade's injection of confidence to a flat-lining team paid dividends with him scoring his first international goal away from home, a crisply struck drive through a sea of players that left Julio Cesar no chance to thwart.

Oxlade's influence of counter-attacking had a hand in England's second goal scored by Wayne Rooney with a slight deflection - crisp quick passing from a Brazil corner led to link up between Walcott to Milner to Oxlade who freed Rooney to run with the ball and curl in a shot that with the deflection escaped Cesar for a quick turnaround lead.

England's lacklustre defence however, could not keep Brazil at bay and parity was restored when Paulinho converted a half-volley unmarked past Joe Hart, whose first half performance deserved more as he kept a rampant Brazil led by new Barcelona signing, Neymar and Chelsea's Oscar at bay with some fine saves and brave blocks.

Whilst this performance as a whole did not warrant a victory, it did give us a glimpse of England when let off the leash - an attacking threat which with the right personnel can be impressive and ask questions of any team, although this Brazil side is not the greatest vintage as they are going through changes themselves in preparation of hosting the World Cup next summer.

Call it is his lack of experience or perhaps the innocence of his play, but Oxlade-Chamberlain is a breathe of fresh air compared to his club-mate Theo Walcott who is a frustrating blend of expectation and a lot of overblown hyperbole.  Walcott has pace and speed to burn and yet unlike contemporaries Aaron Lennon and Gareth Bale, he seems unable to run with the ball at this feet nor be able to make a decision that does not involve shooting at goal.

If Lennon had not picked up another injury it was likely that based on his overall level of performance could have started one of these internationals, Lennon's final ball and delivery is vastly ahead of Walcott's yet Lennon does not have the shooting boots Walcott has something that is most helpful in an international tournament.  With Michael Owen retiring due to a series of hamstring injuries that caused him to slow down and end with a career somewhat unfulfilled, perhaps Walcott should take advantage of his potential now before his first serious injury causes him to slow down and burn out.

Whereas in numerous international appearances, Oxlade has shown himself to not be over-awed by the occasion and looks like the sort of individual who after another season in the battle of the Premier League will become a better player.

Albeit by this time next year as Hodgson runs the rule over his final 23 for the World Cup (should England qualify -fingers crossed), Oxlade will not be a secret weapon but nevertheless be the sort of player who can make an impact coming off the bench.

And in this age of rampant commercialism amongst football, pardon me if I use a pun.  For England, the future is bright, the future's Oxlade.

Boca

Flavio Federico directs the visceral and intense dramatic depiction of Hiroito, the infamous King of Boca de Lixo, starring Daniel de Oliveira in the title role.

Following on from the cinematic appeal and acclaim of Elite Squad: The Enemy Within, it seems Brazil much like British film in the late 1990s and early 21st century has found a niche by going to the dark past of its recent social history for dramatic intent.

Boca follows Hiroito from the violent murder of his father, which the young boy witnessed as he was stabbed over 40 times with a razor.  Oddly, the young boy was arrested and accussed of the crime, ultimately he was acquited.  Then two months later, aged just 21 he moved to Boca de Lixo (an area of downtown Sao Paolo in the 1950s renowned for nightclubs, prostitution, bars and drugs), purchased two guns and grew to become one of the most successful criminals in Brazil. 

The film richly depicts his violence against fellow criminals, the glamour of the girls, the viscerality of the guns as Hiroito becomes the legendary gangster figure in Brazil.

Gangsters remain glamourous figures in cinema, due to the intense nature of their upbringing - as young men who really want attention and yet end up on the wrong side of the law.

De Oliveira portrays Hiroito as a man with a big chip on his shoulder who backs up his words with lots of actions, whilst never hamming up or chewing up too much scenery.

The film is cleverly filmed with a lot of hand-held camerawork to make you feel a part of the action, making the experience a worthwhile one on the small screen.

Boca is released on DVD by Universal Pictures from Monday 13th February

Elite Squad: The Enemy Within

An intense and gripping picture from Brazil which is heavy on social conscience and political satire, Jose Padilha (who also wrote the script) directs with a definite panache and visceral quality akin to fellow films of Brazilian cinema lately.

After a prison riot that goes wrong under his watch, Nascimento (Wagner Moura) is swept into a political dispute concerning government officials and paramilitary groups - the situation is not helped by the family matters as his ex-wife (Maria Ribeiro) is engaged to a fool, Fraga (Irandhir Santos) who is running for political office, which could endanger his position if elected.

There is plenty of violence and gunplay on a level with that employed by Michael Mann in his seminal Heat and any Tony Scott film.  Padilha is very clever, he has pretty much directed a typical B-class script involving political shenanigans and backstabbing which would be also ran fare if released by Hollywood, but the sheer thrill seeking of the piece, helped by great production values and a suitably entertaining cast elevates the film to a respectable spectacle.

It is all here - bent cops, cops that are good but have trouble on the inside, cops that are bad, cops that cannot control emotions, bent political officials, serpentine plotting and strands that all come together in that great Latin American tradition of Alejandro Gonzalez Inarritu (21 Grams, Babel) - fans of City of God and The Wire will feel right at home in this mesh and mess of law and order and chaos.

Padilha directed the respected documentary Bus 174 (2002) which had a close-camerawork and MTV editing; the conviction with which he directs this sequel to 2007's Elite Squad puts it in that rare pantheon of films that are better than the original.

Elite Squad: The Enemy Within is released on DVD from Aim Publicity on 26th December (Boxing Day)

Watch the trailer here

Rio Breaks - Review

Justin Mitchell, a longtime cinematographer and director of an abundant of short films and music videos, makes his directorial debut with a feature length documentary called Rio Breaks, about two young best friends who compete in surfing contests on the coast of Rio de Janiero, and how these competitions become a chance to escape the favela slums in which they live.

Mitchell on his homepage, says he started on the project in 2004 when he read an article by Vince Medeiros's article upto 2009 and its completion, Medeiros shares a writing credit with Mitchell on the screenplay.

The two best friends, Fabio and Naama, are treated with esteem and respect as we watch them flirt between the drudgery of their slum lifestyle in the renowned favelas of Rio and the joie de vivre they experience when surfing in the cool crisp water of Arpoader Beach that reaches towards the Atlantic.

Mitchell does not shirk from giving the boys a background as we go in amongst their homes, Fabio tells the story of his home called Vietnam - because of the constant shooting and violence in it.  These insights into the young boys, aged 12 and 13 only, really brings to the surface their need to succeed in the surfing world.  Mitchell uses recognised names in the Brazilian surfing fraternity as examples of what is possible, if you are good, you can get money, leave the favela far behind and live happily.

However, like that other great sports documentary Hoop Dreams, the dream is there in front of the boys whilst ambition and perserverance will only get you so far in life.

Mitchell's background in cinematography comes to the fore in this visual as well as spoken narrative; inter-cutting between talking head interviews, documentary footage and action packed visuals of the surfers in their element - it shares a passion and viscerality with that other great surfing movie, Riding With Giants.  Mitchell shot on HVX2000 as well as 16mm and 35mm film; giving a cinematic experience of both digital and filmic exhiliaration.

Continuing the recent trend of sporting documentaries that excel not just as nostalgia for past glories (Fire in Babylon, Senna) but also social commentaries, making comment on anthropological differences of different geo-political backgrounds - being young in Rio may sound like fun, but it sure does not look like it once you see how these people live.

A film as much for the head due to the polemical narrative, as well as for the eye due to the stunning visuals and imagery served up by an experienced photographer who successfully makes the jump to the directing chair.

Rio Breaks is on limited release from Friday 3rd June, and is distributed by Mr. Bongo films, who have had previous success with boxing documentary Sons of Cuba.