Endgame

Jonny Lee Miller, Chiwetel Ejiofor and Pete Travis take audience questions

EMPIRE AVENUE, PARK CITY

The time - late 1980s. The place - South Africa. Buried under years of oppression, the African National Congress (ANC) wages an armed struggle against apartheid. President P.W. Botha clings to the last threads of power as the country finds itself on the brink of bloody civil war. Based on true events, this film follows the struggle from Nelson Mandela’s prison, to Botha’s chambers, to ANC headquarters, and, to the car of a British businessman. Consolidated Gold, a British mining company, is convinced that a peaceful resolution to the conflict in South Africa serves their interests. Thus, they initiate covert, unofficial talks between the opposing sides while bombs continue to destroy civilians. "Endgame" chronicles these talks where Michael Young, Consolidated’s head of public affairs, pushes a reluctant group to confront intractable obstacles in the way of reconciliation.

From director Pete Travis, this film is not an action movie. This is first and foremost about the history of South Africa, the fall of apartheid and the steps taken to resolve the conflict between the ANC and the white government. While strong performances abound from the likes of William Hurt, Chiwetel Ejiofor and Jonny Lee Miller, you're not going to walk away feeling like you really saw the true Mandela or really dug deep into the psyche of those involved.

Kicking It

PARK CITY

I'm sitting here at Library Center waiting for the screening of Made In America to begin, so I figured I'd take a moment to fill you all in on the last screening we caught down in Salt Lake a few hours ago.

Kicking It. It's a doc about the Homeless Soccer World Cup. Without even reading the description I was already hooked. Homeless people playing soccer at the level of the World Cup? My interest was piqued. And this film delivers in a big way. It's got heart, soul, a sense of humor and a really good message about those living on the edge of society with sometimes massive drug and anger problems teaming together and finding a reason to dream again. Sappy, maybe. But it's really a very honest look at one way to help get people off the street.

So what is the Homeless Soccer World Cup? Teams from 48 countries meet one a year to compete against each other for three cup titles. Some countries have officially sponsored teams while some, like Russia where being homeless is a social taboo, simply form under their own steam.

This film follows several teams through a six month period leading up to and following the 2006 competition, that year held in Cape Town, South Africa. The teams highlighted include those from Ireland, USA, Kenya, Afghanistan, Spain and Russia. Each team experiences various trials and tribulations, some winning only a single game while others take it all the way to the final game for the World Cup.

Not only is the material absolutely fascinating, but you leave feeling like you've really had the opportunity to connect with several of the players, learning their stories and watching them pull themselves up and try to live again. There's a really good arc throughout the film, making you feel like more than just a passive observer.

You also get some really great interactions between the different countries. One of the team members from Afghanistan discovers he's being pursued by a girl from the Paraguay team. The Irish and Kenyan teams find some camaraderie. And nearly everyone gets exposure to an outside world they had no idea existed.

So... Great story, great characters and really good production value (good sound design and the whole thing was shot HD).

Now... My one gripe. And it's a big one. The film is narrated by Colin Farrell, who has no connection to homelessness or soccer other than having really liked playing the latter when he was young. Okay... Fine. March of the Penguins has Morgan Freeman (in the American version) who, far as I know, has nothing to do with penguins. But, the film is bookended by an introduction and postlogue featuring the actor. It's a really poor choice on the part of the filmmakers because not only does it completely pull you out of the world of the film (Colin is shot with a full light rig in a very clean bridge overpass), but it turns the whole thing into a PSA (Colin asks the audience to "help out" at the end of the film). You could probably have the alternate title of the film be "Colin Farrell Presents: Kicking It." Cut the first and last two minutes off the film and you're in a much stronger place. Oh well.

ESPN picked up the rights to the film last night at the fest, so hopefully it'll at least get a run on TV and DVD if not theatrically.