Michael's Movie Grade: B-
A very silly but fun animated sports film from Japan.
This movie is in some ways a recap of the last season of the popular anime TV series (which was based off a manga). However rather than just playing scenes from the show, this movie retells the story from the point of view of one character. This allows this film to be perfectly accessible to those who have never seen the show (like me). It also helps this movie for the most part feel like a standalone film.
What made this story work for me is that it took a different approach than most sports movies do. Instead of focusing on the underdog that has a passion for the sport, this film focuses on someone who has a natural talent for soccer but doesn't fully understand the appeal. Naturally this movie shows him going through an arc where he tries to understand why everyone else is so passionate about this game. This arc is completely believable and unfolds so naturally. We feel like we are discovering the appeal of this game along with him. Though at first, he feels like a one-note character as the film goes on, we come to really care for him. This leads to a surprisingly really emotional scene later on in the movie.
Maybe it is because I am not into sports, but I find the idea of showing sporting events like they are some big scale action scenes very silly. However, they are silly in a fun and charming way. The sports scenes here are filled with great and charming visuals that make this much more exciting than the average actual soccer game. The visuals are also for the most part used quite well. As silly and over the top as they get, they do often help us see these games from the point of view of the characters, something that would be much more challenging to do in a live action movie. There are a few times when it maybe gets a little too over the top, but for the most part this silliness complements the story perfectly.
This movie does have some major flaws though. The main one is that it simply should have ended earlier. The emotional arc for our main character was complete and there was no reason to continue. On top of that the last part of this movie felt like the rushed recap, that the rest of this film could have too easily been. It is only during these final scenes when the movie could feel like a recap to newcomers (again like me). Also the main character's whining became too excessive at points. At first it was charming and relatable, but as it went on it truly became hard to take. I also felt that the humor here often felt forced and fell flat.
Despite its flaws, this film is a real fun time at the movies.
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