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I don’t think there is any denying that this film is a bit of a step backward for director Taika Waititi. His last few movies; Boy, What We Do in the Shadows, The Hunt for the Wilderpeople, Thor Ragnarok and Jojo Rabbit were all outstanding comedies that also managed to masterfully weave in moments of genuine emotion yet this is a fairly generic true life mediocrity over adversity sports movie like Cool Runnings, Eddie the Eagle and The Phantom of the Open. It still has Waititi’s distinctive style but none of his previous innovation. As such it is almost impossible to see this as being made by the same man as that funny WWII story that dealt simultaneously with the holocaust and the indoctrination of the German people while having a clown version of Hitler as some child’s imaginary friend. Yikes, that sounds awful when you describe it like that, but it wasn’t and that’s my point. This guy is generally someone who totally plays with conventions and produces truly original work but here not so..

To be honest though, he probably needed to take a bit of a step back. His most recent release Thor: Love and Thunder was not good. Largely it seems this was because, after the success of his first Marvel film, he was given free rein to go heavy on the quirky humour that had worked before, and then over did it. We’ve seen this before both in the MCU with James Gunn’s Guardians of the Galaxy Vol. 2, and outside of it with Muppets Treasure Island. Sometimes when a director is allowed to do something new and different with one film, they can fluff it by losing all measure on the follow up.

With this follow up then, it may be no bad thing that Taika Waititi is playing it a bit safe. Next Goal Wins was actually shot before Love and Thunder but the editing and construction was done after that film received its poor reception, and I think it shows.

Predictable and standard as this film may be though, that doesn’t mean you won’t be swept along with it by the end. The film tells the story of Michael Fassbender’s down on his luck football coach who is given the job of reviving the American Samoa international football team after their legendary 31 – 0 loss in the 2002 World Cup qualifiers. The film is full of comedy characters, training montages, misjudged pep talks and scenes of locals following the games from bars back home, just as you’d expect but if you’re not cheering the team on by the end then you’ve got a hard heart.

The movie also has a really good handling of its LBGTQ+ storyline. Back then team included a player named Jaiyah Saelua who was the first trans person ever to be in the line up for an official FIFA game. Transgender people were and are well accepted, being known as fa’afafine, in Samoan culture, and seeing this character just being part of the community a decade or so ago, without sensation is refreshing. She does encounter prejudice of course but this is not overdone and there is actually one simple, and moving, scene that succinctly demonstrates all of the psychology of this, as well as touching on the factors involved with trans people in sport, with sensitivity, honesty and dignity.

Some of the critics have come down on this film, probably because of the expectation that Waititi brings, but taken on its own merits it is a sweet and enjoyable movie. As a palette cleanser after the over seasoned and undercooked stew that was Love and Thunder, this will do nicely. I do hope that he can return to form now though and that his next film properly puts it in the back of the net