Victory (1981)

Voti degli utenti:

6.2/10   

Regista:

John Huston

Scrittori:

Yabo Yablonsky (story) and
Djordje Milicevic (story) ...

Data di uscita:

30 luglio 1981 (USA)

Genere:

Azione | Sport | Guerra

Slogan:

Their goal was freedom...

Plot:

As allied POWs prepare for a soccer game against the German National Team to be played in Nazi-occupied Paris, the French Resistance and British officers are making plans for the team's escape.

Plot Keywords:

Escape | Soccer | Soccer Football | Prisoner Of War | Goal Keeper

Premi:

1 nomination

Recensioni degli utenti:

Decent Movie Featuring Terrific Football

Cast

Sylvester Stallone	...	Captain Robert Hatch
Michael Caine	...	Capt. John Colby - The Players: England
Pelé	...	Cpl. Luis Fernandez - Allied Soccer Player - The Players: Trinidad
Bobby Moore	...	Terry Brady - Allied Soccer Player - The Players: England
Osvaldo Ardiles	...	Carlos Rey - Allied Soccer Player - The Players: Argentina
Paul Van Himst	...	Michel Fileu - The Players: Belgium
Kazimierz Deyna	...	Paul Wolchek - The Players: Poland
Hallvar Thoresen	...	Gunnar Hilsson - The Players: Norway
Mike Summerbee	...	Sid Harmor - Allied Soccer Player - The Players: England
Co Prins	...	Pieter Van Beck - The Players: Holland
Russell Osman	...	Doug Clure - The Players
John Wark	...	Arthur Hayes - The Players: Scotland
Søren Lindsted	...	Erik Ball - Allied Soccer Player - The Players: Denmark
Kevin O'Callaghan	...	Tony Lewis - Allied Goalkeeper - The Players: Ireland
Max von Sydow	...	Major Karl Von Steiner - The Germans (as Max Von Sydow)

Alias:

Escape to Victory (UK)
Fuga per la vittoria (Italy) [it]

Durata:

116 min

Nazionalità:

USA

Lingua:

Inglese

Colore:

Colore (Metrocolor)

Aspect Ratio:

2.35 : 1

Sonoro:

Dolby

Divieti:

UK:A (original rating) | UK:PG (video rating) (1987) | Iceland:L | West Germany:6 (f) | Sweden:15 | Australia:PG | Finland:K-12 | Norway:12 | USA:PG | Singapore:PG

Luoghi riprese:

Budapest, Hungary

Compagnia:

Lorimar Film Entertainment

Curiosità:

One of the footballers, Mike Summerbee, became friendly with Michael Caine. After retiring from football, Summerbee went into bespoke shirt-making. Caine is one of his favored customers.

Errori:

Anacronismi: The microphone used by the radio announcer at the soccer match is an RCA model 77B, a model not introduced until the late-1940s.

Citazioni:

Hatch: This frigging game is ruining my life.

Collegamenti:

incluso in Pelé Eterno (2004)

Colonna sonora:

Symphony 5, 4th movement

Decent Movie Featuring Terrific Football

If the part where the football match takes place was omitted, "Victory" would be a "5 stars out of 10" film. The reason is that although it features two very good actors (Michael Caine - Max von Sydow), there is not much to stand out: A rather incredulous WW2 plot, an average acting (what could you expect from professional footballers or from Stallone?), and a simply decent direction, produce an average result. Thankfully, there is more than that, as I will explain in more detail later.

"Victory" is about some inmates in a WW2 prison camp, who have a passion for soccer. Captain J. Colby (Caine), a former footballer, is the leading figure in the camp matches that take place. One day, he is spotted by football-fan Major Steiner (Max von Sydow) who proposes him the idea of organizing a match between allied POWs vs. Germans. Colby agrees, as he believes this will be a great morale-booster and a chance for better prison conditions for those involved; however, more senior inmates are skeptical, as they believe this will be a propaganda stunt for the Germans. In the end, they also concur but only after they have convinced the team's goalie Capt. Hatch (Stallone) to arrange the team's escape during the match. The difficulty is that both Colby and his team are more interested in this game than in their freedom, so they are hesitant on what they should finally do...

As I said, the movie is just watchable during its first part. And yet, when we start to watch the Allied - Germans match, things get much better: We watch terrific football from stars such as Pele, Ardiles, and Bobby Moore, with scenes such as Pele's goal being memorable to all sports fans. Of course, if you are not into soccer, then perhaps you won't get that excited (although the spectacle can be exciting for non-fans, too). But if you like the King of Sports, then you will certainly enjoy this film. 7/10.