Soccer

Balls of Fury (Widescreen Edition)

Watch the balls fly in this hilarious action-packed comedy starring Christopher Walken (Hairspray) and George Lopez (The George Lopez Show)! When former professional table tennis phenomenon Randy Daytona (Dan Fogler) is recruited by FBI Agent Rodriguez (Lopez) for a mission in the unsanctioned underground and utterly unhinged world of extreme table tennis he's determined to bounce back to his former glory and smoke out his father's killer the arch-fiend Feng (Walken). But with danger coming at him from every angle will Randy be able to keep his eye on the balls? From the creators of Night at the Museum and Reno 911! comes the outrageous film critics are calling "a fast furious comedy!" (Thelma Adams US Weekly)System Requirements:Running Time: 91 Mins.Format: DVD MOVIE Genre: COMEDY/SCREWBALL COMEDY Rating: PG-13 UPC: 025193184924 Manufacturer No: 62031849

Balls of Fury will score points with anyone who ever wished that Enter the Dragon played out in the subterranean "underbelly of ping pong" instead of the world of martial arts. Tony Award-winner Dan Fogler (The 25th Annual Putnam County Spelling Bee), joining the ranks of Jack Black, Seth Rogan, and Jonah Hill as a schlub (romantic?) hero, stars as Randy Daytona, a Def Leppard-loving ping-pong wizard who, as a 12-year-old, was disgraced at the 1988 Olympics. Nineteen years later and gone to seed, he is reduced to performing a novelty act in Reno until an FBI Agent (George Lopez, and yes, at one point, he will proclaim, "Say hello to my little friend" a la Al Pacino in Scarface) recruits him to infiltrate an underground ping pong tournament run by Feng (Christopher Walken), the arch villain who killed Daytona's father. Co-written by Reno 911 colleagues Robert Ben Garant (who also directed) and Thomas Lennon (who costars as Daytona's taunting East Berlin rival), Balls of Fury is hit and miss, but it fitfully kills with some ace performances, including Walken, bringing more cowbell, as Feng, resplendent in silks and red fingernails (his Christopher Walken impression, while perhaps not as uncanny as Kevin Spacey's or Jay Mohr's, is dead-on). James Hong puts a wicked spin on the clichéd role of mentor, and action babe Maggie Q rocks as his niece. Look quick for David Koechner as hopeless entertainer Rick the Birdmaster, Patton Oswalt as an obnoxious early opponent, Kerri Kenney-Silver as a showgirl, and Diedrich Bader as one of Feng's imprisoned sex slaves (don't ask). With less go-for-the-groin humor than the title might indicate, Balls of Fury brings its A-game with some subversive bits of business, such as an ominous moment that is undercut when a menacing character is forced to re-enter the scene to ask for directions back to the highway. --Donald Liebenson

Goal! - The Dream Begins

You'd have to be a heartless curmudgeon to dislike a movie as enjoyably sincere as Goal! The Dream Begins. Yes, the corny title tells you all you need to know about this rags-to-riches soccer tale, but like Hoosiers and Rudy, this conventional sports drama rises above its familiar plot with an engaging cast and some pleasant surprises along the way. The first in a proposed trilogy that will follow young Santiago Munez (Kuno Becker) as he rises to prominence in the competitive world of British soccer, this one begins by showing how Santiago, an undocumented immigrant in Los Angeles, attracts the attention of a talent scout (Stephen Dillane), who arranges a tryout for England's prestigious team, Newcastle United. It's rough going for a beleaguered trainee who suffers from asthma, but soon Santiago is befriended by a hard-partying soccer star (Alessandro Nivola) and he's on his way to reaching his…Goal! It's all very inevitable, but director Danny Cannon makes the most of this inspiring story by exploiting the unexpected subtleties in an otherwise predictable screenplay: Santigo's relationship with his seemingly unsupportive father (Tony Plana) gains additional resonance as the story unfolds; a local nurse (Anna Friel) turns out to be more than a routine love interest; and Newcastle's German manager (Marcel Iures) is a wry, colorful character who works miracles with his unruly squad of players. Add some obligatory cameo appearances by real-life soccer stars including (of course) the great David Beckham, and you've got a modest, likable hit that delivers exactly what it promises, and a little bit more. --Jeff Shannon

Like the inspiring heroes in MIRACLE, REMEMBER THE TITANS, and THE ROOKIE, the amazingly gifted Santiago Mu?ez, a young immigrant living in the barrios of Los Angeles, has an impossible dream -- to play soccer for a world class team. Unexpectedly getting a tryout with one of England's premier soccer clubs, Newcastle United, Santiago finds himself totally alone in a world where soccer is a religion and the players are gods. Now he not only has to prove he has the passion, talent, and determination to make it alongside the best in the world, but he has to overcome his own demons and those of others. Filled with memorable characters, great heart, and real-life soccer legends, GOAL! THE DREAM BEGINS is a triumphant story about believing in your dreams.

Bend It Like Beckham (Widescreen Edition)

Bend It Like Beckham is true girl power. This glorious comedy centers on Jess (Parminder Nagra), an Indian girl born in England whose only desire is to become a football--or, as we say on this side of the Atlantic, soccer--star like her idol, David Beckham; but her traditional family refuses to even consider it. With the help of her new friend Juliet (Keira Knightley), Jess secretly joins a girls' team under the guidance of a male coach (Jonathan Rhys Meyers). As the team starts to gain some attention, Jess's secret can't be kept forever. The story of Bend It Like Beckham is so genuine and detailed that it transcends all the sports-movie formulas that it also fulfills with cheeky exuberance. Wonderfully acted, and written and directed with loving care by Gurinder Chadha (Bhaji on the Beach, What's Cooking?), this movie is pure delight from start to finish. --Bret Fetzer

SOMETIMES, TO FOLLOW YOUR DREAMS... YOU'VE GOT TO BEND THE RULES THE DAUGHTER OF ORTHODOX SIKH REBELS AGAINST HER PARENTS TRADITIONALISM BY RUNNING OFF TO GERMANY WITH A FOOTBALL TEAM 0000000000000000000000000000000000000000000000000000000000000000

Goal 2: Living the Dream

Studio: Genius Products Inc Release Date: 03/17/2009 Run time: 115 minutes Rating: Pg13

Victory

Fans of The Great Escape and The Longest Yard will cheer venerable director John Huston's rousing 1981 adventure that pits Allied prisoners of war against their German captors in a soccer match. Michael Caine, who starred in Huston's The Man Who Would Be King, heads an international all-star cast as true-Brit John Colby, a former soccer champion, who heads the rag-tag squad. Max Von Sydow costars as the humane German officer who proposes the match, improbably staged for maximum propaganda impact in a stadium in Paris. As the Allied team, which includes real-life soccer legends Pele and Bobby Moore, practices, the officers' only goal is an audacious half-time escape. Sylvester Stallone is somewhat out of his league as the American determined to join the team. As an actor, Pele may not be on the same playing field as his Oscar-winning costars, but he is thrilling to watch as he executes some awesome, game-winning kicks. --Donald Liebenson

In World War II, a group of Nazi officers come up with a propaganda event in which an all star Nazi team will play a team composed of Allied Prisoners of War in a Soccer (Football) game. The Prisoners agree, planning on using the game as a means of escape from the camp.

The Miracle Match

In the spirit of REMEMBER THE TITANS, MIRACLE, and THE ROOKIE, THE MIRACLE MATCH is the incredible story about the men behind one of the all-time greatest upsets in sports history. Two weeks before the 1950 World Cup, a ragtag group of recreational soccer players from St. Louis and New York were chosen to represent the USA in Brazil. Consumed with conflicts ? personal, cultural, and playing styles ? they had mere days to become a team. And then they had to play the British, the best team in the world. Inspired by a newfound belief in the team, their passion and talent turned into pure magic on the field ? and the unthinkable happened. Filled with heart-stopping action, and featuring Patrick Stewart, this triumphant story is a rousing celebration of the human spirit, love of the sport, and pride of country.

The writing-directing team of Angelo Pizzo and David Anspaugh tries to do for soccer what their films Hoosiers and Rudy did for, respectively, basketball and football. Here's another true story, a legendary upset in the early days of the World Cup. In 1950, America hastily forms a team to play against the world. We center on a tight Italian community in St. Louis providing the bulk of the national team. We meet GQ-ready stars led by goalie Frank Borgi (The Phantom of the Opera's Gerald Butler, deftly handling the duties). This brotherhood of players is unfortunately strapped to play off clichés and the movie never really engages us beyond the autumn-tinged scenery. A big part of the blame goes to the narrator telling us what we should be feeling (perhaps because we dumb Americans don't know soccer, er, football, like the rest of the world). No fault in the performance of the narrator/journalist (played by Patrick Stewart as the elder, Terry Kinney as the younger) or the rest of the cast. Perhaps the game is elusive to cinematic grandeur, (how many memorable soccer movies can you name?), but the movie is also tired and slow, something those earlier sports films were not. There's only a brief stirring when the earnest Gino (Louis Mandylor) has a wedding-date conflict and as the most famous English player of the day, Stanley Mortenson (Gavin Rossdale), patronizes the Americans in a public speech. Perhaps the studio knew they had a cellar dweller; the film was barely released and retitled for home video echoing the moniker of the 1980 U.S. Olympic hockey team. Soccer kids will enjoy the film, but others better stick to Geoffrey Douglas's book, The Game of Their Lives, the film's original title (and mistakenly left on the end credits). --Doug Thomas

The Football Factory

Based on the bestselling novel by John King, this study of middle-class England, football violence and male culture introduces you to Tommy, a bored twenty-something who lives for the weekend, casual sex, watered-down lager, heavily cut drugs -- and occasionally kicking someone's ass! Tommy's life ambles along until a violent encounter with a rival starts a war, and a series of nightmares forces Tommy to question his way of life. Shot in documentary style with the energy and vibrancy of handheld, The Football Factory is frighteningly real yet full of painful humor, a drug-fueled adrenaline rush about friendship, revenge and violence.

Skill Factor: Premier League Soccer

Enjoy our high-tech 3D animated SKILL FACTOR guide to learning some fancy footwork combined with Premier League classic match footage showing you how the experts have executed the moves on the pitch. DVD comes with an official Premier League PATCH!System Requirements:Running Time: 90 minutesFormat: DVD MOVIE Genre: SPORTS/GAMES/SOCCER Rating: NR UPC: 181582000722 Manufacturer No: WD-1051

The Fifa 2006 World Cup Film - The Grand Finale

Soccer fans can re-live the thrills of the most recent world championship on Fifa 2006 World Cup Film: The Grand Finale. Using spare narration to analyze each team's progress through the competition pipeline, Fifa compiles generous clips from a number of matches, beginning with first eliminations. An overview of Australia vs. Japan offers another look at the latter's controversial goal after Australia's goalie was knocked to the ground. There's intense action in Germany vs. Costa Rica and Spain's match against Ukraine; Spain, we're told, is always good but never delivers on its promise. A look at Argentina's passing prowess reveals one play in which the ball was passed 26 times before a (successful) attempt at a goal was made.

From there it's the quarterfinals with, among other matches, England vs. Portugal and Germany vs. Argentina, both passionate games. Semi-finals bring Portugal vs. France and Germany vs. Italy, in which every player seemed to come to life. Finally, Italy vs. France leads to the conclusion of this World Cup odyssey. Along the way, the many penalties accrued by several teams are analyzed, including one game in which they were handed out at an absurd rate, almost shamefully. Player interviews include Fabio Cannavaro and Michael Ballack. --Tom Keogh

Relive the hard-hitting action of Germany's FIFA 2006 World Cup. Narrated by Pierce Brosnan this is the official World Cup documentary. Provides an overview of all of the action and drama including never-before-seen footage shot on 35mm cameras during the quarter finals all the way to the final game. Includes behind-the-scenes, off-the-field footage of the teams and fans and player interviews.

All The Right Moves - To Beat and Get Past Your Opponent

A collection of 20 different moves that will leave your opponent standing. Each move is detailed and shown at match speed and in slow motion. What appears to be complex is made easy for players of all ages and abilities. Plus, in this easy to learn system you get to see World Class players putting the moves on their opponents.