After an amusing introduction to the world stage with word-of-mouth sleeper hit What We Do in the Shadows, charismatic New Zealand actor/director Taika Waititi officially made it big after making Marvel’s Thor: Ragnarok and the Oscar-winning book adaptation Jojo Rabbit. After a filmmaking gap in the early 2020s, Waititi returned with two decidedly mixed efforts, Thor: Love and Thunder and Next Goal Wins, an adaptation of the documentary of the same name. Now that Next Goal Wins has hit accessible streaming services, audiences can finally decide if they are on the side of the more discerning critics or the more forgiving theater-goers.
Warning: Spoilers ahead.
‘Next Goal Wins’ Plot Summary
Though an embarrassing loss in the early 2000s followed American Samoa’s national football team into the next decade, the players and managers still take pride in their continuing involvement in the sport despite their reputation as the worst team in the world. The Dutch-born American coach Thomas Rongen begrudgingly steps in to make something of the team, and with only a few weeks until the OFC World Cup Qualification games, he and the American Samoan team know that not humiliating themselves will be a nearly impossible feat.
Significance of ‘Next Goal Wins’ Story and Legacy
As depicted in the 2014 documentary, the overarching details of Next Goal Wins are historically accurate, remarkably. The American Samoa soccer team, under Rongen’s coaching, dramatically transformed itself to create a true underdog story that elevated the rag-tag crew in 2011 and changed plenty for all involved. The story is inspiring, heartwarming, and impactful to lovers of sports triumphs against all odds. But like any tale given the Hollywood treatment, if you want the truth, you can only get that from the documentary. If you check out this new movie’s reception online, you will notice divisive views on Next Goal Wins.
Critics heavily disagreed with Rotten Tomatoes, IMDb, and Letterboxd users who tolerated Next Goal Wins as a classic sports story, and the resulting split and theatrical release alongside sought-after sequels contributed to barely breaking even at the box office. A lot of what works in Next Goal Wins involves the true story, and its failings frequently come from a strange entwining of fact and fiction. Rongen’s characterization elicited a negative response from critics despite the always-great Michael Fassbender playing him. With numerous positives and negatives, only individual opinions can determine whether Next Goal Wins will make a successful streaming appearance.
Critics’ Take on ‘Next Goal Wins’
Still from ‘Next Goal Wins’ / Searchlight Pictures
Though the players themselves have to put in the collective legwork to succeed in the final minutes, Fassbender’s Rongen, as the main character, admittedly weighs the experience down immensely, with an arc about as formulaic as ever. While Rongen had an authentically healing experience while coaching this team, the film’s vision of a drunken, film-quoting has-been needing anger management plagues the otherwise near-constant positivity. The resolution for his character results in something of an anti-climax in the face of a historic victory, so other than to distinguish itself from the documentary, this portrayal is confusing for newcomers and well-tread viewers alike.
(The Relatively Small Amount of) Fans Call It an Inspiring and Funny Success
Despite Rongen’s grating personality in the film, online users have overlooked Next Goal Wins’ flaws far more than the critics on average. Waititi’s script and direction generate much of the humor from Rongen’s initial misunderstanding of island life, so fans of fish-out-of-water tales, sports underdogs, and Fassbender’s effortless appeal have something to hold their interests through to the end. Whether or not you believe this is the worst Waititi film, as the critics say, viewers will have to decide whether Next Goal Wins charms or falters by the end.
