Earlier this year, there were two movies that started from humble beginnings, and through word-of-mouth and heaps of critical praise became hugely popular. Granted, this happens quite often, but these two cases are rare in the fact that both films were actually good enough to deserve the attention. They both share in the distinction of having titles that would seem more at home in the adult movie industry, yet neither contains anything remotely offensive. They’re both perfectly acceptable to sit and watch with the kids. I’ve already reviewed “Holes”, so now I turn my attention to “Bend it Like Beckham.” If you’re at all like me (and God help you if you are), the first question you might have had was, “...and the title means what?” Turns out that the Beckham of the title is the real-life David Beckham, one of the top soccer players in the world who seems to have the ability to defy gravity and ‘bend’ the ball.

Of course, these are all soccer terms and not being a fan of sports (though I love sports movies… go figure), I had no idea what this meant. That being the case, the title of the film refers to the main characters wanting to play as well as Beckham, as well as bending the rules as opposed to breaking them as he often does.

In “Bend it Like Beckham”, a young Indian girl living in London (Parminder Nagra), who wants to break the tradition of growing up to be a wife and mother in order to become a soccer player. Her obstacles, on and off the field, offer up laughter and tears as families as well as cultures, clash.

“Bend it Like Beckham” turned out to be one of those surprise hit movies. Within a very short time of its release, it pretty much conquered worldwide box office. And I can see why. “Bend it Like Beckham” is one of those ‘coming-of-age’ feel good movies that you, well… feel good about after seeing it. It’s not necessarily an original story, and the ending is a bit forced as far as plot resolution, but the performances throughout the film make for a great time.

The two young stars of the film are terrific. For Nagra, this is her feature film debut, and she shows tremendous confidence in her acting style. Be looking for her to step into some scrubs in the upcoming season of “E.R.” Then there’s Keira Knightly, whom you might have seen in the newer “Star Wars” films as Amidala’s double. Or if you were really lucky, you caught “Pirates of the Caribbean", where her role was much more substantial. Knightly has all the makings of a fine film actress. She is drop-dead gorgeous, and has a tremendously charismatic screen presence.

The DVD release of “Bend it Like Beckham” has its fair share of extras. Here, we have one of those cases of a commentary done right. Director Gurinder Chadha and co-writer Paul Mayeda Berges hit all the right notes as they speak about the film and how their own personal experiences affected the story. There is also a ‘making of’ featurette, which is pretty much like most, kind if light, airy and really more of a promotional piece.

The obligatory deleted scenes have a few high spots, but generally they are forgettable. For people who like to cook, the director shows us how to cook Aloo Gobi, which is an Indian dish featured in the film (and even includes a text version of the recipe – hmmm, gotta try making that tonight). The music video is really more of a cute extra with some of the filmmakers singing along to the song that plays at the end.

If you pick up a copy of “Bend it Like Beckham”, and I recommend you do, get it more for the movie than the extras. Its not the best movie ever, like some may have you to believe, but it’s a far cry better than a lot of the cruddy high budget films stealing our time and money.

Directed by: Gurinder Chadha
Starring: Parminder Nagra, Keira Knightly, Jonathan Rhys Meyers, Anupam Kher, Archie Panjabi, Shaznay Lewis, Frank Harper, Juliet Stevenson
Extras: Director and Co-Writer Commentary, 10 Extended / Deleted Scenes, “Who Wants to cook Aloo Gobi?”, “The Making of Bend it Like Beckham”, Music Video and Outtakes, Aloo Gobi Recipe, International Theatrical Trailers
Specifications: Widescreen (1.85:1), Dolby Digital 5.1 Surround Sound (English, French), Dolby Surround (Spanish)
Studio: 20th Century Fox
Release Date: 09/30/2003
Region 1
MPAA Rating:
Website

We'll give Bend It Like Beckham an A.