Goal II: Living the Dream (2007)

Directed by: Jaume Collet-Serra | 115 minutes | drama, sports | Actors: Kuno Becker, Alessandro Nivola, Anna Friel, Stephen Dillane, Rutger Hauer, Frances Barber, David Beckham, Miriam Colon, Kieran O’Brien, Leonor Varela, Sean Pertwee, Nick Cannon, Alfredo Rodriguez, Elizabeth Peña, Mike Jefferies

Everything is going well for Santiago. He is much loved by Newcastle United fans and very happy to have his fiancée Roz (Anna Friel) in their new home, but when he gets the chance to play football with the great Real Madrid in Spain, everyone understands that he is such a cannot pass up a unique opportunity. In Madrid he is also reunited with his friend Gavin Harris (Alessandro Nivola) who is going through a short period of time and whose position at the prestigious club is shattered by his inability to score. But the friendship between them is very close, so when Santiago replaces Gavin in his debut match, scores directly and becomes a serious competitor for his position, there is no rift between the sworn friends.

After this flashy start come the first bumps. Roz does not want to live in Spain, but first does her nursing exam in Newcastle. She also has problems with the fact that everything Santiago does immediately gets big in the newspapers and gossip magazines. When he also has to deal with a boy (Alfredo Rodriguez) who claims to be his brother, things go wrong. Their mother (Elizabeth Peña) abandoned Santiago and his father when he was little, and the idea of ​​her living somewhere in Madrid leaves him completely confused, as well as missing Roz and the volatile glittering world of professional football.

The best part of this part is the way in which the actors ‘play along’ with the pros. Clever editing allows you to forget, if you like, that they don’t actually play with David Beckham or Zinedine Zidane on a team. And of course it’s not just about football, but about love under difficult circumstances and childhood suffering that has to be dealt with in adulthood. It’s not a spectacular drama, but certainly entertaining. Also nice is the casual way in which the football world is treated from shady agents to pushy paparazzi and that as a player you only exist by the grace of your performance on the field.

‘Goal II: Living the Dream’ is an entertaining film with here and there nice little surprises such as Rutger Hauer, who plays the Real Madrid coach in a fatherly way: strict but fair and therefore strikes exactly the right tone and the brother who the flashy car of Santiago takes off and has a driving style all its own. Just a pity that this second part is not neatly finished, but that it is sufficient to say ‘to be continued..’ There are also other ways to make a trilogy a trilogy.