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Roma Story - Edin Džeko (2020)

Glamour and goals in ‘Roma Story: Edin Džeko’ (2020)

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MJ-A
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If you know who Edin Džeko is, do you need to watch this movie? If you don’t know who he is, should you watch this movie? My answers are yes and no.

I’m sure that fans of AS Roma, known as the Giallorossi, and fans of the Bosnia and Herzegovina National Team appreciate this documentary of the life and goals of the 6’4″ Bosnian striker from Sarajevo. The film is well put together, with great music and a balanced mix of interviews from the  coaches who discovered him, family, friends, and a few teammates.

But for me, it was like most of today’s player bios, which is why I will probably stop watching and reviewing such soccer movies. With current players, these films largely serve as marketing platforms, often towards the end of players’ careers, perhaps helping to sell a few more jerseys. A similar example is Kroos, which I watched recently and felt I gained little from it. I instead find biographical documentaries of players from earlier generations are more interesting, because they also provide a lot of historical and cultural context.

For example, this film spends a few minutes covering the fact that Džeko was just 6 years old when the Bosnian war started. He mentions some of the difficulties, but the film really focuses on his progression as a youth. He also talks about his Roma and ManCity Serbian teammate Aleksandar Kolarov. Although ethnically representing conflicting sides of the war, they share similarities. “We’re of a new generation who have experienced this as children,” says Džeko.

I would have enjoyed learning more about recovery from such terrible conflict, but history, politics and culture are not the purpose of this film. Instead, a fair amount of time is spent covering Džeko’s gorgeous wife Amra Silajdzic Dzeko.

The soccer

Starting with his youth, there is a good amount of football game footage, as Džeko scores a lot of goals. Roberto Mancini characterizes Džeko as a “mobile and technical player despite his size”. Many teams use him in a direct attack with a long ball over the top. But under Mancini at ManCity, Džeko couldn’t get much playing time when the other 3 forwards were Sergio Aguero, Mario Balotelli, and Carlos Tevez. AS Roma seems to be the best place for him, and the film convinces us that he and his wife are very happy in Rome.

In conclusion, if you like AS Roma or Bosnia, you will certainly enjoy the glamour and goals in Roma Story: Edin Džeko.

6 Soccer Movie Mom Rating = 6

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