This German soccer movie, Guys and Balls, is predictable but very cute. Ecki, a small-town goalkeeper and baker, is kicked off his semi-pro team for being gay. In defiance, he organizes an all-gay team to play against his former team in their home stadium, resulting in a nice strike against homophobia.
The soccer is not authentic, but the player enthusiasm is. Maximilian Brückner, who plays Ecki the GK, looks quite a bit like San Jose Earthquakes’ Steven Lenhart when his hair is long.
By a #WomenDirector. This is the first movie review I wrote, so someday I must watch the movie again, then come back and edit this post.
Update Mar-11-2020: This isn’t the final update, but I just want to note that it took me years to realize that Ecki’s being a forward and working in his father’s bakery is really a reference to Jurgen Klinsmann’s background.
7 Soccer Movie Mom Rating = 7
Resources:
- Release Date: 2004-10-07 (Germany)
- In German with English sub-titles.
- English title is Guys and Balls
- German title is Männer wie wir, which translates to the double entendre “Men like us”.
- IMDB
- WIKI
- Director: Sherry Hormann
- Stars: Maximilian Brückner
- Watch the Trailer in low res
