CNN — Director Taika Waititi has made a lot of different kinds of movies, from sequels to Marvel’s Thor to weird comedies with Nazis and vampires. His most recent movie, the silly sports movie “Next Goal Wins,” stands out mostly for how normal it is. The movie is friendly and ready to please. It’s a mix of an underdog story and a fish-out-of-water situation. It opens in theaters first but will probably do most of its business on streaming services.
The movie came out the same month that “The Killer” did on Netflix. It’s a change of pace for Michael Fassbender, who plays Thomas Rongen, a soccer coach who is having a bad time and has to take on the job of managing the sad American Samoa team. Because the team is known for giving up a lot of goals, their manager, Oscar Kightley, gives them a simple goal: they don’t have to win; they just have to score, which is something his team has never done in international play.
It seems like Fassbender’s tight-knit coach doesn’t belong on an island where everyone drives at 20 miles per hour, and everything stops at the same time every day for prayer. The team also has a lot of weirdos and a trans player named Jaiyah (Kaimana), who Rongen doesn’t know how to treat or deal with at first (the movie takes place in 2011).
There’s other stuff going on, and Elisabeth Moss, who plays Rongen’s separated wife, is way too little used. Still, “Next Goal Wins,” which was made in Hawaii, is mostly there to break the old “Seinfeld” rule that “No hugging, no learning.” It starts with the simple idea that winning might not be the most important thing in the world.
Inspired by a true story that pretty much actually happened. @TaikaWaititi's NEXT GOAL WINS, only in theaters November 17th. #NextGoalWins pic.twitter.com/gf95a2P3Si
— Next Goal Wins (@NextGoalFilm) April 26, 2023
Waititi (who also has a small part) co-wrote the script and, as usual, plays with expectations rather gleefully. For example, he gives his version of an inspiring locker-room speech and a training routine that includes references to “The Karate Kid” movies.
Ultimately, “Next Goal Wins” gets most of its simple charm from being so unpretentious. This also makes it feel light enough to be easily thrown away, even though it has likable characters and beautiful settings.
Still, the movie and its creators should be praised for taking a chance on this kind of low-key project, knowing that even though it’s hard to succeed with this kind of material, the only way to know for sure is to try.
“Next Goal Wins” opens in theaters across the US on November 17. The rating is PG-13.