* Bend It Like Beckham * (Bend It Like Beckham (DVD))

Member Name: xd-o-n-z-x

Product:	Bend It Like Beckham (DVD)
Date:	01/02/09 (68 review reads)
Rating:

Advantages: Interesting

Disadvantages: None!

Bend It Like Beckham is a British film released in the United Kingdom on April 12th 2002. The film stars Keira Knightley and Parminder Nagra. This film comes under many genres , including : Sport , Romance , Comedy and Drama to name a few. The film was given the title 'Bend It Like Beckham' because of the British footballer David Beckham , who is known for his 'great kicks' and also because the film is all about football , then this title is appropriate as David Beckham is the 'idol' of the girls in the film. Running time of this movie is one hundred and twelve minutes (eight minutes short of two hours). This movie is a certificated PG movie.

This film is all about women's football. Jules is football mad , and so is Jess. They both dream of becoming professional footballers , just like Beckham. However , there is one thing stopping Jess from reaching her goal ; she comes from a very traditional and strict family of Sikh faith and so they disapprove of her love of football. Instead they want her to go to university and become a lawyer. Will she give up her hobby for her parents , or will she bend the rules a little ? Watch Bend It Like Beckham to find out!

I really love how this film is all about celebrating women's beliefs. I think it's frustrating that the two girls in the movie are having to fight for their dreams to play professional football , just because it's considered inappropriate because of their gender. Football is usually stereotyped as a 'man's thing' , and usually the mix of women and football isn't really taken seriously. Having played football for a women's team while at school , I could really understand how these girls were feeling. I used to love playing a football and used to be embarrassed when guys would say 'you can't play football' (before they'd even seen me play! ) just because I'm a girl. However the characters in this movie prove that if you have a dream ; reach out and grab it! This movie really stands up for women which is great!

I was really impressed with the acting in this movie , and thought that the cast all played their parts really well. Keira Knightley stood out for me , as I couldn't believe how great at actress she was at such a young age (she was only about sixteen or seventeen when this film was filmed). I hadn't heard of Keira before but since watching this movie I have become a major fan , although now I honestly can't believe that Keira played such a tomboy character after watching nearly all of her movies which in many of them she plays 'young , rich , ladies'.
I thought their football skills were amazing too. I spent half the movie wondering whether it was really the girls playing football , as they really did look like professionals.

I think this movie does a great job of portraying the two very different backgrounds the girls have : Jess being Indian and Jules being British. I think that this movie shows how hard it is for someone with a cross-cultural background like Jess. It must be hard living a life that is extremely different to the lives that are lived in the country you live in.. I also found it really interesting to learn about Jess' culture.

You don't really need to be a football fan to enjoy this movie.Although this movie is based on football , there is a lot more to it than just football. You don't have to be female either . I know men who have enjoyed this movie. So check it out!

Thanks For Reading
February 1st 2009

Summary: A great British Film!