Netflix movie of the day: The Long Game is an inspiring tale of underdogs having their day that’s based on a true story
The best sports movies are about more than just sports, and The Long Game isn’t just about golf
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The best sports movies aren’t just about sports. Take the recent movie of the dayRockyfor example: it’s about working class pride, about love and about overcoming adversity, so it’s more than just a boxing movie. And the same applies toThe Long Game, because while it’s an uplifting underdog story set around the game of golf it’s also about some of the toxic attitudes prevalent in the 1950s.
An uplifting sports movie based on a true story
The Long Gameis based on the true story of five Mexican American high school students who were banned from playing golf in the 1950s by an all-white Texan country club. Refusing to take no for an answer, they built their own course, formed their own team, and became state champions.
AsVarietyput it: “Winner of an audience award at the 2023 SXSW film fest,The Long Gameis an utterly predictable yet thoroughly engaging period drama.” It’s “appealingly told with sincerity and taste,” saysRogerEbert.com, while theHollywood Outsidersays that “The Long Gameis an emotional crowd-pleaser”.
While few critics can fault the heart of the film, many felt that it could have been more focused:Collidersaid that “while the book this film is based on,Mustang Miracleby Humberto G. Garcia, certainly documents an impressive story of an underdog overcoming odds, the film doesn’t quite reach the heights it’s trying to… It juggles too many things and ends up dropping the ball.” While the movie does address racism head-on, “it struggles to find balance and nuance along the way”.
The result is “a gently rousing family-friendly drama,“The Hollywood Reportersays. It “could have used more topspin, but [it’s] a winning round nonetheless”, which is why it makes the cut for ourbest Netflix movieslist.
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Writer, broadcaster, musician and kitchen gadget obsessive Carrie Marshall has been writing about tech since 1998, contributing sage advice and odd opinions to all kinds of magazines and websites as well as writing more than a dozen books. Her memoir,Carrie Kills A Man, is on sale now and her next book, about pop music, is out in 2025. She is the singer in Glaswegian rock bandUnquiet Mind.
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