Own the rights?
As someone who admires both Maradona's superb abilities as a soccer player (and now coach) and Kusturica's previous films and music, I am very disappointed by what I saw in this documentary. I wasn't expecting it to be so grotesque and Fellinesque... Clearly, the film contains a strong element of tongue-in-cheek comedy (one example is the way it features the vulgar, so-called "Church of Maradona"). But beyond that, the degree to which everyone, including Kusturica, kisses the soccer star's godly ass is unfunny and a little disgusting. I wish it were a mockumentary akin "This is Spinal Tap". Sadly, it isn't.Maradona comes across as a person ravaged by vanity. Up to a certain point, I sympathize with him, and that's one of the film's successes. I understand that drugs and alcohol took their toll on him and I'm glad that he has been able to pull through and recover. But the arrogant manner in which he constantly expresses himself was a real let down for me. The brand of socialism that he and Kusturica advocate in this film seems childish and clownish at best. It can be amusing to those who watch it from afar. Instead, it is tragic for those who deal with it from up close on a daily basis. -- And mind you, I'm no conservative, right-wing nut. For example, I regard Brazil's Lula as quite a respectable and accomplished center-left leader. But this is not the case with Venezuela's Chavez, a megalomaniac whose aggressive attitude and unquenchable thirst for power currently pose a major challenge to the country's democratic foundations. How can one criticize George W. Bush and approve of someone like him, when the two are in so many ways so similar? Personally, I think this documentary can be best appreciated as an unabashed display of mediocrity by two very gifted individuals.UPDATE (9/12/2009): For now, I take back what I said about his superb abilities as a coach, since the national team has been doing so badly. Maybe he'll still have a chance to redeem himself as a coach later.
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