Once in a Lifetime: The Extraordinary Story of the New York Cosmos (2006)

The rise and fall of the N.Y. Cosmos. The soccer team that brought Pele to America; against the backdrop of N.Y. City in the 70's.

Directors:

Paul Crowder (co-director), John Dower (co-director)

Writers:

John Dower (story), Mark Monroe (screenplay)

Stars:

Pelé, Giorgio Chinaglia, Matt Dillon

1 nomination.

Cast

Credited cast:
Ahmet Ertegun	...	Self
Nesuhi Ertegün	...	Self (archive footage)
Matt Dillon	...	Narrator (voice)
Clive Toye	...	Self
Shep Messing	...	Self
Giorgio Chinaglia	...	Self
Peppe Pinton	...	Self
Werner Roth	...	Self
Jay Emmett	...	Self
Phil Woosnam	...	Self
Raphael de la Sierra	...	Self
Carlos Alberto	...	Self
Franz Beckenbauer	...	Self
Pelé	...	Self (archive footage)
Rest of cast listed alphabetically:
Marv Albert	...	Self

Storyline

A look back at one of the more curious fads in American professional sports, the sudden rise and precipitous fall of the North American Soccer League, spanning its existence 1968-1984, as seen through the experience of its most famous club, the New York Cosmos. The NASL made very little impact in the US, where soccer had virtually no following, until in 1975 the New York Cosmos succeeded in signing the most famous player in the world, Pele. Attendence for Cosmos games exploded, outdrawing even the New York Giants and New York Jets of the NFL, to where exhibition games in Seattle were drawing huge crowds, and when Pele announced his retirement in 1977 his final game drew the biggest crowd to ever see a soccer game in the US. His retirement from the game began a slow but steady decline for the NASL as money issues for the league and the spending practices of the Cosmos became a running controversy.

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Plot Keywords:

new york cosmos | professional sports | soccer team | football team | sports team | 

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Taglines:

The untold story of the team that had America at its feet.

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Genres:

Documentary | Sport

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Motion Picture Rating (MPAA)

Rated PG-13 for language and some nudity

Did You Know?

Trivia

Pelé declined to participate in the documentary when the producers balked at his $100,000 fee.

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Crazy Credits

At the end of the credits, a pair of "super fans" re-enact the Cosmos cheer.

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Soundtracks

U Gotta Fight!
Written by Anderson Pittboss Johnson Jr. (as A. "Pittboss" Johnson Jr.), Aulsondro Novelist Hamilton (as Aulsondro "Novelist" Hamilton) and Eric Borders (as Eric "E" Borders)
Performed by KansasCali
Courtesy of The Superb Group

User Reviews

Nowhere enough details

I really liked it, but it just moves by too fast.There were so many moments and subjects that they should have dwelled on a little longer,that they cut away too fast from.

This may be because the attitude expressed early in the movie,about Americans' attention spans;that ours are so short,they can't focus long enough on the game of soccer(i.e. football)to appreciate it,and I think the filmmakers edited it to fit that,in the assumption that us Yanks wouldn't find it interesting if the film had been done like their football docs.Maybe they're right,maybe most of us wouldn't,but I know I would have,and I wish they had done so.They could have filled it up with so much more detail,more stories,and so on.Good ,but should have been much more.

Details

Official Sites:

Official site Official site

Country:

UK USA

Language:

English

Release Date:

7 July 2006 (USA)

Also Known As:

Once in a Lifetime: The Extraordinary Story of the New York Cosmos

Box Office

Budget:

$1,000,000 (estimated)

Opening Weekend USA:

$9,805, 9 July 2006

Gross USA:

$144,601

Cumulative Worldwide Gross:

$213,762

Company Credits

Production Co:

Passion Pictures, Cactus Three, ESPN Original Entertainment

Technical Specs

Runtime:

97 min

Sound Mix:

Dolby Digital

Color:

Color Black and White

Aspect Ratio:

1.85 : 1