My review of a male-bonding soccer movie, in case there are any Gerard Butler fans reading.
Who Stole the US Flag?I'm amused to admit that yes, I did see this soccer movie for the sole reason that Gerard Butler was in it -- and no, it was not a great film overall. However, it was stylishly filmed and it did have some very good acting in the occasional drama scene between all those soccer games. A review described this as "a chick flick for guys" and, well, it is. But that's not a bad thing.
Even though Gerard Butler has maybe 50 lines to work with in the entire film (not ridiculous, considering it's a large ensemble cast), he is actually very good. His character is in some ways the opposite of the Stranger in "Dear Frankie": he is slimmer and far less physically imposing here, but conveys a sense of pent-up frustration that is at times almost scary (as in a scene where a bunch of guys get drunk - I would not want to be home when this guy staggers in at 2 am!). Completely different from the Stranger's gentleness beneath the tough facade, although similar in that both characters are taciturn and keep their emotions to themselves. He even manages to talk in the archetypal tight-mouthed "Italian-American" way. A particularly nice moment is when he blames himself for a game the team lost very badly, and refuses to get on the bus with the others. GB milks the sсriрt for all it's worth and this rare outburst from such a solid controlled character makes an impression. On the whole, it was certainly not a great film, but it had its fun moments, and GB's acting was the main draw.
What I want to know is...
1. Why were there six copies of this film in my local video store, when it's a straight-to-video low-budget soccer movie with zero publicity?
2. And why were three of these copies borrowed on the weekend? Could it be because this is the first G-rated film I've seen since "Cool Runnings", or is GB's fanbase growing at a frightening rate? 
3. Who came up with the (brilliant) marketing strategy of removing the huge American flag from the photo on the DVD cover? On the poster at IMDb, the flag is superimposed over the sky. On my DVD cover there is only the sky. Nice.