History of Soccer: The Beautiful Game

Starring:Terence Stamp, Pele, Maradona
Studio: Shout Factory
Product Type: DVD

Editorial Review:
Amazon.com essential video
The entire history of the world's favorite game? It's an extraordinary challenge that could go have gone horribly wrong, but History of Soccer: The Beautiful Game is a class act. It boasts top-drawer production values, including narration by Terence Stamp, access to everybody who has really mattered in the game, ever, plus loads of famous, rare, and never-seen-before footage, each volume offering a blend of narrative, action, and illuminating interviews. This is a polished product: part celebration, part commemoration, but always with a sharp investigative sense, digging around the misty-eyed, good ol' days tradition, to explore in the company of those interviewed the reality behind some of soccer's myths and legends.

The breadth of enquiry is naturally impressive, as is the narrative structure, but it's the deft handling of the subplots that really sets this apart, including: analysis of the dominant club sides such as Liverpool, Real Madrid, and Milan (volume 2); the evolution of Brazil (volume 3); the superstar casualties, like Maradona and Garrincha (volume 5); football as an agent of social control in Victorian England (volume 1); the revolution in French football that created the 1998 World Champions (volume 4); and the failure, so far, of Africa to fulfil Pele's famous World Cup prediction (volume 6). There's so little material here that isn't memorable that it's difficult to pick highlights, but action aside (and it's hard to think of an historically important game that isn't featured), an emotional Maradona exposing the "conspiracy" that fixed the 1990 World Cup final (volume 2) is an unforgettable slice of soccer culture.

History of Soccer on DVD comes complete with a heap of extras (between 33 and 54 minutes' worth per volume) including, across the set, every single goal from every World Cup Final game; extended interviews with the likes of Pele, Maradona, Zidane, and Bobby Charlton; loads of "first-ever-recorded-on-film" material including the 1907 England-Scotland game; text-only biographies of the major interviewees; extended tournament highlights of past European Championships, African Nations Cups, World Club Championships, Asian Cups, and, of course, World Cup Finals. The picture itself is presented in widescreen, and there's a Spanish-language track plus an Easter egg of additional hidden material in every volume. --Alex Hankin
Description
This DVD collection takes you beyond great goals and classic match action, to focus on every aspect of the game - on and off the pitch, along the corridors of power, from its humble beginnings to the billion dollar industry it is today.

The series investigates the factors that have enabled soccer players to become culturlal icons and millionaires, recognized throughout the world. Through exclusive interviews filmed in over 50 countries, it explores the tremendous influence soccer holds over our lives.

Every aspect of the sport is covered with exclusive footage, ground-breaking interviews with icons of the game - past and present and revealing insights into why soccer generates more excitement, passion, and wealth across the world than any other sport.

With amazing DVD extras including rare and previously unseen footage, extended interviews and player profiles, this is must-see viewing for every true fan of the game!

Collect all six volumes plus a bonus seventh DVD in a special limited edition DVD box set:

Vol. 1: Origins / Football Cultures
Vol. 2: Evolution / European Superpowers
Vol. 3: Brazil / South American Superpowers
Vol. 4: For Club and Country / The Dark Side
Vol. 5: Superstars / The Media
Vol. 6: Africa / A Game For All / Futures (2 DVDs)

Approximate Running Times:
Six Volumes (Seven Discs): 11 hrs, 16 mins
DVD Extras: 3 hrs, 50 mins

Amazon.com essential video

The entire history of the world's favorite game? It's an extraordinary challenge that could go have gone horribly wrong, but History of Soccer: The Beautiful Game is a class act. It boasts top-drawer production values, including narration by Terence Stamp, access to everybody who has really mattered in the game, ever, plus loads of famous, rare, and never-seen-before footage, each volume offering a blend of narrative, action, and illuminating interviews. This is a polished product: part celebration, part commemoration, but always with a sharp investigative sense, digging around the misty-eyed, good ol' days tradition, to explore in the company of those interviewed the reality behind some of soccer's myths and legends.

History of Soccer on DVD comes complete with a heap of extras (between 33 and 54 minutes' worth per volume) including, across the set, every single goal from every World Cup Final game; extended interviews with the likes of Pele, Maradona, Zidane, and Bobby Charlton; loads of "first-ever-recorded-on-film" material including the 1907 England-Scotland game; text-only biographies of the major interviewees; extended tournament highlights of past European Championships, African Nations Cups, World Club Championships, Asian Cups, and, of course, World Cup Finals. The picture itself is presented in widescreen, and there's a Spanish-language track plus an Easter egg of additional hidden material in every volume. --Alex Hankin

Description

This DVD collection takes you beyond great goals and classic match action, to focus on every aspect of the game - on and off the pitch, along the corridors of power, from its humble beginnings to the billion dollar industry it is today.

With amazing DVD extras including rare and previously unseen footage, extended interviews and player profiles, this is must-see viewing for every true fan of the game!

Collect all six volumes plus a bonus seventh DVD in a special limited edition DVD box set:

Approximate Running Times:
Six Volumes (Seven Discs): 11 hrs, 16 mins
DVD Extras: 3 hrs, 50 mins

**Spanish-language version also included.**

Customer Reviews:

If you don't like Ken Burns and bad audio, then you won't like this.......2007-06-11

First of all, the production standards are terrible on this. Very nice, a bit staid, cinematography, but the sound mix is atrocious. The music booms, along with the narration, but interviews are recorded on sub-par, breathy microphones and are mixed very low in comparison to everything else. Even with the volume set too high for comfort in respect to the music and Stamp narration, you strain to hear the interviews.

And the presentation is very formulaic and drowsy. None of the energy of the game is captured. Instead you find the Ken Burns-ian approach of reducing any story, no matter its particular dynamics, to a deadly pace of voiceover over obvious imagery - cut to interview - cut to historical shot. I've only made it through Disc 1, and find it difficult to believe I'd make it through seven. But if I'm proven wrong, I will append this review.

Classic review on a classic sport.......2007-05-10

Though I am not an avid soccer fan, this series allowed me to truly appreciate the popularity of the sport. Now I am more apt to pay more attention to the sport as I am tired of the NFL more often these days. The presentation is a well done video and audio spectacle.

Incredible.......2007-01-18

The most complete history of the sport I have ever seen. Beginning with the ancient mayas and exploring the evolution of the sport to the present time. Also the best all-time goals and all the winning goals throughout the world cups. A must-have for soccer fans.

Where's the Game? Where's the Beauty?.......2007-01-05

How ironic the subtitle! "The Beautiful Game." Beauty? Game? Where? If you consider high production values, a slowly building symphonic sound track, repeated close-ups of late afternoon sun-dappled water, or long shots of British dock yards beautiful, then perhaps there is "beauty" in this video. If a few select shots of crucial world cup and European championship goals, after lengthy commentary by ex-players and coaches, is your idea of "game," then perhaps there is game as well. But if one is looking for a video that actually SHOWS the beautiful game, this is definitely not it.

And what about the "History" part? Even for the academic with a high tolerance for boredom this video falls short. Its history and analysis is superficial for anyone with much knowledge of the game.

So much superficial discussion of historic teams, so much slow-building pseudo-dramatic music, so little real analysis off the field, so little sustained footage of action on the field. Ultimately, the video fails to be either a history of soccer (too superficial) or a depiction of "the beautiful game" (no sustained footage).

Perhaps the video's most embarrassing moment comes in the analysis that one interviewee provides of the failures of soccer in the United States. The game, he argues, will never catch on in the U.S. because it is too low scoring, because American audiences, who only understand goals, will never learn to appreciate the nuances of the game. Bitter irony. The viewer watches in disbelief as the producers of the video then go on to show us nothing BUT the scores of Pele, George Best, and the rest of the NASL stars of the 1970s! And so it goes throughout the series. Only goals. So much celebration of Hungary's passing attack but only goals. So much discussion of Holland's total game, but no footage of it in action. So much talk about France's 1998 World Cup winner, but not a single shot of Zidane so much as passing the ball, let alone dribbling. If the game is beautiful for reasons other than scoring, where is the footage of that beauty? Of course, the irony (favorite word for this review) is that most soccer highlight shows are exactly the same. Talk, talk, talk about the beautiful game, but if you actually wish to illustrate the concept to the skeptical and undereducated North American masses, there seems to be nowhere to turn. Unfortunately, this dreadfully slow video, for all its high production values, is not the answer.

Check it out from your local library. Don't spend the money.
And please tell me where the video that actually illustrates and analyzes the "beautiful game" is to be found.

Soccer (fotball) 101.......2006-07-30

The History of Soccer (Football); The Beautiful Game, is a wonderful set. Its cinematography is outstanding and the narration is very good. The extras are very cool as well (my one complaint is that the type on the bios is a bit small. I liken it to a survey course at university such as a History 101 or 102 course. It is not overall comprehensive but is comprehensive in giving us an understanding of the game from its earliest origins to the modern game all the way up to the 2002 World Cup. Each DVD contains two one hour segments on a different historical theme of the history of soccer, and some extras.

So much is covered hear, from the early origins, a Greek game that the romans adapted to a sort of ruby game that was preserved by both the Italians and the English to the modern games of Rugby and Football. In Soccer cultures the USA (a nice segment on the NASL is included) and Iran are covered as well as Asia and more. From the European superpowers (Italy, France, Germany, Holland, etc.,) to the South American Superpowers, with a whole segment featured on Brazil as well. From Clubs teams to the fans. From Superstars to the Media. And finally the growth in Africa. We get a pretty comprehensive look at the World Cup and good locks at the Europeans championships. All the superstars are hear, the great coaches, the great teams and the scandals are covered too. The different strategies and how they developed are discussed, as well as how the game spread to the fans. And how are why its so important to the fans. Also the political climates are discussed, as pertaining to the development of Soccer, in each country, in which politics has effected the game. Such as Fascism in Europe and a Dictatorship in Brazil.

This is a great set and a great starting place for the novice fan and long time fan of Soccer (Football).

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