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

Posted by ad on Jul 11, 2006 in Film | 0 comments

This post originally appeared on Screen*Play.

4 weeks, 32 teams and 64 games later, the World Cup ended in a cloud of white paper strips and slick dark hair with Italy taking home the trophy and retiring French legend Zinedine “Zizou” Zidane leaving viewers agasp at his red-card foul against Marco Materazzi.

With that, we were left with a gaping whole in our weekend plans just when we figured out where the best place to watch is and what time to get there for a good seat. Enter Once in a Lifetime: The Extraordinary Story of the New York Cosmos (Greenstreet Films/Miramax), a look back at the moment in time where soccer had the potential to become the national pastime here in the United States.

Directed by Paul Crowder and narrated by Oscar-winner Matt Dillon, Once In a Lifetime is a well crafted sports documentary in the style of Dogtown and Z-Boys (Stacy Peralta – Sony Pictures Classics) and Riding Giants (Stacy Peralta – Sony Pictures Classics), both edited by Crowder.

Once in a Lifetime weaves together archival news and sports footage with current, candid interviews of the players involved – on the field and in the home office. What makes the story of the NY Cosmos so compelling is the relentless drive of the team’s founder, then Warner Brothers Chairman Steve Ross, to conquer the world of soccer at any expense.

In a move sure to take the team from the backyard of 1970s NYC to the front page, Ross sends Jay Emmet (former President of Warner Communications) to Brazil with unlimited resources to sign then retiring soccer legend Pele.  There begins the Extraordinary Story of the NY Cosmos who went on to bring the game of soccer to the masses and the dream of international success to a handful of 1970s entertainment industry elite…until the glamour and glory were no more.

Crowders’ documentary is brought to life not just through storytelling, but with music as well. It’s the character in the story that gives the film that quintessential 70s NYC feel and underscores its tag-line, Goals. Greed. Girls.

Once in a Lifetime: The Extraordinary Story of the New York Cosmos opens  wide  July 14th.

No official soundtrack was released, so we’ve compiled it below:

1. junior walker & the allstars - nothing but soul
2. creative source - who is he and (what is he to you)?
3. marlena shaw – woman of the ghetto
4. the love unlimited orchestra – strange games & things
5. kool & the gang – summer madness
6. jackson sisters – i believe in miracles
7. the supremes – he’s my man
8. the commodores – machine gun
9. maceo and the macks – cross the tracks (we better go back)
10. donna summer – i feel love
11. the penfifiteen club – disco mf
12. kansacali – u gotta fight!