Dear God, how did they pull this off? The warped genius footballer Cantona and the godfather of the down and dirty social commentary.
But what a genuinely heartwarming slice of pathos and skill.
This little film inspires and depresses in equal measure - how desperate life can get, how tortured one man can be by mistakes in his past, trauma in his present as modern life slides out of view.
What a great performance from Eric Bishop as the downtrodden postie slowly sinking under depression and regret who imagines his idol, Man United's Gallic legend Cantona as a forceful separate entity much the same as Fight Club's Tyler Durden - not so much the voice of conscience as conscience released to free-associate and answer the problems of the stressed ID from an objective viewpoint .
Getting a bit heavy, tho', so I'll just state what a pleasure this was to watch and thank Ken Loach for sucking me into a world of hope amidst overwhelming odds, showing - albeit fantastically imagined - how sometimes life's most brutal entities can be beaten by simple trust and friendship.
And comedic moments? One in particular of utter deadpan genius featuring a prop which I assume was some Penguin academic paperback from the 70s: 'Psychos...They don't give a f*ck'.. No spoilers here, but the rest of the dialogue around that line is priceless, beautifully acted with understated hilarity.
What can you say - watch this and smile (shed a tear, even - as I admit to doing at Cantona's final scene outside the bus!). Eric the Red plays it (and himself) perfectly; self-deprecating, but still carrying himself with that idol's air of mystery.
You don't need to be a football fan (American movie fans, please check it out before the inevitable Hollywood remake with Michael Jordan/Joe Montana/A-Rod (or Madonna!)) to enjoy this slice of urban fantasy but if you are - even a blue! - you cannot do anything but love it.
An utter feelgood gem. Trust me.
And if you don't know it already, you'll be singing it by the end...
Ooh-Ahh, Ooh-Ahh, Ooh-Ahh, Cantona!
But what a genuinely heartwarming slice of pathos and skill.
This little film inspires and depresses in equal measure - how desperate life can get, how tortured one man can be by mistakes in his past, trauma in his present as modern life slides out of view.
What a great performance from Eric Bishop as the downtrodden postie slowly sinking under depression and regret who imagines his idol, Man United's Gallic legend Cantona as a forceful separate entity much the same as Fight Club's Tyler Durden - not so much the voice of conscience as conscience released to free-associate and answer the problems of the stressed ID from an objective viewpoint .
Getting a bit heavy, tho', so I'll just state what a pleasure this was to watch and thank Ken Loach for sucking me into a world of hope amidst overwhelming odds, showing - albeit fantastically imagined - how sometimes life's most brutal entities can be beaten by simple trust and friendship.
And comedic moments? One in particular of utter deadpan genius featuring a prop which I assume was some Penguin academic paperback from the 70s: 'Psychos...They don't give a f*ck'.. No spoilers here, but the rest of the dialogue around that line is priceless, beautifully acted with understated hilarity.
What can you say - watch this and smile (shed a tear, even - as I admit to doing at Cantona's final scene outside the bus!). Eric the Red plays it (and himself) perfectly; self-deprecating, but still carrying himself with that idol's air of mystery.
You don't need to be a football fan (American movie fans, please check it out before the inevitable Hollywood remake with Michael Jordan/Joe Montana/A-Rod (or Madonna!)) to enjoy this slice of urban fantasy but if you are - even a blue! - you cannot do anything but love it.
An utter feelgood gem. Trust me.
And if you don't know it already, you'll be singing it by the end...
Ooh-Ahh, Ooh-Ahh, Ooh-Ahh, Cantona!