Johan Cruijff - En un momento dado
Johan Cruijff - En un momento dado is a 2004 documentary film by Ramon Gieling on the life of Dutch footballer Johan Cruijff.
-
- Cast:
- Johan Cruijff
Similar titles
Reviews
Bad Acting and worse Bad Screenplay
I cannot think of one single thing that I would change about this film. The acting is incomparable, the directing deft, and the writing poignantly brilliant.
The film makes a home in your brain and the only cure is to see it again.
By the time the dramatic fireworks start popping off, each one feels earned.
So-so documentary about the arrival of Johan Cruijff (or Cruyff, as he is probably better known internationally), then the world's best football player, to Barcelona Football Club in 1974, and how it changed the fortunes of the Catalan team, who won several championships in the following years, and beat eternal rival Real Madrid 5-0 in Madrid in a memorable game. There are interviews with fans, and with Cruyff himself, but there is not much more. Only for die hard football fans. Even with such limited appeal, it could have been more interesting. The title - en un momento dado - means in a given moment - and it was an expression apparently popularized by Cruyff in Spain.
This film should not be treated as a mere football (or soccer in US terms)related documentary. There is much more than just a football star. The film is designed around Barcelona'a Catalan identity, and how Cruffy has uplifted the entire Catalan community's morale and self esteem during his years as a player and a coach. The film starts with Catalan related motives, and continues with Cruffy's football and personal qualities. I especially liked the fans' imitation of Cruffy's well-known figures and moves. I guess this is one of the best documentaries for a sports person. When I was young, I didn't like Cruyff, but after watching the film, my opinions has changed drastically. I truly recommend it to all documentary and Cruffy fans.
This movie shows the passion of the people from Barcelona for their number one football club & their number one all time player Johan Cruyff.The movie shows that Cruyff was not only a great player, but also a great leader, inspirator and a great tactician on and off the pitch. His class went beyond football and gave the catalans the pride they desparately needed after the oppression in the times of Franco.This movie is great in that it tells the story through several superb anecdotes. The best one in my opinion is the beginning where a man is brought to tears talking about the 0-5 victory against the greatest rivals Real Madrid: "We finally got those sons of bitches!"
This strong movie features Catalan people talking about how Johan Cruijff changed their lives. The movie shows in a humorous way the importance of Johan Cruijff for the Catalonian identity, after being supressed by the Franco regime. The people interviewed tell about their personal Johan Cruijff moment and this gives us some hilarious moments. One to remember is the journalist that tells us how Johan influenced the spanish language by translating sayings from his native language (Dutch) directly into Spanish. Off course there is some beautiful footage of Cruijff as a player and as a coach at FC Barcelona, but the Catalan people play the central role in this movie. This makes it perfectly suited for non-soccer fans.