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A Shot at Glory (2000)

Director:
Michael Corrente
COUNTRY
USA/UK
GENRE
Drama/Sports
NORWEGIAN TITLE
A Shot at Glory
RUNNING TIME
115 minutes
Producer:
Rob Carliner
Michael Corrente
Robert Duvall
Screenwriter:
Denis O'Neill


Cast includes:

CHARACTER ACTOR/ACTRESS RATING
Gordon McLeod Robert Duvall ½
Peter Cameron Michael Keaton
Jackie McQuillan Ally McCoist ½
Martin Smith Brian Cox
Kate McQuillan Kirsty Mitchell ½
Kelsey O'Brian Cole Hauser ½
Irene Morag Hood

 

Review

Amiable attempt at a portrait of Scottish small-time football, boasting Robert Duvall as an ageing manager, Michael Keaton as the American club owner and former Scotland international Ally McCoist as the conceited, veteran golden boot winning striker returning to the Scottish league for a second division swansong. The script is all about clichés and carefully plotted course of events (albeit more in the romantic subplot than in the main football storyline), but the sports action is fine and the film has a local charm about it that is hard to resist. Ally McCoist is the most surprising element, giving a good performance, especially in the more challenging dramatic segments. And Robert Duvall is one of those actors who can pull off segments that otherwise would seem bloated. His much discussed Scottish accent, which shall remain unassessed here, has been overemphasized by critics. It might be uneven, but Duvall grows into his role and is totally believable as a Scottish football manager. A Shot at Glory is one of the better football films around, and should be a welcomed view for fans of the British game - if only for the locations, live action and references.

Copyright © 10.7.2007 Fredrik Gunerius Fevang

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