I appear to be a sucker for a good underdog story. I mean, as a teacher I am constantly having to undo the brainwashing of “I can’t,” “You’re not good enough,” or “It is impossible,” in order to help my students reach their full potential. As a person, I’ve always been a bit of an underdog to a degree and definitely full of self-doubt. So, a movie about a kid who defies the belief that he “can’t” plucks my heart-strings. Eddie The Eagle, which has a 71% on Rotten Tomatoes, soared into theaters and my heart.
Eddie Edwards (Taron Egerton) has wanted to be an Olympic Athlete most of his life, and figures out that his best chance is to go after Ski Jumping, a sport that Great Britain hadn’t had a competitor in for a few decades. Edwards goes to train and meets Bronson Peary (Hugh Jackman), a former ski jumper and relative asshole, and the relationship between the two begins.
This film is inspirational in several way. As a parent, I hope I can be as supportive and caring as Edward’s mother, Janette ( Jo Hartley), is depicted to be in the film. Despite the many people who doubt Eddie, Janette is always there with a kind word of motivation and support.
Eddie’s drive to succeed despite being rejected from a sport he had actually proven to be decent enough in is extremely inspiring. He had knee issues as a child, but all that did was push him to prove others wrong. This movie definitely instills this idea and Egerton’s performance is great.
Jackman’s fictional character in a true story (basically his character is an amalgamation of two real life coaches) has his own inspirational story. The change the character goes through and the passion for a sport that I honestly knew very little about was captivating. It pulled me into this film and made me appreciate a sport I’d never thought much about.
There are some very interesting cinematic moments when the skiers are coming down the slope, my favorite being that of Jackman’s character. It was cool seeing Wolverine on skies. The angles and effects give a great visual and add a bit of humor.
This film is going to get compared to Cool Runnings a lot. It’s about an Olympic event where a country hadn’t had a competitor for some time, there is a sense of humor, and, interestingly, both teams were in the 1988 Olympics. That said, my memory of Cool Runnings was that film was a comedy with a true story attached to it. Eddie the Eagle feels like a drama with human elements ingrained that happen to be funny.
I love a movie that I can bring the whole family to, and both my wife and I shed some tears of joy during this film. Director Dexter Fletcher was able to bring the true story of Eddie Edwards to the big screen in a very fun and inspirational way. I give Eddie the Eagle 7 out of 10 stars.
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