Last weekend I was flipping through channels and settled on The History Channel. I had just caught the tail end of their broadcast of the 1981 film 'Victory', starring Sylvester Stallone, Michael Caine and Max von Sydow, as well as soccer legends Pele, Bobby Moore, and others. And it was directed by legendary director John Huston.

I then went to my local Suncoast video store and bought 'Victory' (it was under $20). I haven't seen that movie for a while (before recently, that is), but it was well worth it. http://www.soccergaming.com/ubb/smile.gif

My only regret is that there is no widescreen version of the film for VHS, and that I don't currently have a DVD player (to get the DVD version of the film). But I still say it was an entertaining film!


-G

Yeah, I saw it on the History Channel. They play nazi Germany's national team, and Pele scores off that bicycle right?

Yup, that's the film! http://www.soccergaming.com/ubb/smile.gif

I saw the last ten minutes of that History Channel version, where after the end of the film the host of the show was talking to a film historian. What's funny was that the historian said that it was unlikely that a Brazilian would have been in a Nazi POW camp in 1943 because the Brazilian army divisions that fought in Europe weren't there until 1944 (fighting up through Italy).

However, what the historian apparently didn't notice was that in the film, Pele wasn't playing a Brazilian... he was playing a Trinidadian. http://www.soccergaming.com/ubb/smile.gif


-G

Surprisingly, it turns out that 'Victory' is somewhat based on a true story.

Click on:
http://worldsoccer.about.com/sports/worldsoccer/library/weekly/aa061499III.htm

to see what I mean. http://www.soccergaming.com/ubb/smile.gif


-G

Also, since dissecting films apart is so much fun, i think with the signs posted in the stadium it was supposed to be Olympique Marseille stadium during those years. Could be wrong though.

can anybody name the football stars that were in the movie, i saw pele, ardiles who else was there?

here's the list I got off that web site:
Pelé (Brazil) - Luis Fernandez
Bobby Moore (England) - Terry Brady
Osvaldo Ardiles (Argentina) - Carlos Rey
Paul Van Himst (Belgium) - Michel Fileu
Kazimierz Deyna (Poland) - Paul Wolchek
Hallvar Thoresen (Norway) - Gunnar Hilsson
Mike Summerbee (England) - Sid Harmor
Co Prins (Holland) - Pieter Van Beck
Russell Osman (England) - Doug
John Wark (Scotland) - Arthur
Soren Lindsted (Denmark) - Erik
Kevin O'Callaghan (Ireland) - Tony Lewis

I also think that Lato(99 percent sure)was also in the movie.

I also can confirm that the story about Dinamo Kiev and how they played the Germans and then were executed is true, I read that story in the book "Great Teams, Great Players" published in the 70s, I still have it somewhere.

[This message has been edited by PolishPower (edited 03-17-2000).]

There was also Werner Roth, who played Baumann (the German who's penalty kick Stallone's "Hatch" saved in the very end).

He was one of the few American players ever to get significant playing time with the New York Cosmos. http://www.soccergaming.com/ubb/smile.gif


-G