Celestial Freestyle

If you love football & a good old documentary film this tale of five lads is a very decent watch, if you don't like either, then I'd stop reading now.

In the Hands of Gods is a docufilm that latches onto the football wannabe in all of us. It tracks five lads from around the country & from very different social backgrounds in their quest to meet Diego Maradona in person. To do this the lads must raise cash by busking their way across North & South America in a marathon journey that tests talent, endurance and friendship.

The busking is carried out using their ample freestyling abilities that captivate the public around them as well as the audience watching the documentary; Some of the tricks the lads pull off are truly remarkable (especially the 15-16 reversible around the world's that Woody pulls off in New York) it is the unrecognised skill, talent and ambition that take football back to it's rawest form. There is only one thing on their minds and that is to meet Diego, although I don't understand this passion to meet one of the biggest cheaters on the planet, the motivation of the lads is so pure you could bottle it and sell it as Volvic, not one of them is desperately seeking fame or fortune from the film and I think this is what makes it such a pleasure to watch.

Sleeping rough, barely eating and freestyling for near on 8 hours is the daily routine and you cannot help but get wrapped up in the desperation to succeed. At the beginning of the film I found myself thinking 'oh no, chav wideboys, I cannot be bothered to listen to their inane and predictable babble for an hour and a half' but as the documentary moves on the stories behind the mouths becomes clearer and all the more moving. This film is the defining moment of these extremely talented lads' life and there is something extremely sad, and yet very refreshing about that in a film.

Enough though because I believe circumlocution is out of place in what should essentially be a simple review, therefore in summation this is one of those real life underdog stories that makes you smile at the end.

7/10