FOOTY LEGENDS
Director: Khoa Do Stars: Anh Do, Peter Phelps, Claudia Karvan
Reviewed by PETER MALONE
The fact that this film was made and distributed is itself a tribute to the two brothers, Khoa Do and Anh Do. Both born in Vietnam, they have become part of Australian culture - Anh Do, a comedian and writer, and Koah Do, the writer and director, who was named the 2005 Young Australian of the Year.
This is a small film with a Sydney feel, about a football code which is limited to a few states but which has an international following, Rugby League. But, with all feelgood films about underdogs and competitive sports, you don’t have to know much about the game to enjoy the film.
And, that is what Footy Legends is. A group of outsiders who went to school in the Sydney suburb of Yagoona and showed some potential at footy band together some years later to win a competition. This will give them self-respect but also some money so that our talented hero (played by Anh Do) will have some money to look after his little sister and save her from going to social welfare (embodied by Claudia Karvan). Needless to say, he is tempted along the way to play for a superior team (embodied by Peter Phelps). But, the ragtag team keep trying – and get a mighty suburban response at the grounds and, especially, down at the pub.
The Do brothers made two films about Cabramatta in Sydney, a Vietnamese centre (see Little Fish, for instance), a short, Delivery Day and a feature with three stories about Vietnamese, Forgotten People.
While it is all predictable – and nice – the performances give a greater warmth and comic touch to a collection of funny situations, some sentiment and, what everyone hopes for, the underdogs to win.
A more serious look at Rugby League is in The Final Winter (2007).