Facing the
media. Media, my ****
 |
|
So who's the
inspiration for this. Surely not Dave "Harry" Bassett,
once of the parish of Forest's City Ground!
Nigel
Bell
In a summer which has seen a host of British made movies fall flat
on their faces, Mike Bassett comes along as autumn takes
hold and restores a modicum of respectability.
That's down,
in no small measure, to the presence of Ricky Tomlinson. The former
Brookside and head of the Royle Family is the England
manager of the title, plucked from the lower leagues to restore
some national pride.
 |
| So you
do do something other than appear on ever Mind the Buzzcocks
|
The fact that
he's pretty inept at his job doesn't seem to bother football supremos
at Lancaster Gate. The trouble for them is that no one else wants
the, so-called, top job in English soccer.
Maybe it's disrespectful
to our very own Billy Dearden (Mansfield) and Jocky Scott (Notts
County) but coming from the lower divisions Bassett is depicted
as a manger for whom tactics represent a mint you suck.
Indeed, he's
so old fashioned he writes his team on the back of old cigarette
packets which leads to the inclusion of Messrs Benson and Hedges
in one of his squads.
 |
| Training
time |
It all starts
horribly for Mike. England go on a losing streak and are in danger
of missing out on the World Cup finals (so what's new there - come
on, we've still got to beat Greece!) Chances are things will improve
for the loveable gaffer.
What lifts this
film is the decision to shoot it in a fly-on-the-wall documentary
style. Martin Bashir even does the voice-over and asks questions
of contributors.
Football fans
should love it even if it is a poor man's version of This Is
Spinal Tap.
Having said
that, Mike Bassett is several goals ahead of recent GB releases
like The Martins and High Heels and Low Lifes.
|
