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“An engrossing account of American soccer's strangest episode — and you don't even have to like football to enjoy it.” - Empire
In 1971, Warner Bros mogul Steve Ross found a passion for a beautiful and exotic game that still lay unappreciated in the US. After experiencing the fanatical crowds of the finals of the previous year's football World Cup, he set out to create a glamour team to rival the Harlem Globetrotters and bring soccer to the American masses.
Once in a Lifetime chronicles the rise of the New York Cosmos as the players skyrocketed from zeroes to heroes with the help of international superstars such as Pelé and Franz Beckenbauer. With weekly sell-out crowds and their reserved table at Studio 54, the team became celebrities and then spiralled into self-destructive hedonism.
“People remember the New York Cosmos as a retirement home for past-their-prime legends looking to pick up an easy pay cheque. But Once in a Lifetime shows there was a lot more to it than that.” - The Guardian
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D John Dower, Paul Crowder P John Battsek, Fisher Stevens, Time Williams S Matt Monroe Dist Madman TD 35mm/col/2005/97mins
John Dower was born in the UK in 1972. Paul Crowder was born in London, UK, in 1962. Their films include Live Forever (MIFF 2003).