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SILVERDOCS 2008: Girls Who Like To Kick Balls |
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In fortuitous programming at SILVERDOCS this year, two films about females and soccer could be screened in a double billing. One is a short about a girls team of 8 and 9 years old that applies to play in the boys league. The other is about a German Women’s team that works to get a match in Tehran against what is billed as the Iranian national Women’s team. Both contain elements of women’s empowerment and inspiring figures.
The short, Kick Like a Girl, is about a girls’ soccer team (The Mighty Cheetahs) in Utah whose coach decides that with their female opponents not offering up enough of a challenge, she needs to ask if they can play against boys’ teams. With game-by-game narration by one of the nine-year old team members (Lizzie, the Coach/Director’s daughter) and interviews of parents, team members, boys they played against and opposing parents, the story of the team’s season and their impact on all around them is deftly told. Besides the fact that the girls’ team is a very good team, in that they pass the ball and help each other out on and off the field, they are also pretty skilled for their age. in the game clips we can see in their opponents, the boys all try to score, while the girls set plays up. But what is most interesting is the view of the boys who are interviewed in the film. After they play the girls they admit that they are just as good if not better — a change from how they felt before. Kick Like a Girl is an excellent short in both the subject matter and in film-making.
Football Under Cover is somewhat subversive in that while it is a film about trying to set up a soccer match between teams from two very different countries, we also see the frustration that many women in Iran have with their second-class status in the country. Much of the story surrounds the attempts of Marlene Assmann, a member of the Berlin club, and Ayat Najafi, one of the directors, in setting up the game. It becomes clear that the Iranian authorities are reluctant to pledge their full support, as the “revolutionary” guard still focuses on the role of women in society and is concerned about women playing the game in a public stadium. There are open observations from the Iranian women who explain that while men can wear what they want, they can be harassed for simply wearing makeup or not wearing their headscarves properly. When the match is finally played, it is in a second-rate stadium on a watery pitch with only women in the audience. No posters or any other real publicity were allowed, and not even the male club president was allowed to observe. But with a few women “manning” the cameras, the match is shown on screen not just for the glee with which its participants on both sides played, but with the sheer joy of the women in the stands who finally get to attend a soccer game and express themselves. The scenes of the female spectators, and their chants of protest of their secondary status, illuminate signs of what the populace of Iran really thinks about their government and living conditions.
But the documentary works because of the personalities on both teams that shine through. Marlene’s optimism goes along with her teammate Susu’s talent, confidence and irreverence (her skill is so good that even the Iranian women in watching the match create a cheer for her). On the Iranian team the focus is on Narmila, whose skills were coached by her mother, who had been playing soccer before her daughter was born, but could not continue once she was married. Niloofar is such a tomboy that she will dress as a boy when she goes out so she won’t be harassed by the Islamic guard. She has dreams of David Beckham speaking Persian to her. Following these personalities we see their joy in both being able to play, and in the camaraderie that their teams offer.
Football Under Cover is not perfect — it takes too long to get to the match, some events occur that are not explained, and some scenes seem more forced and for the benefit of the camera, rather than occurring naturally. But the personalities and the insight to the lives of young women in Iran make this documentary both thoughtful and valuable. Along with Kick Like a Girl, these films show both the exuberance of girls when they can play too, as well as the lessons that these players can teach the rest of us.
