EDDIE THE EAGLE – The Review

Last week I said we’d be back at the Olympics, and indeed this week’s new release puts us back in the cheering section as another young man hopes to make his dreams of gold come true. While RACE focused on American track legend, Jesse Owens, this time out we’re looking back on a British athlete, not from the Summer games but the Winter spectacle. Oh, and it’s during a less controversial era. Owens was pressured not to attend those 1936 games that were often used as a propaganda tool by Hitler. In 1988 no such pressures were brought to bear on this new film’s title hero. And while Owens also had to break past racial barriers, Michael Edwards (his birth name) faced a rigid class system and beurocrats determined to keep him out of competition. But in this “feel good” flick Michael’s determination earns him the nickname EDDIE THE EAGLE.

While growing up in Cheltenham, England during the 1970’s, the scrawny and bespectacled ‘Eddie’ Edwards had but one goal: to compete in the Olympics. His attempts at different sports (pole vaulting, high jump, etc.) usually ended with a trip to the family doctor and another pair of broken eye glasses (collected in his “medal storage” tin box). But his Mum (Jo Hartley) encouraged his dreams while Dad (Tim McInnererny) grumbled. Entering his teen years, Eddie (Taron Egerton) decided that the Winter games would be his best bet. After his tenure with the downhill skiing time proved a bust (the awkward Eddie could never really fit in), he was ready to join pop in his home remodeling business as a plasterer. But then he was enthralled by a televised ski jump competition. And it turns out that England hasn’t a ski jump champion. Eddie gets a great deal of resistance from the Olympic committee, but after he’s given a (nearly impossible) list of requirements he boards a bus to a middle European ski resort in order to train. Veteran jumpers from other countries mock him, but Eddie gets right back up after every crash and stumble. This attracts the attention of the resort maintenance man Bronson Peary (Hugh Jackman). Many years ago, Peary’s try at the gold was ended by his hard-partying lifestyle, which also began a long estrangement with his coach, the iconic Warren Sharp (Christopher Walken). Peary warns Eddie that he’ll break his neck, but the young man needs a coach and pleads with the boozing, burnt-out skier. Seeing a glint of his former self and hoping for a sense of redemption, Peary agrees. Soon the duo are headed all across the land, entering different meets and competitions, in order to fulfill the committee’s list and earn a slot at the upcoming 1988 Calgary Winer Olympic Games.

Egerton shows great versatility in his first starring role since his big screen breakthrough in last year’s hit, KINGSMAN: THE SECRET SERVICE. In that flick, he was quite believable as a reluctant action hero, but he’s even better as the child-like innocent (just watch him blush at the advances of the sultry chalet manager) wannabe’ Olympian. His skills help veer the family scenes with the excellent Hartley and McInnerny away from saccharine towards naturally warm and endearing. Eddie’s social awkwardness can often be painful to watch, but this makes him more of an inspiring underdog. Egerton conveys that stubborn determination while also showing us the doubt and fear thorough the glasses and goggles. He knows that every jump could be his last, but  forges ahead despite his initial hesitations (nearly getting him disqualified at one meet). This is a performance that carries us past any sports movie clichés and establishes Egerton as a star on the rise. Happily he has great rapport with his on- screen coach as Jackman looks to be enjoying a break from superheroics playing the grizzled mentor. His jaded wisecracks and barbs attempt to temper Eddie’s often reckless enthusiasm, but soon we see Jackman slowly regain the gleam in his eyes as the light from Eddie’s pure heart pushes away Peary’s dark demeanor. The two are a terrific team and Walken’s subtle cameo role (with a great reunion with his lost student) makes them a pretty great trio.

Actor Dexter Fletcher treads a cinematic tightrope in this, his third feature directing gig. In a tale full of eccentric antics, he never lets the finished film become annoyingly cute or unbearably cloying. Eddie’s a nice guy alright, but in his sports mania he can become a bit of a pill. And beside the perils of the actual jump, he also must survive the crushing embrace of the media, as reporters feast on the “eagle’ phenomenon. Though screenwriters Sean Macauley and Simon Kelton rely on composite and completely fictional supporting characters (there’s no Peary?!), they make the story more than merely a checklist of accomplishments. And the subtle score from Matthew Margeson never hammers the film’s emotional beats, unlike most swelling, uplifting tunes from typical sports flicks. Kudos to the art direction for getting the 70’s and 80’s looks just right ,from the fashions to gadgets (lots of VHS tapes for Eddie to study). Through free of the historical drama that dominates RACE, this inspirational heart-tugger will still resonate with anyone who’s had to prove themselves after getting doors slammed on their dreams. Families of film (and sports) fans will have a fun flight with EDDIE THE EAGLE.

4 Out of 5