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Baseball Movie 'Slide' Retooled with Soccer and Gerard Butler

by Ethan Anderton
August 10, 2010
Source: 24 Frames

Whether you call it soccer or football, I think everyone can agree that there haven't been that many movies that would spawn praise equal to that of an inspiring a "Gooooal!" The Big Green and Kicking & Screaming satisfied different generations of kids, Bend It Like Beckham struck a few chords and Shaolin Soccer was fun as hell, but there's no Field of Dreams for soccer fans. It looks like an attempt at such a film might be on the way as 24 Frames reports a Little League-based movie called Slide will be reconfigured to take place in the world of soccer with Gerard Butler playing a dad with a dubious past brought in to coach his son's team.

Screenwriter Robbie Fox, who wrote a few classic 90's comedies like So I Married an Axe Murderer and In the Army Now, penned the original screenplay, while director Gabriele Muccino (Pursuit of Happyness, Seven Pounds) is interested in directing. The movie is mostly a comedy which focuses on a troubled father trying to make up for lost time by coaching his son's team who finds himself in hot water after some of the local mothers take a little too much of a shine to him. The project doesn't yet have a studio attached, but the switch from baseball to soccer is expected to help move it along nicely (and it will probably change its title).

While I'm not the biggest sports fan (soccer being one of my least favorite) I've always found myself enjoying plenty of sports-centric films and I'd welcome some variety amongst them anytime. Maybe next we can get a movie about underwater basket weaving, and no, I'm not talking about the idiom used to reference declining educational standards. And if anyone is thinking that I forgot to mention the soccer film Ladybugs, I'm not one to go around spouting classic cross-dressing comedies like that so nonchalantly. We'll keep you updated.

Related categories: Casting, Movie News, Opinions

Nitrium

I think most of the reason behind there not being any major FOOTBALL (Damn you lot for calling it soccer grr) films are mainly because it's not that huge of a sport in the US. That said I think this could be fun. I'm not so very keen on having Gerard Butler doing more comedies.. I would rather prefer to see him in 'Law Abiding Citizen' roles again, but oh well.. All in all I think this will either be just one out of a gazillion mediocre comedies out there, or a pure diamond in the rough.. I can only hope for the latter.
Ryan Briggs

INVICTUS directed by Clint Eastwood. Not a comedy, but an inspiring soccer movie.
Loser

Invictus had Rugby in it Ryan.... Gerard Butler or Tom Hardy and Neveldine & Taylor should do the new Punisher movie
Ross

You forgot escape to victory in your list of 'Soccer' movies Tom Hardy as Punisher, I like that
tazz

how can you forget the Mean Machine remake of Burt Reynolds "The Longest Yard". Mean Machine was about football (soccer)
DOOMzilla

Mean Machine was great it kicked the shit outta that turd Sandler and co smeared on the screen
Woodpeck15

I guess I must be the only person to have seen "Goal" and "Goal 2", those are serious football movies. Everything else seems to be comedies. Watch those 2 movies you will not be dissapointed.
Matt

Thanks for mentioning "Goal" Woodpeck. Don't know how that movie got left off his list.
macatae

It's FOOTBALL, agree with ⋕1 as if any sport was correctly named this is it, a ball kicked with the foot. Detest the word soccer as no true fan calls it that. Butler is a great actor but his choice of films, 300 excepted are not that great.
Chazzy

hahahahaha @ Ryan. Invictus was Rugby.... *shakes head*
cre2done

Fever pitch is actually a great book about soccer, sadly murdered w/ a "retool." Among the Thugs or Awaydays could potentially be good movies, although they're less about the game and more about the periphery. Green Street Hooligans had potential, but sadly wasn't so hot.
none134

I watched GOAL pretty good movie Haven't seen the sequel.....
Xerxex

I think Soccer or as its actually called Football is pretty big in the US, it just isn't broadcasted like the NFL/NCAA, I for one perfer Lacrosse to anything else, but perhaps this could be good, I was waterfall at the end of The Prusuit of Happyiness, and 7 Pounds was pretty good. What about a dramatic Paintball film? showcashing a young mans dream to be one of the worlds top Paintball players of all time, while attempting to win a paintball tournament to recieve the funds to save his dying daughters life! While standing up to the local champ who puts oue hero down! That would be a good fucking movie! lol.
saulute

Gerard Butler starred in the movie Miracle Match/Game of Their Lives released in 2005. He played Frank Borghi, the goalie on the 1950 U.S. Gold Cup Football/Soccer Team made up of Italian/ Americans from St. Louis and other players from the East Coast. Patrick Stewart is the narrator. It's a great movie -- not a comedy. Some incidents are fictionalized, but this is a true story about the game this team played in Brazil against the #1 in the world from England. They were the underdogs, but they beat the English team 1-0 (a complete shock to the soccer/football world), mainly through the efforts of Frank Borghi who allowed no goals to be scored by the English. The game against England is so exciting -- I was sitting on the edge of my seat. But I played soccer/football in high school and love soccer/football more than any other sport.
Jordan

looks good. He is a great actor.
Demtor

lol @ people getting butt hurt over football/soccer... haha! Nerds.