Rating: 
Summary: this movie rocks
Review: Bend It Like Beckham really is the best feel good movie of the season and one of the best I've seen in a very long time. You can walk away from this movie with a simple sense of happiness and nothing else. I recommend this movie to anyone and everyone that enjoys a good plot line and a happy ending.
Rating:
Summary: Rule New Britannia!
Review: The Full Monty, Four Weddings and a Funeral, Billy Elliott, Sliding Doors, East is East, 28 Days Later..and so on..British cinema is full of prime talent in acting, writing and directing. With so little expectations, all these films have surprised everyone and became box office hits worldwide, and far from being a coincidence, it was all the result of not only talent,but of dedicated hard working young filmmakers,who have fresh and very original ideas, and who got the chance to share it with the world.
These young filmmakers, unlike their colleagues in France or the US, do not have the same financial support, and some do really struggle to get their films made. Although there is the Film Council and BskyB who support movie making, the demise of the excellent Filmfour the film division of TV's channel 4(a bit similar to France's Canal +) was a blow to British cinema. But despite that, films are still being made, very successfully and artistically at a that.
What distinguishes British cinema, not unlike some European cinemas,is the close relationship and collaboration between writer and director,(if the two are not one and the same). Usually, the two are close friends, who work on the idea together for some time before securing the finances and shooting their project.
Bend it Like Beckham is another example of a little film, whose impact was huge.Director Gurinder Chadha (Bhaaji On the Beach) manages to direct a movie that takes womens football as a platform, but weaves many themes on top,friendships,dreams, traditional cultures in 21st Century Britain clashing with the possibilty of fulfilling these dreams, one that was not available to the first generation of immigrants.
So as a result,it does not matter if you do not like football (soccer)or do not understand the game, because the film has a lot more to offer and entertain you in the process.
Chadha manages as well to write (or co write)a wonderful comedy too, which is guaranteed to leave you with a feel good feeling long after you watch it.The humour mainly comes from the parents, both Indian and English.
Chadha also manages,to show another lighter face of multi-cultural Britain, not unlike the film East Is East (and not Mira Nair's Monsoon Wedding as one reviewer saw it).
All the actors are great, especially first time actor, and very pretty Parminder Nagra(Jesse), and Keira Knightley (Jules),and also of course the wonderful Juliet Stevenson, one of my all time favorite actresses.
Bend It Like Beckham, is a rare treat, a film that will totally captivate you, with its gentle humour, its engaging story, a must buy from the rich vault of British Cinema.
Rating:
Summary: A wonderful little movie
Review: A trite and true plot (pun intended), but so well put toether that all is forgiven. Very funny in places, and deals well with the heavier issues (and there are a few). Some of the other reviews here go into dep plot details (spoilers, even), so be cautious in reading those, if you want any surprises. Although there are very few in the film.... The sad thing, though, is that the movie is already dated since the WUSA has "suspended operation" due to lack of money recently. So much for Women's Football in America. Too bad, because it really was a lot of fun, and a very good thing.
Rating:
Summary: Fantastic!
Review: I love this movie!! It was amazing. The soccer game scenes were well put together. I left the theatre and was so happy. The movie is a definately a feel good movie. The gag real at the end was a nice touch. A masterpiece.
Rating:
Summary: Growing Up Amid a Cultural Divide
Review: Parminder Nagra is an attractive, energetic 18-year-old young Indian woman living in the West London suburb of Hounslow, near Heathrow Airport and about thirty minutes by Tube from the West End. She lives comfortably with her family and is a good enough student so that her parents are strongly encouraging her to go to law school, then marry a nice Indian young man and start a family, the same path her older, about to be married sister, is ready to traverse. Nagra's bedroom is covered with photos of football great (soccer to U.S. fans) David Beckham. What her parents do not know is that she is more than a fan of the great player; she is a talented performer in her own right. When Keira Knightley visits the park where Nagra performs brilliantly against a group of Indian young men, she recruits her for the local women's team. When Nagra makes the team and becomes a star player under Irish coach Jonathan Rhys Meyers, she does more than take a major step toward developing her football skills at a higher level of competition. She feels an immediate affinity for Rhys Meyers, whose own budding career was dashed by an injury. Like herself, he has had to contend with a strong-willed father. A clash with Knightley, the person who got her the tryout, occurs when the team travels to Hamburg, Germany for a match. Despite not wanting to get emotionally involved with Rhys Meyers due to Knightley's obvious romantic interest in the coach, the chemistry blends and Knightley catches them during a romantic moment, considering her friend a turncoat. The plot develops toward a final championship match at Hounslow, which is held the same day as Nagra's older sister's wedding. Her father allows her to sneak away to compete in the match, just as long as she is there for the rest of the big day in her sister's life. Nagra needs to overcome an earlier sturdy opposition of a father who is opposed to her pursuing football glory due to his own disappointment, occasioned by racism. As a young man he arrived in England from his native India, and ultimately believed he was not given a proper chance to develop his own athletic skills. The briskly paced film, directed by Gurinder Chadha, who wrote the script with Paul Mayeda Berges and Guljit Bindra, moves to a satisfactory conclusion in which Nagra and Knightley become friends again. The highly talented Juliet Stevenson is excellent in a supporting role as Knightley's mother, seeking to steer her daughter through disappointment in her love live while disdaining her vigorous pursuit of football. In that area she holds a common view with Nagra's parents, at least until the story is resolved. David Beckham appears late in the film in a scene shot at Heathrow Airport. Nagra and Knightley share a laugh over the irony at seeing their hero as they prepare to depart for their own football adventures in America.
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Summary: Bend it LIke Beckham: The Best Movie Ever Made
Review: Bend it Like Beckham is the best movie I've ever seen. It truthfully captures the life of the average traditional Indian family, has romance, conflict, and a lot of awesome soccer game clips. It should be the most highly watched movie out there, and I recommend everyone to see it. Bend it Like Beckham rules!!!!! :)
Rating: 
Summary: Cannot be asked to think of one
Review: Bend It Like Beckham is director Gurinder Chadra's unsuccessful attempt to combine the color of Bollywood with modern Western themes. It tells the story of two girls, Jules and Jess, football-playing teenagers from different cultural background, who have to break the barriers of convention to succeed in their sport.
Seeming to cast off typical 'Indians-abroad' Bollywood movies as mere fairy-tale stories, Chadra tries to give us a dose of realisim. Her first mistake is the overuse of stereotypes. 50 or even 25 years ago there would have been an abundance of Jess'mother-like women, obsessed with educating their daughters in Indian cookery and finding them a suitable husband. However Chadra, possibly due to having grown up in England, has not seemed to have realised that times have indeed changed. I myself, having lived in India and the UK, know just one person with those kind of characteristics, that person being my own father but I pay little attention to what he says. Jess herself does not seem to possess much fighting spirit, her battle being won more through luck than struggle. She rarely stands up for herself, letting her father do most of this. Similarly Jules, with her father on her side, has only one person, her mother, to contend with. Where then, does the idea of 'girl-power' come in, seeing as the girls contribute little (apart from play, that is) to their ultimate success and leave the men to do it for them?
Realising that the so-called struggles of the girls alone would not carry off very far, Chadra has included the following to try and 'enliven' the story:
A glorified image of David Beckham (also reflected in the title), who has already received far too much hero-worship and it is foolish to let people build false hopes on ever being like him.
A predictable love triangle involving Jess, Jules and the Irish football coach Joe(guess who gets him in the end). This results in all sorts of complications, including the problem of racial barriers and even a mistaken lesbian relationship, as interpreted by Jules' paranoid mother. Coach Joe has own problems, especially with his own father and rather than trying to solve those, he ends up fighting for an unco-operative Jess.
Some aspects of the romance, along with other methods, including strong stereotyping, are used to make the film into a comedy. 'Ideal' Indian girls like Jess' sister Pinky are portrayed as being little more than sluts and the Indian boys are shown to be equally sex-obsessed. Old grandmothers own mobile phones and make 'dirty' jokes when it truth they would know little of either. Even if they did, being religious, they would certainly not tell those sort of jokes or even talk about that subject. Unable to produce cleverly-written humour, Chadra and the other writers have had to utilise 'below-the-belt' techniques, as previously described, in order to amuse the audience.
In my opinion, the comedy was unnecessary. Had this battle of Indian and foreign themes been played out against a serious background, the movie would have earnt more respect. Not only that, it would have also been realistic. As it is, the film is merely cheap entertainment. It may have been labelled a feel-good film but as Jess seem a little too perfect in every way, it is (atleast it was for me) difficult to sympathise with her character and therefore there is no reason for me to feel good at her success.
As far as I can see, there is nothing particularly remarkable about this film, be it the story, acting, directing, etc. It has not introduced any new themes previously unexplored in films or broken any ground. The shooting of the football sequences and the Indian wedding have been praised although they are hardly difficult to film, with all the conveniences of this day and age; the wedding dancing cannot possibily be compared to the song and dance of real Bollywood. As for the soundtrack, being mostly much too loud, it rarely brings out the emotions of the scene. The acting displays little talent, the actors making their characters very flat and unbelievable. The rest is not worth mentioning at all.
To see a real 'East meets West' film, watch Lagaan, a British Empire film told from the Indians' perspective. For a movie about strong women, try one of the classic such as the Stage Door, about aspiring actress, where Katherine Hepburn's performance is outstanding.
If you have yet to watch Bend It Like Beckham, then take my advice and find something more constructive to occupy yourself without for those 112 minutes.
Rating:
Summary: A movie everyone should see!!!
Review: I think Bend it Like Beckham was an excellent movie!! I was especially happy about it because I am Indian myself. Although I am not Sikh, everything about the typical Indian family is pretty much the same. This was such a great movie about family, dreams, friendship, and romance. Throw all of those things together with a wonderful cast and great music, and you get this awesome movie. I definitely recommend that everyone see this movie! I can't wait until it comes out on DVD in the U.S. so I can own a copy for myself!!
Rating:
Summary: Best of the year
Review: This was one of the best movies my wife and I have seen in a long time. If you like to laugh, find clash of cultures entertaining and can appreciate contemporary versus traditional ways of thinking, you will enjoy this movie. I am from a small town in New England and my wife grew up in Bombay, India. That is the first of many differences between us. Hence, we both enjoyed the movie from two very different perspectives. You won't be sorry to part with your money to see this movie. I give it a two thumbs up!
Rating:
Summary: 100 points for a brilliant movie!!!!!
Review: Bend it Like Beckham is a fabulous movie about Jessminda Bhamra (Parminder K. Nagra) , an Indian girl who lives in England with her mom, dad, and recently engages sister. Jess loves football (soccer) and is really talented. She would do anything to be allowed to play it, but her family won't allow it. One day when Jess is playing in the park, a girl named Juliette (Keira Knightley) sees her playing football and convinces Jess to come to her team's football practice and possibly try out. Against her family's wishes, Jess goes and meets the coach, Joe (Jonathan Rhys Meyers) and joins the team. The movie is about Jess' struggle to convince her parents to play. With super acting, directing, writing, and plenty of little twists and surprises, this movie deserves and Oscar in my opinion. TWO THUMBS WAY UP!!!!!!!!!!!!
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