(Chicks with Kicks…)
CAST: (as themselves) Mia Hamm, Julie Foudi, Michelle Akers, Kristine Lilly, Joy Fawcett, Brandi Chastain, April Heinrichs, Billie Jean King.
DIRECTOR: Ousie Shapiro
WARNING: Some surprisingly heroic sports chicks straight ahead…
IT’S LIKE THIS: This flick is a documentary of the rise of the U.S. Women’s Soccer Team, and how they went on to score international victories at the Women’s World Cup in China in 1991, the Olympics in Atlanta Georgia in 1996, the Women’s World Cup again in 1999 in the U.S., and again at the Olympics in Athens, Greece in 2004. All because of the combined “girl power” of superstarts Mia Hamm, Brandi Chastain, Kristine Lilly, Joy Fawcett, and Julie Foudy - who were all recruited by coach Anson Dorrance, who gambled on the ladies because of his deep faith in them. The result: Olympic and World Cup Gold, bitches!!! YEAH!!!
THE DUDE (OR DUDETTE) MOST LIKELY TO SAVE THE DAY: Hamm, Chastain, Lilly, Fawcett, Foudy, Akers, Heinrichs, etc. - it’s the ladies of the U.S. Women’s Soccer Team all the way.
EYE CANDY MOST LIKELY TO FIRE UP A WOODY: The ladies are all quite lovely in addition to being fucking amazing at soccer.
MOST INTENTIONALLY EXCITING SCENE: Brandi Chastain preparing for the crucial penalty kick that will decide the fate of the US-China Women’s World Cup Final in 1999.
MOST UNINTENTIONALLY EXCITING SCENE: Brandi Chastain nailing the above-mentioned shot to clinch a U.S. victory - then ripping her jersey off in a moment of pure joy, revealing nothing but a sports bra underneath. YEAH!!! I wish more male soccer players would do that whenever they scored goals. Let’s see that chest hair, baby!
HOTTEST SCENE: I think I just mentioned it: Brandi ripping that jersey off. I wish Fabio Cannavaro, my favorite player, would’ve done that at the World Cup 2006.
INQUIRING MINDS WANT TO KNOW: Will the U.S. Women’s Team continue to score and succeed? Let’s hope so - because these are some talented ladies…
WHY YOU SHOULD WATCH “DARE TO DREAM”: If you love soccer, soccer movies, and real-life stories of women who face the odds and succeed.
WHY YOU MAY NOT ENJOY “DARE TO DREAM”: If you don’t like soccer, soccer flicks, or real-life stories of women who face the odds and succeed. If so, please get the fuck outta here before I sic my cat Casper and my man-slave Luca all over your ass.
FINAL ANALYSIS: One of the reasons soccer is called The Beautiful Game is because it is universally accepted. Even in a country like the U.S., which is a bit behind the power curve when it comes to embracing the sport, those who do love soccer, love it intensely - whether privately or publicly. The love of soccer is especially vivid in DARE TO DREAM, which chronicles the real passions of a group of women for the sport - and how their intensity and drive to succeed not only won Women’s World Cup victory and Olympic Gold, but also elevated the profile of soccer in this country. It also changed the way the sport is perceived, and altered the notion that women were not as good at it as men. In other words, these women’s accomplishments changed the face of soccer. Their success will inspire generations of girls to come to think outside the box and pursue their own paths.
All thanks to the talents, passion, and determination of Mia Hamm, Brandi Chastain, Julie Foudy, Kristen Lilly, Michelle Akers, Joy Fawcett, and April Heinrichs. And let’s not forget coach Anson Torrance, whose vision and unshakable belief in these ladies and what they could do led him to fight to the death for them.
Go, girls. And go, boy…
