Once in a Lifetime

Christy and I took a few extra days off after New Year's and spent the week in Mont-Sainte-Anne and Québec City. Sadly, the weather and the snow were too wet for any serious snowshoeing or other outdoor sports. I'm also slowly recuperating from a calf injury that seems more serious than I originally thought. The good side to this crappy weather is that it forced us to take it easy, sleep a lot, listen to music, read books by the fire, watch a few movies, Heroes episodes...

One of the movies we watched is a documentary called Once in a Lifetime. It's about 2 of the subjects I am most passionate about; soccer, and business/entrepreneurship. The film tells the story of the New York Cosmos, a soccer team from the late 70s - early 80s and of the rise and fall of the North American Soccer League. I was way too young then to have witnessed the glory days of the NASL (I vaguely remember my grandpa giving me a Montreal Manic poster when I started playing), but that whole period is fascinating.

While watching I kept drawing parallels with the recent tech bubble and a few of the main characters reminded me of entrepreneurs and employees of early-sage companies that I've met. The movie is also super stylish (70s hairdoes !), the editing is very dynamic and they did a great job of rounding up and interviewing the main individuals that were involved back then (except Pelé, apparently too pricey...). Well recommended, smart entertainment, even if you're not a soccer fan.

Reviews at Rotten Tomatoes
Trailer: