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Stars indicate the most critically-acclaimed movies.

67
$9.99
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Hurt Locker, The
89
Goodbye Solo
88
Tulpan
87
Gomorrah
86
Seraphine
84
Summer Hours
83
U2 3D
83
Revanche
83
Tyson
82
Burma VJ: Reporting from a Closed Country
82
Sugar
82
Hunger
82
Anvil! The Story of Anvil
81
Il Divo
81
Beaches of Agnes, The
80
Food, Inc.
80
Tokyo Sonata
79
Harvard Beats Yale 29-29
78
Boys: The Sherman Brothers' Story, The
78
O'Horten
77
Every Little Step
77
Sin Nombre
75
24 City
74
Treeless Mountain
74
Afghan Star
74
Two Lovers
74
Song of Sparrows, The
74
Lemon Tree
71
Pressure Cooker
71
Jerichow
70
Shall We Kiss?
70
Tony Manero
70
End of the Line, The
69
Valentino: The Last Emperor
69
Unmistaken Child
67
$9.99
67
Rudo y Cursi
67
Girlfriend Experience, The
66
Adoration
66
Moon
65
Sex Positive
65
Departures
64
Outrage
64
Examined Life
64
Throw Down Your Heart
64
Lymelife
63
Tokyo!
63
Cheri
63
Dead Snow
63
Tetro
63
Great Buck Howard, The
62
Cherry Blossoms
62
Big Man Japan
62
Not Forgotten
61
Sunshine Cleaning
60
Under Our Skin
59
Sleep Dealer
58
Julia
58
Easy Virtue
57
Away We Go
57
Merry Gentleman, The
57
Youssou Ndour: I Bring What I Love
56
Girl from Monaco, The
56
American Violet
55
Brothers Bloom, The
54
Is Anybody There?
54
Pontypool
54
Stoning of Soraya M., The
52
Quiet Chaos
50
Management
48
Alien Trespass
45
Whatever Works
42
Little Ashes
42
Tennessee
40
Limits of Control, The
40
Paris 36
38
Gigantic
36
Life is Hot in Cracktown
35
New York
28
Big Shot-Caller, The
28
Surveillance
22
What Goes Up
18
Downloading Nancy
16
I Hate Valentine's Day
xx
Call of the Wild
xx
Home
xx
Offshore
Stars indicate the most critically-acclaimed movies.
|
Once in a Lifetime
Miramax Films
 |
|
MPAA RATING: PG-13 for language and some nudity
Starring
Matt Dillon (narrator),
Pelé,
Franz Beckenbauer,
Rodney Marsh,
Carlos Alberto,
and
Steve Ross
It was 1977 and one of New York’s most tumultuous and decadent summers. Then, in the midst of blackouts, riots, the Son of Sam serial killer scare and the dawn of Studio 54, came an entirely unexpected moment of inspiration: the rise of the New York Cosmos, America’s first great soccer team, and its larger-than-life superstar, Pelé. Suddenly embraced by a city obsessed with celebrity and flamboyance, the Cosmos kicked off America’s first passionate love affair with the world’s most popular sport & found themselves swept up in a careening path of glory, glamour, debauchery and controversy. (Miramax Films)
| GENRE(S): |
Documentary
|
| WRITTEN BY: |
John Dower (story)
Mark Monroe (story)
|
| DIRECTED BY: |
Paul Crowder
John Dower
|
| RELEASE DATE: |
DVD: October 3, 2006
Theatrical: July 7, 2006
|
| RUNNING TIME: |
97 minutes, Color |
| ORIGIN: |
USA |
Also known as "Once in a Lifetime: The Extraordinary Story of the New York Cosmos"

All critic scores are converted to a 100-point scale. If a critic does not indicate a score, we assign a score based on the general impression given by the text of the review. Learn more...
91
Entertainment Weekly
Lisa Schwarzbaum
It's a stylish scramble of evocative footage, groovy music, and crazy-candid reminiscences from key players still proud to score.

83
Portland Oregonian
Shawn Levy
Funky, scrappy, dishy, screwy story of that star-studded, gilded squad.

75
TV Guide
Maitland McDonagh
Crowder and Dower's film is a refreshing reminder that without Ross and the Erteguns, pundits would have had to coin an entirely different term to describe "soccer moms," since without the Cosmos' brief and shining moment in the sun, suburban soccer leagues would be as rare as collegiate boccie tournaments.

75
New York Post
Lou Lumenick
Once in a Lifetime, which is being released at the peak of World Cup fever, is the sort of sports documentary that will appeal even to nonfans. It's a quintessential only-in-New York story.

75
New York Daily News
Jack Mathews
Once in a Lifetime performs a belated autopsy on the Cosmos and the North American Soccer League and basically concludes that they died of impatience.

75
Chicago Tribune
Kevin Williams
You don't need to be a soccer fan to, like Cosmos fans, fall for this captivating tale, told in "Rashomon"-like style.

75
San Francisco Chronicle
G. Allen Johnson
What fun this documentary is.

70
The New York Times
Jeannette Catsoulis
This is a movie so unabashedly in love with its subject that even audiences who don't know Giorgio Chinaglia from Georgie Best will leave the theater grinning.

70
Los Angeles Times
Kevin Crust
An exuberant look at a heady moment in America's soccer past that is well worth remembering.

70
Washington Post
Desson Thomson
Informative and entertaining.

70
The Hollywood Reporter
Frank Scheck
This tale of the team that for a brief period in the 1970s promised to popularize soccer in the U.S. has it all: heroes, villains, sex and, oh yes, some sports as well.

70
Variety
Leslie Felperin
While soccer fans will rep the core aud, even non-fans can enjoy.

67
The Onion (A.V. Club)
Scott Tobias
Once In A Lifetime is less a proper documentary than an extended VH1 Behind The Music episode, but there's only a little bit wrong with that.

67
Austin Chronicle
Marc Savlov
Once in a Lifetime's only major failing is the fact that the iconic Pelé is seen only in period footage.

63
Boston Globe
Wesley Morris
The movie is only so-so, borrowing a little from the VH-1 school of popumentary but lacking the snazzy production values.

60
Village Voice
Bill Gallo
This intermittently fascinating documentary chronicles the rise and fall of the Cosmos --which is also the rise and fall of U.S. soccer.

50
LA Weekly
Joe Donnelly
Though the movie promises a Behind the Music–type look at the meteoric rise and tragic fall of the Cosmos -- a team (if the press notes are to be believed) overwhelmed by wealth, groupies, rivalry and power struggles -- it all adds up to a tempest in a tea pot.

50
Chicago Reader
Jonathan Rosenbaum
Despite the title, this is less a soccer documentary than a corporate hagiography along the lines of "The Last Mogul" or "The Kid Stays in the Picture"; its real hero isn't Cosmos star Pele (who wisely declined to be interviewed), but Steve Ross, CEO of Warner Communications, which owned the team.


The average user rating for this movie is 6.2 (out of 10) based on 4 User Votes
Note: User votes are NOT included in the Metascore calculation.
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