Genre: Drama
Rating: 3.5/5
Heartwarming but Rushed
Calcio, soccer, is a big part of my Italian culture and tradition. I’ve been raised watching and playing the sport, I practically live and breathe soccer. As a kid, I remember my mom telling me names of some of these great players, one that is hard to forget is Roberto Baggio. Probably the most beloved Italian player ever and also the best. Baggio: Il Divin Codino is a heartwarming biopic on Italy’s Calcio Icon.
Baggio: Il Divin Codino is a very emotional, dramatic, charming and heartwarming film. The emotions in the film are very strong. The performances are pretty great, especially Andrea Arcangeli as Baggio and Andrea Pennacchi as his father. I was very impressed. This film is more about Baggio’s life than his career, and the performances are very strong and earnest. Major turning points in Baggio’s story have very strong emotional and dramatic buildups, and in the large part, are very successful.
As I said, this film is more about Baggio’s life, than his career. However, as this film jumps ahead in time multiple times, I can’t help feeling we missed out on a lot. Parts of his career are mentioned, yet not studied in detail. This wouldn’t be a problem, but I couldn’t help feeling that I needed this information to better understand Baggio. Also, as Baggio won the most prestigious individual award a player can achieve, the Ballon D’or, nothing is shown on his journey to win that award and in a large part is glossed over. The generation that grew up watching Baggio play will understand what type of player he was and how good he was. Watching this film, it is hard to really tell how good Baggio was.
Overall, I enjoyed Baggio: Il Divin Codino. The cinematography was good, the acting was great, however there was a lot missing. The film is only an hour and a half, and most of Baggio’s life is glossed over. I enjoyed the film, already knowing a lot about Baggio’s career. I learned a lot more about who he was, and it was a great insight on an Italian calcio hero. If you don’t know much about Baggio’s playing career, this film will leave you wondering, “what’s the big deal?” Would I watch it again? Yes, if only for the nostalgia of a hero and for the heartwarming drama. Should you watch it? Yes, I think it’s a strong biopic on a footballing icon.
Tony King