Tom Sizemore
Review

The Match - A Review by James Vaughan


Starring Max Beesley, Richard E Grant, Laura Fraser, Tom Sizemore, Ian Holm, Bill Paterson Directed by Mick Davis

Although there are plenty of sports films about, football (or soccer as it is quaintly called in America, where they know no better!) has never really featured in any films. One of the few that comes to mind is the lamentable Escape to Victory, starring the bizarre acting combo of Michael Caine, Sylvester Stallone and Pele. The Match is an attempt to redress the balance, in the form of a feel-good small-town comedy drama. It doesn’t really hang together, but it has a damn good try.

The acting is the main strength of this film, borne out by the wild card cast which features among others Max Beesley (from UK TV’s Tom Jones), Neil Morrissey (from the UK TV series Men Behaving Badly), Richard E Grant, former “Page 3 Stunna” Samantha Fox, Ian Holm, and of course Mr Tom Sizemore.

The film’s main failure is its hackneyed script and drab direction, both courtesy of Mick Davis. The finale, in particular, is one of the cheesiest, most cringingly bad triumph-against-the-odds finales that I have ever seen. So it is bizarre that such a lame script should be rescued by the whimsical character of Buffalo, a former Gulf War soldier whose heart was broken when he was dumped by a Scottish lass and who has since chosen to stay behind and sink into a drunken stupor. It is even more amazing that Tom Sizemore’s uncharacteristic performance drags the picture from schmaltz into thoroughly watchable territory.

By turns charming, sweet and pathetic, Tom does an amazing job, and creates one of his most believable and loveable characters, creating a performance which is truly touching. One of the best scenes is when Tom, enraptured by a local battleaxe of a woman, decides to ask her out on a date. His nervousness and awkwardness while doing this are both hilarious and heart-breakingly sweet, as he gradually summons up the courage to ask her out.

I would encourage you to see The Match, in order to see Tom’s fantastic performance. Unfortunately the rest of the film is total bobbins, and doesn’t – altogether now – match up to his performance, falling rather flat. Watch it for Tom, and nowt else. (Well, except Richard E Grant’s APPALLING Scottish accent, which makes his performance in SpiceWorld the Movie look like method acting.)

Many thanks to James for this review!


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