Photo: 20th Century Fox
Much like its namesake, Eddie the Eagle is wildly imperfect, but manages to win hearts despite more than a few flaws that threaten to derail the whole affair
To be sure, Eddie the Eagle is a film we’ve seen before.
You know the type: An underestimated kid with a good heart fights the odds to win respect from his peers, usually guided by a fast friend who’s on their own path towards redemption, and even if our heroes don’t finish first, the journey and determination to try in the first place is reward enough.
Even though you might’ve seen it all before in films that frankly were a little better, Eddie the Eagle brings so much charm and heart to the table, it’s hard to turn it down for the sake of sentimentality alone.
The lion’s share of this charm is delivered by Taron Egerton (Kingsman: The Secret Service) as Michael “Eddie” Edwards, a well-meaning boy whose physical limitations always prevented him from fulfilling his dreams to become an Olympian.
As he grows older and healthier, Eddie turns his attentions from summer sports to something he actually found himself fairly decent in, competitive skiing.
Despite moderate success, Eddie is left off the 1984 British Olympic team, but all hope is not lost as he learns that Great Britain hasn’t had an Olympic ski jumper in 50 years, so he packs up and heads to Germany where he hopes to learn to jump in time to make the ’88 Olympics.
It’s here Eddie meets washed up drunk and former ski jump legend Bronson Peary (Hugh Jackman), who Eddie hopes will train him after repeatedly showing his desire to learn to jump by nearly killing himself on multiple occasions.
Even though Jackman is doing his usual Wolverine impression dialed down to about a six, it’s his interaction and chemistry with Egerton that keeps him from becoming too cliche.
To be honest, their relationship would be more endearing if any of it were actually true. While most biopics certainly take artistic license, Eddie the Eagle is pretty much a whole cloth fabrication.
In fact, not only does Peary exist only in the movie, his former ski coach and mentor, played by Christopher Walken, is also a fugazi. One wishes that more of Eddie’s true story was included in the film, including his stint living in a Finnish mental hospital (he wasn’t a patient) while waiting the find out about his inclusion in the ’88 Olympics, because it’s just as interesting as anything director Dexter Fletcher (Lock, Stock and Two Smoking Barrels) came up with.
Despite the misdirections and made up stories, at the end of the day, the value of Eddie the Eagle relies on whether or not the audience can buy into the sentimental schmaltz enough to ignore the requisite sports movie cliches, and much like Eddie himself, who finished last in both the 70m and 90m events, Eddie the Eagle is never in a position to win any awards, but it’s warmth and charm does just enough to earn an enthusiastic reaction.
When considering Eddie the Eagle from that perspective, it’s hard not to enjoy this slight film for what it is, because it’s clear that everyone involved, from Egerton and Jackman to Fletcher and producer Matthew Vaughn (Layer Cake) are only interested in delivering a feel-good slice of British Olympic history in the form of a lovable loser who won hearts in ’88 and whose heavily manicured story manages to win hearts in 2016.
Hashim R. Hathaway (Uncle Shimbo) is the host of the Never Daunted Radio Network, and proud father to NeverDaunted.Net. You can reach him on Twitter @NeverDauntedNet