Nerdly » ‘Defoe’ Review

19th Feb2024

‘Defoe’ Review

by Alain Elliott

Featuring: Jermaine Defoe, Peter Crouch, Sandra Defoe, Gemma Lowery, Harry Redknapp | Directed by James Ross

As an Arsenal fan, I almost feel like a traitor for simply watching this documentary. But I do love a good documentary on almost any subject, football ones even more so. There’s been a lot of good Arsenal documentaries too, from 89 to ‘Invincible’ to Rocky and Wrighty: From Brockley to the Big Time, I’ve seen and enjoyed plenty. There’s also an incredible amount of documentaries on the top stars of the game – Messi, Ronaldo, Maradona, Gazza, the list goes on – so it’s good to see a film on – for want of a better term – a slightly less ‘big time’ player.

That might sound a little harsh on Jermaine Defoe, who has played for many years in the Premier League and in the World Cup for England. He is no doubt a high-profile footballer. And the documentary features much of his on-field career. From the early days as a kid and his local team that featured several players that went on to play Premier League football, right up to (almost) his last run at Sunderland – the end credits mention his Scottish Premier League win with Rangers. Unfortunately, because of the shortish (but very normal) runtime of about ninety minutes, the film does skim over several stories and parts of his career. Including, his controversial move as a teenager to West Ham, the death of his cousin, his season at Portsmouth and his own thoughts on many parts of his career. It doesn’t feel like we get Defoe’s thoughts on favourite matches, goals, team-mates, that kind of thing. I do understand it’s not entirely that kind of documentary but it would have been a nice addition. It does feel like the director didn’t want to press on anything controversial, there’s even a little twisting on the truth, or perhaps just differing opinions, on Defoe’s goalscoring form at times – the lead-up to the 2006 World Cup being the most obvious.

But this is a minor complaint. Because what is in the documentary is highly entertaining. Defoe has had an interesting career. He’s played for a handful of clubs, but has been loved by the fans at pretty much every one of them, and always scored goals. He’s been around and played with some of the very best players ever, certainly in English football, and he has clearly remained grounded despite all this.

He also has some interesting stories off of the pitch. His relationship with his father and subsequent death, the death of his stepbrother and his cousin – all of which happened in a relatively small amount of time. There are also some interesting parts on how the media treated top English players, seemingly wanting to knock them down once they have achieved success, and how this affects player’s mental health. The few players interviewed mention that it was usual to just suck it up and continue. I would have liked to have heard more about this, and any racism issues, which I’m certain Defoe had to deal with, but are not mentioned at all.

The final twenty minutes or so feature Defoe’s time at Sunderland and his encounter with Bradley Lowery, a six-year-old boy battling cancer. Defoe’s relationship with Bradley is lovely to watch, you can see how much he and his family mean to Defoe. It’s a heartbreaking but important end to the documentary. When the movie started with Defoe showing us around his newly bought house, including the cinema room and swimming pool (even though he can’t swim), I wondered how relatable or likeable Defoe was going to be. But by the time the final credits roll (end to be fair the opening minutes soon mention his childhood living at his Grandmother’s house), you will know what kind of person Jermaine Defoe is.

This is an uplifting, sometimes heart-breaking, documentary on one of the Premier League’s best-ever goalscorers, and Defoe shows the true highs and lows of being a footballer. This is a documentary that every football fan should watch.