Battlegrounds: King of the World

Although this documentary was broadcast by MTV-Europe, it is very un-MTV. It is an intelligent piece of footage which lets its stars shine in their own right.

Unlike the usual so-called documentaries on MTV, this film contains no voice-over; there is only one "expert" who comments on the event; there are no eplilectic camera angles; the number of sound-bites is brought back to an acceptable minimum; the score is more than appropriate and best of all: the keenly-edited images speak for themselves. As soon as the actual match(es) start(s), the only sounds we hear are the roaring of the audience and the occasional squeaky sneakers. Only the panache of the film-makers by disallowing any tampering with the "real world" (except for camera shots/ angels) makes the intimidating and heroic atmosphere penetrate your room. And I don't even have a home cinema set...

This documentary deserves a greater audience. Well done!