Pelé

Pelé is the title of this documentary. Going into it I expected vintage footage of the football player in his greatest moments, the story of his footballing career, and an in-depth look at his personal life which would presumably give us insights into his mind and actions. What we get is some of that, and a strong dose of heavy-handed political rhetoric. It's curious, but pretty revealing as to the filmmaker's bias and political leanings. Honestly, if they'd stuck to the task at hand, we'd be presented with a more focused film. "Pelé - the footballer, his life, and the Brazilian dictatorship" would have been a more accurate title.

Pelé played a beautiful game of soccer and this documentary captured it well. I enjoy watching soccer so I appreciated the footage from previous world cups. The documentary was heavy on that though, and for that reason, did not portray Pelé's story with the richness and complexity it deserved.

This documentary also covers the historical and political context of Pelé's career. As a non-Brazilian, I appreciated getting to learn about this. I didn't not think that the coverage was biased or that this documentary was a left wing propaganda film.

I would have appreciated more discussion of the significance of Pelé being one of the first Black world sports stars. His first world cup appearance came only 11 years after Jackie Robinson integrated baseball in the US. I realize this is about Brazil but I know that county has it's own issues with anti-Blackness and racial inequality.

All in all, a film worth watching, but one that does not match the greatness of its subject.

A documentary that features a well-crafted narration, providing solid arguments, attractive images, key events in Brazil, and the importance of a player who became the king of football.

"Pelé" is an entertaining proposal that meets expectations, it's not excellent, but it does have great merit due to its execution. A documentary about one of the best football players who had a remarkable story at different stages of his life. However, directors Ben Nicholas and David Tryhorn did a formidable job, providing a unique experience for football fans in general. The way they approached many of the interviews I liked, as they sometimes played with the contrast of light and shadow.

This documentary film has a good pace, providing essential information from Pelé's beginnings and how he evolved over the years. Additionally, it emphasizes many important reflective messages that can easily be highlighted, such as: respect, talent, sacrifices, humility, the limits of the human body, hope in the midst of circumstances, the social impact that football promotes, the rise of fame, and the consequences of politics.

The Brazilian's personality is spot on at many moments, the approach of how to remain in a neutral state with the environment, politics, governments, society, feelings, friendships, and family is brilliant. The video archives are incredible.

How Pelé played back in those days. The only player to win three World Cups despite both physical and mental adversities. An example of a person who seeks to do good with their talent and bring joy to an entire nation.

The title should be Pelé at the world cup. The doc not even try to go deeper to show who really is Pelé, or even try to tell us something different about him. Maybe it is okay, but it would be a lot better to know a little bit about Edson Arantes.

It could explore more about his carrier on brazilians teams and also how he started so young (17 he was playing the world cup), and what he did after soccer.

The idea of showing the dictatorship in Brazil was not bad, also how politcs influences even in soccer and it was a tough momment.

He is supposed to be the GOAT, however the doc do not show us this. There is no interview from others selecitons os players talking about how difficult is to play against him, or even how he was above the other players.

After watching it, i just feel that he was a really good player that won a lot of worldcups and that's it. Nothing more.

Good movie but not of the magnitude of what pelé meant for football or to the Brazilian people. Pelé was our idol, he made us love the game, turning us into the country of football. He brought the "jogo bonito"(which I think the documentary did wrong on not giving it the deserved importance) the style the brazilian national team played in the sixties that charmed the world and influences our style of play untill today.

The choice to bring the dictatorship period in brazil was very good to bring the context of what the people here were going through. Although it could've come out more connected with the storyline and to how Brazilians saw pelé as a hero who could bring joy during those rough times and how he could even unite the people for celebration of football.