'Eddie the Eagle' - Film Review

What happens when a Cynical Cinephile isn't cynical enough? Or when the other is unreasonably so? Dexter Fletcher's Eddie the Eagle was the film that raised these questions. Evie is a fan; Mia a sceptic. Let's get ready to rumble - ding, ding, ding!

Mia: I found the main issue with the movie to be the predictability of the narrative. It ticked every box in the checklist for a 'formulaic underdog story'; a poor man's Cool Runnings.

Evie: Woah, woah! Was the plot formulaic? Yes, there's no denying. Did it make the pay-off any less rewarding? Not in the slightest. The film's uplifting climax was fist-pump worthy as Eddie was (SPOILER ALERT) carried home a hero on the shoulders of those who helped him achieve his dreams.

Mia: Less uplifting, more embarrassing. Just before completing the deadly 90 metre slope, there is a painfully long sequence in which Eddie hears the voices of all of the naysayers in his career come flooding back; 'you'll never be an Olympian!', 'you haven't got what it takes!', 'you're shit, Eddie! Also, you're ugly!' (okay, I'm paraphrasing slightly). You can almost imagine their disembodied heads floating around him. Laughable. For all the wrong reasons.

Evie: You'd have to be the most Cynical Cinephile in all the land to find this tale laughable. The voices we hear inside Eddie's head as he prepares to jump the formidable 90m remind us all of not only our own bullies and detractors, but our own personal doubts. It's like Grandpa (portrayed by Alan Arkin) said in Little Miss Sunshine, "A real loser isn't someone who doesn't win. A real loser is someone so afraid of not winning that you don't even try." Eddie the Eagle is the embodiment of this philosophy.

Mia: I'm more concerned with the embodiment of Eddie the Eagle himself. The major motivation in the sympathy for Eddie in real life was, at the risk of sounding cruel, his being pitifully unattractive. Had he not been played by the conventionally good - looking Taron Egerton, perhaps he'd be a more believable underdog. Sticking out your jaw and wearing thick-rimmed does not an unattractive man make. Furthermore, are his goofy tendencies the main offenders when it comes to the Olympic Committee's dislike for Eddie? It was perplexing how hell-bent Tim McInnery's villainous archetype 'Target' was on keeping Eddie way from the Olympics. Riddle me that, Evie.

Evie: Taron Egerton is a very attractive man, a fact not foreign to me as I've studied every pore of his face whilst watching an endless stream of his interviews (all in the name of... research purposes). However, I firmly believe that Egerton's aesthetically pleasing face isn't to the detriment of his charming and winning performance. He was funny sympathetic and wholly loveable. With regards to your rather aggressive views on the Olympic Committee's fierce dislike of Eddie, my answer is; every underdog needs their adversaries. The Committee didn't want a trier - they wanted a winner, and they knew Eddie could not garner the gold.

Mia: If you don't agree that Target and his Henchmen had baffling motives, you must at least have picked up on the shallow and completely uninspired depiction of Eddie's parents. It's a struggle to find much of their dialogue that you couldn't describe as "on-the-nose". A father that is so understandably but nevertheless exceedingly harshly doubtful of Eddie's dreams - the extent of his character can be boiled down to: "Give up on your dreams, Eddie, and become a plasterer like me." A mother that is naively supportive, found smiling foolishly in the background of any scene in which Eddie announces another Olympic plan. They seem altogether too indifferent to the other's such differing outlook. I question their marriage.

Evie: Oh come on, Mia! Poor Eddie needed at least one unyielding supporter, and what greater form could that come in than a mother. She was also never disillusioned I felt with her belief in Eddie - she simply wanted him to pursue his calling which clearly was to inject a shot of positivity into the calculated and competitive proceedings. Although, I begrudgingly agree with you in regards to the "on-the-nose" dialogue given to Eddie's father. However, without it, the dynamic in the Edwards household would have been too picture perfect. Eddie needed the conflict from his disagreeing parents to further fuel his desire to succeed.

Mia: Wait a sec, am I right in thinking we are yet to such upon the wholly fictionalised character of Bronson Peary, portrayed by Hugh Jackman? This character is the pinnacle of all that is predictable. The initial reluctancy of guiding Eddie. His own grudges and bitterness of the past which must lay to rest, which he does through eventually becoming Eddie's unorthodox mentor. I was half expecting him to go into Danny DeVito's 'One Last Hope' number from Hercules. Another inadvertently comical moment is when Peary drunkenly proves his ability by executing the perfect 90m ski jump. Clad with sunglasses and not other appropriate attire, Jackman descends in slow motion. He tosses his cigarette aside and seems not at all bothered by his impressive feat. And then there's Christopher Walken. Admittedly, I am always relieved when he appears onscreen, but that goes for any film. Walked plays Warren Sharp, ex-ski coach who slams Peary in seemingly every interview he's had in the last three decades. Yes, he did him wrong, but move on, Walken! The reconciliation makes for a barely satisfying redemption for Peary. But "barely satisfying" is the two-word phrase I'd use to summarise my feelings towards this whole movie.

Evie: Once again, I understand what you're saying about the cliched, arguably cookie-cutter characters, but Eddie the Eagle unashamedly embraces them. The slow motion sequence where Peary jumps the 90m, looking oh-so-cool in his shades with a cigarette dangling from his mouth, made the middle aged women in the audience cackle with delight. If you're willing to accept and embrace the cheesiness of this film then gee-whizz you'll have a great time watching it. Inherently, Eddie the Eagle promotes an important message; it's the taking part that truly counts. It's about being aware of the limitations you face and diving head first (or skiing head first, if you will) anyway.

Mia: Fair dos, but of you remember when Eddie wasn't going to be a ski jumper, and then he was?

Evie: Yeah, and do you remember when Bronson Peary wasn't going to be Eddie's mentor, and then he was?

Mia: Oh yeah! Ooh, and do you remember when the committee weren't going to record his practice jump, and then they did?

Evie: That's like the moment when Eddie wasn't going to attempt the 90m jump...and then he did. Mia, you're drawing me into your web of criticism - stop! I thoroughly enjoyed Eddie the Eagle, it's the feel-good film of the year.

Mia: Agree to disagree.

EB & MS