Documentary

The Game of Their Lives

Name: The Game of Their Lives
Director: Daniel Gordon
Released: 2002
Duration: 78 min

Daniel Gordon

2002

Daniel Gordon · 2002 · UK/North Korea

Reunites surviving members of North Korea's stunning 1966 World Cup quarter-final run decades later.

A rare Western-made documentary granted access inside North Korea, illuminating a forgotten football fairy tale.

The Historian

In this film, Daniel Gordon weaves together the threads of an extraordinary chapter in global football history. The 1966 World Cup quarter-finalists, a team from one of the world's most isolated nations, are reunited on camera. Their story is a testament to the enduring power of sport to transcend politics and geography.

The Psychologist

The Game of Their Lives reveals the enduring power of nostalgia and collective identity. Decades after their historic 1966 World Cup run, the team members' reunion is as much about rekindling national pride as it is about reconnecting with lost youth. This is an examination of how sports fandom transcends time and space, fueling a sense of belonging and shared.

The Sceptic

A documentary that reunites former players with the West, but what about the others who didn't make it? Or those whose experiences were erased by the regime's propaganda machine? The film may overemphasize its own significance as a rare Western-made document, glossing over the complexities of its subjects' lives.

These are interpretations written in three voices, not quotations from any individual.

Language: English/Korean
Length: 78 min
Subject: North Korea 1966 World Cup team
Region: Asia
Tone: Elegiac
Difficulty: Familiar

Available to rent on Apple TV, Amazon; DVD in print

Limited availability

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