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Movie review / ‘The Keeper’ (M)

“The Keeper”… You don’t need to be a soccer fan to enjoy this movie.

“The Keeper” (M) *** and a half

THIS English/German co-production touches many bases in telling the real-life (with perhaps some poetic licence) story about the German paratrooper who came from a POW camp to keep goal for Manchester City in a career spanning 545 First Division games between 1949 and 1964.

The story, written and directed by Marcus H. Rosenmuller, begins just before VE-day. Bernd (Bert) Trautmann (David Kross) incurs the wrath of Sgt Smythe (Harry Melling), a POW camp guard who puts him on latrine cleaning duty. In a recreational moment, Bert’s goalie skill caught the eye of village grocer Jack Friar (after playing all those supporting characters, you’ll recognise John Henshaw in a major role) who saw the young man’s goal-keeping talent and obtained his services in the shop before war’s end. Jack was secretary of the St Helen’s Town amateur football club. He and his wife Clarice (Dervla Kirwan) had a winsome daughter Margaret (Freya Mavor).

The film spends a good portion of its two hours showing how peace did little if anything to ease the hatred that the British working-class people felt against the German enemy. It became more intense when they learned he held the German medal for bravery. Manchester City supporter Rabbi Altmann got involved with the opposition.

Sporting success changed that. Then in the final match of the 1955-56 season, a save led to Bert breaking his neck, yet finishing the match. He recovered and played on until 1965.

The film says nothing about Bert’s later life. For his football success, he got an Honorary OBE, becoming the only man ever to hold both that award and the Iron Cross. After divorce from Margaret, he married twice, before dying just on six years ago aged 89.

You don’t need to be a soccer fan to enjoy “The Keeper”. Its combination of post-war angst, sport and romance encourages rumination about how its collection of sub-plots converts its mild polemics into entertainment. Bert is its hero, but the film leaves a cloud over the kind of man he really was.

At Palace Electric, Dendy, Capitol 6

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Dougal Macdonald

Dougal Macdonald

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