This nearly five-hour four-episode Netflix documentary of the footballer David Beckham has very much the feel of an "authorised biography" about it. Made with the in-person participation of its subject plus his full supporting entourage, in particular his wife Victoria, his parents, business associates, non-celebrity friends and naturally a lot of well-known football-related people including Sir Alex Ferguson, his best mate Gary Neville, Roy Keane, Eric Cantona, Brazil's Ronaldo and Sergio Ramos amongst many more, what we end up with is a glossy, idealised film which does what it no doubt was set up to do which is of course to promote the Beckham brand.
They're all here naturally to sing Beckham's praises so that what unsurprisingly emerges is a portrait of a likeable, down-to-earth celebrity who's come largely unscathed through a sporting and latterly personal life played out under the glare of the world media spotlight.
Me, I'm always slightly suspicious of these in-house productions offering somewhat sanitised versions of their subject's chosen narrative. The fourth episode, for example, brings up the thorny issue of Beckham's alleged affair with his children's nanny but doesn't even mention her name (Rebecca Loos) far less approach her for her side of the story. The, for my money far too matey interviewer - producer fails to ask Beckham or his wife outright if he did or didn't have the affair plus there was no reference at all to his controversial ambassadorial role in promoting the dubious award of the recent World Cup to Qatar or the reported millions of his own money which David has invested in his wife's failing fashion business. While I'm on the subject, I was also amused at the film's attempt to show him as some sort of martyr when his Real Madrid manager Fabio Capelli quite justifiably ostracises him from the rest of the team when he openly consorts with the L. A. Galaxy football team about playing for them.
All that said, it's impossible not to like the working-class lad who we see in the end living a life of luxury on his own massive country estate complete with its own mini-football stadium. I'd also include in that his wife, the Spice Girl pop-singer Victoria who throughout quite amusingly and candidly contradicts Beckham's sometimes preferred version of events.
There's ample demonstration too of his undoubted skill as a footballer who made a success of himself at the highest level in England, Spain, Italy and France as well as at the lowest level in the U. S. "soccer" league!
You also have to admire his undoubted talent for self-promotion and the marketing of his global brand and media-image. I like the fact that he still appears to be OCD as he shows us his impeccably ordered wardrobes containing no doubt luxury, designer-brand clothes and then meticulously cleaning down the cooking area of his man-cave or judging by the size of it man-cavern.
That's no doubt however that the viewer's gaze is very much being directed here at what Beckham and his management team want us to see. His children are barely mentioned or shown so that we don't really get the perception of what kind of parent other than very protective he and his wife actually are. Still, until we perhaps in the future get a less cuddly more objective insight into the man's life and career, this very much soft-focus insight into the life of this high profile celebrity, shallow as it sometimes appeared, nevertheless proved to be enjoyable and entertaining if not quite as revealing as it would like you to think it is.
They're all here naturally to sing Beckham's praises so that what unsurprisingly emerges is a portrait of a likeable, down-to-earth celebrity who's come largely unscathed through a sporting and latterly personal life played out under the glare of the world media spotlight.
Me, I'm always slightly suspicious of these in-house productions offering somewhat sanitised versions of their subject's chosen narrative. The fourth episode, for example, brings up the thorny issue of Beckham's alleged affair with his children's nanny but doesn't even mention her name (Rebecca Loos) far less approach her for her side of the story. The, for my money far too matey interviewer - producer fails to ask Beckham or his wife outright if he did or didn't have the affair plus there was no reference at all to his controversial ambassadorial role in promoting the dubious award of the recent World Cup to Qatar or the reported millions of his own money which David has invested in his wife's failing fashion business. While I'm on the subject, I was also amused at the film's attempt to show him as some sort of martyr when his Real Madrid manager Fabio Capelli quite justifiably ostracises him from the rest of the team when he openly consorts with the L. A. Galaxy football team about playing for them.
All that said, it's impossible not to like the working-class lad who we see in the end living a life of luxury on his own massive country estate complete with its own mini-football stadium. I'd also include in that his wife, the Spice Girl pop-singer Victoria who throughout quite amusingly and candidly contradicts Beckham's sometimes preferred version of events.
There's ample demonstration too of his undoubted skill as a footballer who made a success of himself at the highest level in England, Spain, Italy and France as well as at the lowest level in the U. S. "soccer" league!
You also have to admire his undoubted talent for self-promotion and the marketing of his global brand and media-image. I like the fact that he still appears to be OCD as he shows us his impeccably ordered wardrobes containing no doubt luxury, designer-brand clothes and then meticulously cleaning down the cooking area of his man-cave or judging by the size of it man-cavern.
That's no doubt however that the viewer's gaze is very much being directed here at what Beckham and his management team want us to see. His children are barely mentioned or shown so that we don't really get the perception of what kind of parent other than very protective he and his wife actually are. Still, until we perhaps in the future get a less cuddly more objective insight into the man's life and career, this very much soft-focus insight into the life of this high profile celebrity, shallow as it sometimes appeared, nevertheless proved to be enjoyable and entertaining if not quite as revealing as it would like you to think it is.