Taika Waititi has a new film soon to land in Kiwi cinemas and it's based on the very true story of the worst football team in the world.
The film, called Next Goal Wins, is bursting at the seams with Pasifika talent.
Waititi is back and he's pulled together a team ready to take on their hometown crowd with a cast jam-packed with hometown favourites, such as Oscar Kightley and Dave Fane.
It's a true story of the American Samoan football team languishing at the bottom of the world and the bottom of the football rankings, but on a mission to score at least one goal during the FIFA World Cup qualifiers.
Staggering in from the sidelines is Michael Fassbender as Thomas Rongen, a down-at-mouth mildly alcoholic coach with anger management issues. He's been sent by FIFA but set up to fail - and the culture clash is as inevitable as the result.
Rongen is of course a fish out of water but diving in to keep him afloat is Jaiyah. She's the first-ever fa'afafine to play in a FIFA match.
Acting rookie Kaimana brings her A-game and is more than a match for the more seasoned Fassbender. Together they form the heart and soul of the film.
This is the straightest, almost least Taikery of the Taika films, but it still marches to the beat of his drum.
While some of the pacing and the tonal comedy-to-drama shifts lacked his usual finesse, the charm of the story and the winning delivery of this cast have the power to win over a hometown crowd.
Four stars.
