Figure 1.--'Montevideo' begins in as Yugoslavs are preparing for the internationsl football competition. The Yugoslav team wins and go to Uruguay in South America for the 1930 finals. They take the little shoe shine boy along as their mascot. Here he is with friends.

A British teacher has provided information on this Serbian film. 'Montivedeo' in Serbian means a remote place and in the case of the film an unlikely event. The meaning is similar to the English phrase: 'If Pigs can Fly.' However this only refers to an unlikely event such as Accrington Stanley winning a football match! And of course for the film here it refers to the World Cup Football competions with finals held in Montervideo, Uruguay. The film is in Serbian so the dislog is lost on me but the female Serbian teachers I work with say they dn't like the language so about of profanity in the dialogue. It is not a family film if this is the case. The story is told in flash back. It is Yugoslovia 1930. The film starts with a Serbian youth who is a gifted football player. What he can do with a football is pure magic. However this is the end of the story. At the beginning of the story we see him as a young boy. He is a cripple. His leg is strapped up. He is very poor and shines shoes. His brother is a gifted football player and the hero of all the local boys who take great delight in playing football with him. The brother is selected to play for the Yugoslovia National Football team. There is an international match to be played in Belgrade, but the Yugoslovian team is the decided under dog. Hense the films title. It also appertains to the crippled boy who is not expected to walk normally. The crippled boys story is really a side issue the majority of the film is about the Yugoslovian team training and interpersonal relations. There are several scenes which show children's fashions at that time. Against all odds, the Yugoslavian team wins. There is an appeal for everyone to have their shoes cleaned by the shoeshine boy. He earns enough money to receive the medical treatment needed to make him walk perfectly and become a football wonder. We do not know a great deal about Serbian clothing. Thus we are not entirely sure about the accuracy of the costuming. The boy wears national costuing for a portrait with the team.

Created: 6:50 AM 3/22/2011
Last updated: 3:37 PM 3/22/2011