Sandler’s likeable yarn is a slam dunk
THE basketball superstar LeBron James is a co-producer of the Netflix film Hustle (★★★II, 15, 117 mins), which gives a clue to its content.
Adam Sandler plays Stanley Sugerman, a revered scout for the Philadelphia 76ers of the National Basketball Association.
But Stanley wants to become a coach and spend more time at home with his wife (Queen Latifah) and their daughter. He finally gets his chance from the team’s wealthy owner (a cameo for 91-year-old Robert Duvall), who then unhelpfully goes and dies.
The old man’s spiky son (Ben Foster) decrees that Stanley must stay a scout and continue to scour the world for up-and-coming talent, whereupon Stanley unearths a gem on the streets of Mallorca: a huge construction worker called Bo Cruz (played by an actual NBA star, Juancho Hernangomez). Will Bo make the big time? Can Stanley outmanoeuvre his abrasive boss?
It’s a made-up yarn that nonetheless feels as if it might be a true story, and is formulaically told, but Sandler is an engaging lead and the film bounces along enjoyably.
I Am Zlatan (★★★II, 15, 100 mins) is another sporting drama, but this one is true: it’s inspired by the autobiography of the mighty Swedish footballer Zlatan Ibrahimovic, showing how he overcame his difficult childhood as the son of divorced Slavic immigrants in blue-collar Malmo to make it as one of the world’s great strikers. Usually such stories are more effectively told in documentary form, but actually this is nicely done.
To complete the week’s sporting trilogy, Olga (★★★II, 15, 85 mins) is a Swiss-made drama also worth seeing. Set in 2013, its title character is a Ukrainian gymnast who joins the Swiss national team after her mother, a journalist back in Kyiv, sends her away for her own safety during violent convulsions (then as now) in their homeland. It was the worthy Swiss entry for Best International Feature at this year’s Academy Awards. n ALL three films are in cinemas. Hustle is also on Netflix from next Wednesday.