Not much is explicitly made in “Saipan” of what was happening in the world of sports in general in 2002 when it’s set, but then again it could feel as if there was nothing else outside of soccer in the year of the World Cup, stirring up a frenzy in football-loving countries where the drama of Roy Keane and his coach Mick McCarthy earned a top spot on the nightly news as any other foreign wars might. Keane was reflective, however, of a new kind of athlete like LeBron James and Tom Brady, who were conditioning themselves to play into their forties while in their early twenties while their coaches, who were of a generation that thought if you could walk, you could play, had to adjust to thinking more about the long haul than the match immediately in front of them. When such consideration was only in its infancy, “Saipan” is the best film to tackle a game from off the field this side of “Moneyball” as Keane (Éanna Hardwicke) and McCarthy (Steve Coogan) come to loggerheads over the preparation for Ireland’s run in the championship round in Japan where the country would be a favorite with Keane, coming off a three-week absence on the injury list, and likely lost without him, though McCarthy wonders about rolling the dice as the star player appears increasingly unmanageable.
Lisa Barros d’Sa and Glenn Leyburn make a rousing drama without hardly spending any time on the pitch, save for when Keane can be seen watching girls’ soccer locally from the sidelines while he recovers, comparing coaches with a wee player that’s just been pulled from the game. His team doesn’t make it any easier for him to get back onto the field, though they’ve made the playoffs in his absence, when he makes the trip to Saipan to learn that the facility that the Irish National squad has secured for practice isn’t up to snuff and there aren’t even soccer balls around to do any actual scrimmage, leaving Keane and crew to work out on treadmills rather than build any team chemistry and eat from a buffet where the main attraction is cheese sandwiches rather than any fruit and vegetables at their humble accommodations. When Keane clears out his mini fridge of the alcohol in favor of premade protein shakes, his main issue is clear, but there’s are plenty of others that Barros d’Sa, Leyburn and writer Paul Fraser impressively find the drama in as Keane’s annoyance at the underwhelming sense of urgency threatens to undermine the team spirit that McCarthy is trying to spark, making for a sympathetic portrait of both men who both want what’s best for their team, but have completely different attitudes about how to get there.
Tonally, the massively appealing rowdiness of Barros d’Sa and Leyburn’s earlier films “Good Vibrations” and “Cherrybomb” proves to be a perfect fit for a story where pressure on McCarthy and Keane to make amends comes from a massive fanbase, with style to spare in its propulsive needle drops and frenzied pacing. But the directing duo remind that their last film, the quieter “Ordinary Love” that made for a strong showcase for stars Liam Neeson and Lesley Manville, wasn’t an anomaly as they find clever ways to serve the strong performances they have on hand, deploying a split screen to generate emotion as much visual energy when both Keane and McCarthy have to wonder what they’ve started when their personal difference of opinion spirals out of control. Fraser’s script is also quick-witted and strongly constructed, making prominent characters out of Keane and McCarthy‘s wives (Harriet Cains and Alice Lowe, respectively) who can’t be at the practice facility with their husbands, but get to show who their significant other is at heart, and introducing a reporter (Aoife Hinds) on the premises who hangs out around the hotel bar and restaurant and gets scoops from both men when they have few others to talk to during their time in isolation. The way her reporting and other media outlets amplify the story compound a situation that might be more easily resolved without the extra attention. Befitting of an entirely new era in sports where everyone had to come to play in a different way, “Saipan” feels fresh, vital and a whole lot of fun.
“Saipan” does not yet have U.S. distribution. It will next screen at the BFI London Film Festival on October 13th at 6:15 pm at the Vue West End, Screen 5 and October 18th at 3:50 pm at the Prince Charles Cinema.