A well-made sports documentary wields power to bridge boundaries between an athlete and the fans in a way very few things can. It simply humanizes the entire journey and acts as a reality check for the fans to look at the life of their favourite player from a broader perspective. And most importantly, it allows you to look at sport as more than a win-loss binary. This is exactly where Ben Stokes: Phoenix from the Ashes shines.
The 104-minute film chronicles Stokes' journey both on and off the field. It just doesn't focus on Stokes' rise to fame or his achievements as a cricketer. The director duo of Chris Grubb and Luke Mellows set out to tell the human story behind the celebrated match-winner that Stokes has emerged to be for English cricket. We see Stokes breaking stereotypes, shredding his vulnerabilities and reflecting back on the events that shaped his personal as well as professional life.
His involvement in an incident of affray in 2017 was a defining moment in his life. The film allows him to share his side of the story where he comes down heavily on the biased media trials and the unsupportive administrators whom he refers to as people in 'suits'. His family dynamics are explored with compassion and woven seamlessly into the narrative.
There is focus on the relationship he shared with his father and how his terminal illness affected him. His mother's lawsuit against the Sun newspaper and how he blamed cricket for all that ensued on his family. The film beautifully connects these incidents to make us comprehend the void within him that ultimately led him to take a break from the game he loved and adored so much. It is painful to see him reflect on these incidents in the interview with Sam Mendes but they are the highlights of this film.
That Ben Stokes found himself in so many crunch situations on the cricket field made it ripe for the creators to create a gripping narrative. From conceding four sixes in the final over of the 2016 T20 World Cup Final in Kolkata to scripting a dream summer of 2019 for his team, the cinematic depiction of cricketing highs of his career elevate his status of being a special cricketer. “I don't do what I do to make people think good of me. I do what I do because I love the sport.”, he says after leading his team to their inaugural World Cup title.
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The film, however, lacks insights on the development of his craft and skill as a cricketer. We do get to see interviews of his teammates including Jos Butler, Joe Root, Stuart Broad and Mark Wood, sharing their anecdotes about him at various points in time in his career. But a little more depth about his growth as a dynamic all-rounder would have delighted the cricket fan in me.
Final Take: Must Watch
Aided by stunning cinematography, the Amazon documentary is not novel but engaging in its storytelling. It aims at starting a conversation about mental health and shall motivate more people to acknowledge their state of being. For a sport so uniquely rich in stories and characters, we need more storytellers to take initiatives in bringing these incredible stories to the fore. The film concludes with Sam Mendes sharing this quote:
"A man’s work is nothing more or less than the slow trek to rediscover those great and simple images in the presence of which his heart first opened".
The inherent message within the quote aptly sums up the film. I think this will stay with me forever.
The film is available to stream on Amazon Prime Video.
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