This documentary was good but you guys should have been waited until he finished his career as a player
33 Reviews
The movie was good but
zhyarTheChosen9 September 2019
More Revealing Than It Was Probably Intended to Be
nicholasruddick4 September 2016
Warning: Spoilers
Many people will be disappointed by this documentary. There is almost nothing, for instance, about the six seasons (2003-09) that Cristiano Ronaldo played for Manchester United and which laid the foundations of his greatness. There are no interviews with teammates or with great footballers past and present that put his achievements in context. Though Ronaldo himself speaks frequently, he says nothing about how he prepares for games, or about which coaches or fellow professionals he admires. Nevertheless, it's a fascinating film, one in which we learn a lot about this footballing phenomenon, certainly one of the ten greatest forwards ever to play the world's most popular sport, and yet fated to be second best during his own playing career.
Ronaldo has been called a narcissist, a supreme egotist in what should be a team enterprise. And this documentary confirms that in so many ways he is. But actually his self-love is a part of that essential, unshakable self-belief without which he could never have attained the heights. The characteristic shot of him in the documentary is at the wheel of one of his garage full of luxury cars: he likes to be viewed as at the helm, in control. The past (represented by the Manchester United years under the arch-manager Sir Alex Ferguson) means little to him. The future is equally irrelevant except as the potential site of further personal trophies. He lives in the bubble of the present, and his goal each year is not so much team trophies for Real Madrid or Portugal like the Champions League or World Cup, but the Ballon d'Or, the annual FIFA trophy for the best player in world football. What animates him now is the desire to win more Ballons d'Or than Lionel Messi, the diminutive, far less photogenic Barcelona striker, who is two years younger, has won the Ballon d'Or four times to Ronaldo's twice, and is probably the greatest forward ever to grace the game.
The documentary focuses upon Ronaldo's relationships with his agent and with his family. And here we learn about the distant alcoholic father and the warm mother who Ronaldo strongly resembles and who lives every game he plays along her nerves. All this is interesting and tends to humanize this superman a little. And so too does Ronaldo's close relationship with his young son Cristiano Jr., born 2010. But this son has no mother: Ronaldo has never revealed who bore the child, and he has sole custody. It's as though he purchased an infant under the condition that it would be his alone to mould into what he chooses, namely a reproduction of himself. Yet it's clear from the documentary that footballers with Cristiano Ronaldo's talents are rare indeed and his skills are not transferable. How the devoted small child will take to being manipulated during his adolescence by a father whose achievements the son will never be able to match ought to be the stuff of another, probably less hagiographic documentary in ten years' time.
Ronaldo has been called a narcissist, a supreme egotist in what should be a team enterprise. And this documentary confirms that in so many ways he is. But actually his self-love is a part of that essential, unshakable self-belief without which he could never have attained the heights. The characteristic shot of him in the documentary is at the wheel of one of his garage full of luxury cars: he likes to be viewed as at the helm, in control. The past (represented by the Manchester United years under the arch-manager Sir Alex Ferguson) means little to him. The future is equally irrelevant except as the potential site of further personal trophies. He lives in the bubble of the present, and his goal each year is not so much team trophies for Real Madrid or Portugal like the Champions League or World Cup, but the Ballon d'Or, the annual FIFA trophy for the best player in world football. What animates him now is the desire to win more Ballons d'Or than Lionel Messi, the diminutive, far less photogenic Barcelona striker, who is two years younger, has won the Ballon d'Or four times to Ronaldo's twice, and is probably the greatest forward ever to grace the game.
The documentary focuses upon Ronaldo's relationships with his agent and with his family. And here we learn about the distant alcoholic father and the warm mother who Ronaldo strongly resembles and who lives every game he plays along her nerves. All this is interesting and tends to humanize this superman a little. And so too does Ronaldo's close relationship with his young son Cristiano Jr., born 2010. But this son has no mother: Ronaldo has never revealed who bore the child, and he has sole custody. It's as though he purchased an infant under the condition that it would be his alone to mould into what he chooses, namely a reproduction of himself. Yet it's clear from the documentary that footballers with Cristiano Ronaldo's talents are rare indeed and his skills are not transferable. How the devoted small child will take to being manipulated during his adolescence by a father whose achievements the son will never be able to match ought to be the stuff of another, probably less hagiographic documentary in ten years' time.
A Mixed Bag: Competent, Inauthentic, Fascinating
tributarystu25 November 2015
Having just watched de la Iglesia's Messi documentary, I thought of going all in and looking at Ronaldo's as well. And although this one tries so hard that it frequently seems inauthentic, at least it provides direct feedback from the horse's mouth: there are no doubts about what Ronaldo feels and believes - but only concerning carefully selected themes that build up his persona.
The film follows the Real Madrid star for parts of the 2014 season, in between his two Ballon d'Or wins. Given that it was one of the most successful years any player has ever had in club football, the timing is just right for Ronaldo. We get a glimpse into his past, his circle of friends, his family, the relationship with his son, the ambitions driving his career. It is a competent, well structured documentary, even if it fails to inspire. That's already more than can be said about the Messi docu - both released in a (suspiciously) narrow time frame between each other.
Ronaldo's directorial control over the final output here feels heavy handed. His story, like most rags to riches stories, lends itself to dramatization, but without a wide-angled perspective from a neutral third party, much of this comes across as a vain attempt of self- aggrandizement. The absolute low is probably the World Cup episode, where claims like "I'd feel better if we had three Cristiano Ronaldo's" surface, all the while justifying the team's failure with Ronaldo's injury. The good thing is that the more you want to control something, the less you actually manage to control it, because the orchestration required to do so renders you myopic to the meaning of what you are putting out there. It takes a very talented filmmaker to run such a tight ship in an artistic fashion.
What I do appreciate is the no-crap attitude towards how important his goals are for him. Sure, one can always judge it and dislike such a cynical approach towards achieving something for one's own sake, but you can't ignore the success story and the reality that magnanimity isn't objective. A 360 approach to the professionals around Ronaldo would have made for an interesting case study in an ideal world, but the odds of acquiring something authentic would be very low at the curated pinnacle of the football world.
This is the paradox: while the movie feels directed, the amount of direction is a means of characterization. And this will always trump reconstructions and a lot of the time it will be superior to third party fables about the man. The superstar cult lives and breathes here. So for all it's worth, Ronaldo's docu tells a story about him. Also, we actually see original Messi footage in it, something "his" own documentary fails to include.
The film follows the Real Madrid star for parts of the 2014 season, in between his two Ballon d'Or wins. Given that it was one of the most successful years any player has ever had in club football, the timing is just right for Ronaldo. We get a glimpse into his past, his circle of friends, his family, the relationship with his son, the ambitions driving his career. It is a competent, well structured documentary, even if it fails to inspire. That's already more than can be said about the Messi docu - both released in a (suspiciously) narrow time frame between each other.
Ronaldo's directorial control over the final output here feels heavy handed. His story, like most rags to riches stories, lends itself to dramatization, but without a wide-angled perspective from a neutral third party, much of this comes across as a vain attempt of self- aggrandizement. The absolute low is probably the World Cup episode, where claims like "I'd feel better if we had three Cristiano Ronaldo's" surface, all the while justifying the team's failure with Ronaldo's injury. The good thing is that the more you want to control something, the less you actually manage to control it, because the orchestration required to do so renders you myopic to the meaning of what you are putting out there. It takes a very talented filmmaker to run such a tight ship in an artistic fashion.
What I do appreciate is the no-crap attitude towards how important his goals are for him. Sure, one can always judge it and dislike such a cynical approach towards achieving something for one's own sake, but you can't ignore the success story and the reality that magnanimity isn't objective. A 360 approach to the professionals around Ronaldo would have made for an interesting case study in an ideal world, but the odds of acquiring something authentic would be very low at the curated pinnacle of the football world.
This is the paradox: while the movie feels directed, the amount of direction is a means of characterization. And this will always trump reconstructions and a lot of the time it will be superior to third party fables about the man. The superstar cult lives and breathes here. So for all it's worth, Ronaldo's docu tells a story about him. Also, we actually see original Messi footage in it, something "his" own documentary fails to include.
Everything is possible, even a bad documentary
joshji9 November 2015
Actually wasn't that good. Was hoping to get some insight on the daily life of a world famous footballer, how they combine/balance their work life with family etc. Was hoping to see more of day-to-day stuff and really what was going on behind the scenes. Wasn't really that much of an insight, everything is mostly known from the documentaries released before and didn't really have very much new footage or info(when there should be, freaking camera crew has been following him for 14 months). Seems more like a marketing stunt than a documentary, it really didn't offer anything new or exclusive. Quite disappointed in the outcome in many ways.
The only really new part was knowing that he had daddy issues and that's it. Feels like the movie is more focused on dumb and irrational fans seeing their hero on the big screen.
The only really new part was knowing that he had daddy issues and that's it. Feels like the movie is more focused on dumb and irrational fans seeing their hero on the big screen.
Interesting Person, worth watching
DLochner7 September 2021
A solid and emotional documentary about the person Cristiano Ronaldo. Unfortunately, you learn next to nothing about his training methods, but much more about his feelings and his life with hid son. The latter sometimes seems a little artificial, but all in all an interesting person.
Insightful but heavily choreographed
ryan-eden-19947 January 2016
Cristiano Ronaldo is an outstanding athlete and one of my few sporting idols so when I discovered there was going to be a Documentary Film released about his life up until 2015 I was very eager for its release.
However, since watching the film I have mixed thoughts. Whilst I found the film insightful and inspiring, I did find that the film came across as heavily choreographed and it focused heavily on making Cristiano appear to be squeaky clean. I also found that archive footage is used far too often within the film and it got to the point where I felt that the archive footage was being used more as a film filler than it was being used as a necessity.
Cristiano is someone who demands respect as he is an individual who came from nothing and sacrificed a lot in order to be the superstar he is today however, I was expecting a little bit more from this Documentary Film. A more natural feel to the film and less emphasis on the archive footage would have inspired me to rate Ronaldo higher than 7/10. Also, in addition to that more interesting camera shots such as close up shots of training or on the pitch action would have been the icing on the cake.
However, since watching the film I have mixed thoughts. Whilst I found the film insightful and inspiring, I did find that the film came across as heavily choreographed and it focused heavily on making Cristiano appear to be squeaky clean. I also found that archive footage is used far too often within the film and it got to the point where I felt that the archive footage was being used more as a film filler than it was being used as a necessity.
Cristiano is someone who demands respect as he is an individual who came from nothing and sacrificed a lot in order to be the superstar he is today however, I was expecting a little bit more from this Documentary Film. A more natural feel to the film and less emphasis on the archive footage would have inspired me to rate Ronaldo higher than 7/10. Also, in addition to that more interesting camera shots such as close up shots of training or on the pitch action would have been the icing on the cake.
A wasted opportunity to show us what we really wanted to see from a Documentary on one of the most successful Footballers of all time.
MUFCOK7 June 2016
Being a lifelong United fan, I had always had a soft spot for Ronaldo even if he did leave us and go on to be even more successful for that Spanish circus. He did remarkable things for us and it was always clear he was to leave us for Madrid, it wasn't a question of if, it was a question of when. Over recent years my soft spot for him has dwindled, of course you cannot question his ability and professionalism, he is a fantastic player who can do fantastic things. Of late though he seems to have become a parody of himself, he's always had that arrogance and it is warranted, he's that good he can carry that trait and pulls it off. Over the past few years though it has gone to new extremes, when he celebrated over the top when scored the 4th goal in a 4-1 Champions League win a few years back yet hardly joined in the celebrations of the much more important equalizing goal or the second goal, simply because he has no part in them. That is just one example of how he has gone too far with his arrogance, this 'documentary' is on another level yet again though.
The opening scene shows Messi winning Ballon D'or after Ballon D'or, Ronaldo speaking over this essentially spits his dummy out, traumatised and heartbroken. This sets the tone, Ronaldo doesn't care about team glory if he doesn't have the personal, individual glory to go with it. Winning the Best Player in the World award is all he wants, his success within teams is nowhere near as important as that to him, and in a team sport, that is a really negative, delusional trait to have.
Its labelled a documentary but its hardly that, its essentially a VLOG or Ronaldo's year leading up to his Ballon D'or award, covering the world cup and the Champions League final. Sadly we get to see minimal back story from his child hood, Lisbon or Manchester United years. He touches on these times but we get no depth to it and we are not shown anything new or interesting. Nobody talks directly down the camera, instead we have Ronaldo narrating scenes of himself being vain and obnoxious or filming of his life in his home which gets repetitive from the 1st minute as he doesn't show us anything important at all.
The film seems to advertise his Son just as much as it does himself, the scenes with his Son are somehow all about Ronaldo as well. 'Drink that drink and you will get strong arms like Daddy', he then flexes his biceps. Yawn. Or when he gets his Son to do 5 sit ups, only for Ronaldo to then start working out. His Mother features heavily in this film and she seems much more humble and down to earth. However Jorge Mendes, Ronaldo's agent is also featured often and he is a close runner with Ronaldo for most arrogant man on the planet. What a slime ball he is, and the sucking up to Ronaldo that he does is some of the most cringe worthy things I have ever had to witness.
One scene that completely epitomises Ronaldo Is when he opens his Garage, which is bigger than the average house, to show his Son that one of his cars is missing as it is having some work done. Ronaldo's Son is then forced to guess which one is missing, 'The Rolls, The Porsche, The Ferrari?' his Son guesses as he walks around the garage surrounded by super cars. 'No' says Ronaldo, 'The one that goes even faster than that'. How can you even film that and not feel like a complete and utter narcissistic moron?
Another thing we have to endure is his inability to take any blame for his actions. His never criticises himself once during the whole documentary, he genuinely believes that he is faultless and failures are not down to his ability but rather his team mates, injuries or other irrelevant factors. His unhealthy desire to be the best at everything he does is choreographed perfectly in this movie, everything is done dramatically and with utmost bias towards him and his career.
There are some positives though, I liked to see his house, his lifestyle, private jets and behind the scenes at award shows. His general arrogance often annoyed me, but looking past that and seeing how these multi-millionaires live is quite surreal. The scene where his Son spots Messi and is star struck is a great scene as it shows us how lucky we are to have these two great footballers playing at the same time in the same era.
Overall the movie offers nothing of great interest to the average football fan or even fans of Ronaldo. It will of course be lapped up by the teenage fan boys, making him a ton of money in the process. It would have been nice to see a documentary which shows us his past, gets in touch with his emotions more and provides more depth to his life. Instead it is simply a 90 minute video of Ronaldo telling us how he wants to always be the best and showing us how flash his lifestyle is, he's a man who has everything yet seems incredibly lonely and often unhappy.
4/10
The opening scene shows Messi winning Ballon D'or after Ballon D'or, Ronaldo speaking over this essentially spits his dummy out, traumatised and heartbroken. This sets the tone, Ronaldo doesn't care about team glory if he doesn't have the personal, individual glory to go with it. Winning the Best Player in the World award is all he wants, his success within teams is nowhere near as important as that to him, and in a team sport, that is a really negative, delusional trait to have.
Its labelled a documentary but its hardly that, its essentially a VLOG or Ronaldo's year leading up to his Ballon D'or award, covering the world cup and the Champions League final. Sadly we get to see minimal back story from his child hood, Lisbon or Manchester United years. He touches on these times but we get no depth to it and we are not shown anything new or interesting. Nobody talks directly down the camera, instead we have Ronaldo narrating scenes of himself being vain and obnoxious or filming of his life in his home which gets repetitive from the 1st minute as he doesn't show us anything important at all.
The film seems to advertise his Son just as much as it does himself, the scenes with his Son are somehow all about Ronaldo as well. 'Drink that drink and you will get strong arms like Daddy', he then flexes his biceps. Yawn. Or when he gets his Son to do 5 sit ups, only for Ronaldo to then start working out. His Mother features heavily in this film and she seems much more humble and down to earth. However Jorge Mendes, Ronaldo's agent is also featured often and he is a close runner with Ronaldo for most arrogant man on the planet. What a slime ball he is, and the sucking up to Ronaldo that he does is some of the most cringe worthy things I have ever had to witness.
One scene that completely epitomises Ronaldo Is when he opens his Garage, which is bigger than the average house, to show his Son that one of his cars is missing as it is having some work done. Ronaldo's Son is then forced to guess which one is missing, 'The Rolls, The Porsche, The Ferrari?' his Son guesses as he walks around the garage surrounded by super cars. 'No' says Ronaldo, 'The one that goes even faster than that'. How can you even film that and not feel like a complete and utter narcissistic moron?
Another thing we have to endure is his inability to take any blame for his actions. His never criticises himself once during the whole documentary, he genuinely believes that he is faultless and failures are not down to his ability but rather his team mates, injuries or other irrelevant factors. His unhealthy desire to be the best at everything he does is choreographed perfectly in this movie, everything is done dramatically and with utmost bias towards him and his career.
There are some positives though, I liked to see his house, his lifestyle, private jets and behind the scenes at award shows. His general arrogance often annoyed me, but looking past that and seeing how these multi-millionaires live is quite surreal. The scene where his Son spots Messi and is star struck is a great scene as it shows us how lucky we are to have these two great footballers playing at the same time in the same era.
Overall the movie offers nothing of great interest to the average football fan or even fans of Ronaldo. It will of course be lapped up by the teenage fan boys, making him a ton of money in the process. It would have been nice to see a documentary which shows us his past, gets in touch with his emotions more and provides more depth to his life. Instead it is simply a 90 minute video of Ronaldo telling us how he wants to always be the best and showing us how flash his lifestyle is, he's a man who has everything yet seems incredibly lonely and often unhappy.
4/10
Nothing is Impossible!
sameerpathan00079 November 2015
You may call him arrogant, a person with a huge ego but in reality he has a humble heart. Ronaldo covers almost all of the phases of his life, his journey, his achievements, his personal life and his deep passion for football. It gives us a glimpse of how Cristiano Ronaldo is off the pitch and both on the pitch rather than what media tries to show us. He is loved throughout the world and hated as well. Cristiano Ronaldo himself tells us about the all the hardships he faced and how many sacrifices he has made to be able to become what he is now. His family, especially his mother played a huge role in his success and the movie clearly shows how she enjoys his son getting the recognition that he deserves. Another star in the movie is Cristiano Jr. He is been the most important part of Ronaldo's life. The movie shows the great bond they both have and how his presence has turned Cristiano Ronaldo into a more mature man. Messi who has been an integral part of his football career since his move to Real Madrid with constant comparisons of who's better, can be seen during many parts of the film and it depicts their professional relationship and how the rivalry has influenced Cristiano in his professional career.
Ronaldo gives us a great insight in both the personal and professional life of Cristiano Ronaldo. Combined with great soundtrack and various inside footage, the movie shows us who Cristiano Ronaldo really is, not what he is shown in the media. If you have followed Cristiano Ronaldo,whether you hate him or love him, this movie will certainly change your mind about him. A kid from the small island of Madeira to become the best player in the world, the message the movie tries to give is that "Nothing is impossible!"
Ronaldo gives us a great insight in both the personal and professional life of Cristiano Ronaldo. Combined with great soundtrack and various inside footage, the movie shows us who Cristiano Ronaldo really is, not what he is shown in the media. If you have followed Cristiano Ronaldo,whether you hate him or love him, this movie will certainly change your mind about him. A kid from the small island of Madeira to become the best player in the world, the message the movie tries to give is that "Nothing is impossible!"
Nothing is impossible
shalukarajapaksha15 October 2023
That's the motivation you get from this movie. Mendes's demanding voice would definitely hype you.
Feel that this is less than a half of Ronaldo's story. As a fan I would love to see a full documentary of CR7.
But for those who love Ronaldo, it's highly recommended to watch this.
The passion, ambition, and commitment he has given, shown, and proven are needed to be admire.
This will show how a mother can be so proud about the succes of her child achived at an international level.
This shows being the greatest is not that easy, maintaing it ia even harder without so much of sacrifices, and unconditional love and support from the family and friends.
Feel that this is less than a half of Ronaldo's story. As a fan I would love to see a full documentary of CR7.
But for those who love Ronaldo, it's highly recommended to watch this.
The passion, ambition, and commitment he has given, shown, and proven are needed to be admire.
This will show how a mother can be so proud about the succes of her child achived at an international level.
This shows being the greatest is not that easy, maintaing it ia even harder without so much of sacrifices, and unconditional love and support from the family and friends.
A marketing ploy with almost no authenticity
dannyritawedding13 November 2015
Warning: Spoilers
These types of documentaries, i.e. behind the scenes with someone of note over a defining period of their life, is often hugely entertaining and insightful. Not this one.
'Ronaldo' is a pure piece of marketing to be sold to Ronaldo fans. There's insight into the issues surrounding and defining his family, specifically his brother, mother and late father, however Ronaldo is portrayed as the demi-God with few, if any, personal issues. Indeed the film intimates that he is the salvation for everyone in his family, specifically his mother who states that she thanks God that she didn't go through with the abortion she planned when pregnant with Ronaldo. Weird.
I found his devotion to his son admirable however it seems the beginning of a very unhealthy path in that Ronaldo Jr already seems to have his future mapped out - to follow in his father's footprints. Indeed, the whole controversy around Jr's conception/birth mother (a mystery) was not addressed at all.
In terms of football, this film epitomizes the issues with professional sport. There is no mention of the value of teamwork, selflessness and placing the team above the individual - the tone here is that Ronaldo is the Saviour and no one else matters.
Overall Ronaldo came across as driven, single-minded, deluded, selfish, arrogant and, most tellingly of all, permanently self-conscious. He might be incredible on the field but off it he comes across as someone living with a massive dissonance between who he presents himself to be and who he really is within. And for that reason I'm left feeling sad for him.
'Ronaldo' is a pure piece of marketing to be sold to Ronaldo fans. There's insight into the issues surrounding and defining his family, specifically his brother, mother and late father, however Ronaldo is portrayed as the demi-God with few, if any, personal issues. Indeed the film intimates that he is the salvation for everyone in his family, specifically his mother who states that she thanks God that she didn't go through with the abortion she planned when pregnant with Ronaldo. Weird.
I found his devotion to his son admirable however it seems the beginning of a very unhealthy path in that Ronaldo Jr already seems to have his future mapped out - to follow in his father's footprints. Indeed, the whole controversy around Jr's conception/birth mother (a mystery) was not addressed at all.
In terms of football, this film epitomizes the issues with professional sport. There is no mention of the value of teamwork, selflessness and placing the team above the individual - the tone here is that Ronaldo is the Saviour and no one else matters.
Overall Ronaldo came across as driven, single-minded, deluded, selfish, arrogant and, most tellingly of all, permanently self-conscious. He might be incredible on the field but off it he comes across as someone living with a massive dissonance between who he presents himself to be and who he really is within. And for that reason I'm left feeling sad for him.
Phenomenon
moaderyani989 November 2015
Warning: Spoilers
The life of Cristiano Ronaldo from the inside.
You get to view and live everything he does, feels and works for, from the moment he wakes up until the moment he falls asleep. All the emotions he has felt during his career, the sad moments and the happy moments, the disappointments he's had and all the great things he has achieved. You also get to see way he raises he child alone and the way he helps his family out.
Real Madrid fans will fall involve with this movie as it will help them relive the most emotional moments in the teams history.
A great person and an inspiring story. Great watch for football fans.
You get to view and live everything he does, feels and works for, from the moment he wakes up until the moment he falls asleep. All the emotions he has felt during his career, the sad moments and the happy moments, the disappointments he's had and all the great things he has achieved. You also get to see way he raises he child alone and the way he helps his family out.
Real Madrid fans will fall involve with this movie as it will help them relive the most emotional moments in the teams history.
A great person and an inspiring story. Great watch for football fans.
CR7
spremo-aljosa10 January 2023
I always preffered Ronaldo ahead of Messi, simply because he is hard worker. This movie show us his dedication, he's love for his mother , brother and son. He is one of the best in history, for sure. I think that he had tough and rough childhood and very difficult path through his early days of career. Loved to have him as captain in Fantasy Premier League back then. One thing that I don't understand is everything about surrogat mother of his boy, but we live in world where things like that became "normal". He succeeded with all clubs that he joined, becoming vintage part of every of it. Wish him luck in Saudi Arabia, he deserve it.
A very choreographed look at Ronaldo.
charlton-0562711 November 2015
Warning: Spoilers
Whilst this was fairly watchable, it didn't tell us anymore about Ronaldo as a person than we already know. In fact, he and his agent Jorge Mendes came off even more out of touch with reality, especially the latter. His agent portrays Ronaldo as if he is the greatest person ever to walk the earth, the gushing admiration was noticeably cringe worthy towards the end of the movie, when he makes a speech after they have finished a family dinner about how Ronaldo is the greatest sportsman and person around. Even Ronaldo's family are quick to shout give him an Oscar. It's no wonder with Ronaldo surrounding himself with Mendes from the age of 16 why he became as arrogant as he is.
I thought the only true characters we got to see were his mother and son. I felt sorry for his mother as she has clearly not yet come to terms with losing her husband. You can see also the pressure she faces when Ronaldo plays. I think his desire to want to be recognised as better than Messi has really got to her. There is one point where Ronaldo says it's just a game to her on the phone, but this is after he opens the movie with "winning is everything to me" He contradicts himself a good few times throughout the movie.
What can't be questioned is that he clearly loves his son. His son comes across as a very normal and honest kid. There is one point where Ronaldo talks to another father outside the school as he is picking his son up, and as they walk away Ronaldo remarks on the man's stature, to which his son replies "bigger than you". Ronaldo then quickly adds "but Daddy is stronger", as if he was threatened and needed to prove his dominance over others to his son. Also, there is a part where he asks his son which car is missing, like this was a normal test of intelligence for a child... It showed this is not someone who you can relate to. What I got also from Ronaldo is that he expects his son to become almost a replica of him, hence the name Cristiano Junior and the way you can see he wants him to become a footballer, like he expects he will live up to his standards, which is unfair on the boy.
As a person you can gage he is not that understanding of others and sees things very much as black and white. This was highlighted by what happened with his dad. He said the biggest regret was that his dad could not see how he turned out, which is fair enough- but he said I wished I had another dad and I don't care why he became an alcoholic, which to me shows he fails to realise that not everyone has the same mindset in life as he does and can go down the wrong paths for whatever reason.
What was never seen in this movie was a true look at a Ronaldo who suffers through the bad times. They focused on the injury he had at the world cup, but in terms of their exit, it failed to show his reaction to their elimination for an extended period. All that was seen was him getting into a taxi and saying how he needed to go on holiday. He also blamed their elimination purely on Portugal's team and his injury, failing to admit he missed many good chances against the USA and Ghana, which could have put them through. There is never at any point any self criticism. He does not portion any of the blame on himself for things at any point not just footballing wise, but in all aspects. There was also no mention of his break up with his ex girlfriend in the movie and it showed nothing of her, considering they were dating for a some time over which it was filmed. There was a fleeting mention of her but nothing else.
In terms of his rivalry with Messi, I would say the obsession with manifests itself in the movie more than ever. The film makes no secret of his disappointment at seeing Messi winning four years in a row, which is to be expected; but this was one of the first things you see at the start, all but confirming this is what football for him is all about. Whilst he goes on to say he says he sees Messi as more of a person now, I think that stems from Ronaldo winning the last two Ballon D'ors. Had Messi won both, I think there wouldn't have even been a movie and he certainly would not be talking about Messi in a more positive light. It's good he has not taught his son that Messi is someone he sees as his rival, but you can figure out Messi is never far from his and his agents thoughts.
Overall, I can't say the movie endeared me to Ronaldo anymore than before. There was not enough of a connection formed with him to make you think this is a person who actually is quite humble and is not afraid to show himself at his worst. He was very wrong to claim the movie is an honest look at how he is, because you can see it's not. He has some good points shown, but the overriding theme is a huge ego and unhealthy obsession to be the best.
I thought the only true characters we got to see were his mother and son. I felt sorry for his mother as she has clearly not yet come to terms with losing her husband. You can see also the pressure she faces when Ronaldo plays. I think his desire to want to be recognised as better than Messi has really got to her. There is one point where Ronaldo says it's just a game to her on the phone, but this is after he opens the movie with "winning is everything to me" He contradicts himself a good few times throughout the movie.
What can't be questioned is that he clearly loves his son. His son comes across as a very normal and honest kid. There is one point where Ronaldo talks to another father outside the school as he is picking his son up, and as they walk away Ronaldo remarks on the man's stature, to which his son replies "bigger than you". Ronaldo then quickly adds "but Daddy is stronger", as if he was threatened and needed to prove his dominance over others to his son. Also, there is a part where he asks his son which car is missing, like this was a normal test of intelligence for a child... It showed this is not someone who you can relate to. What I got also from Ronaldo is that he expects his son to become almost a replica of him, hence the name Cristiano Junior and the way you can see he wants him to become a footballer, like he expects he will live up to his standards, which is unfair on the boy.
As a person you can gage he is not that understanding of others and sees things very much as black and white. This was highlighted by what happened with his dad. He said the biggest regret was that his dad could not see how he turned out, which is fair enough- but he said I wished I had another dad and I don't care why he became an alcoholic, which to me shows he fails to realise that not everyone has the same mindset in life as he does and can go down the wrong paths for whatever reason.
What was never seen in this movie was a true look at a Ronaldo who suffers through the bad times. They focused on the injury he had at the world cup, but in terms of their exit, it failed to show his reaction to their elimination for an extended period. All that was seen was him getting into a taxi and saying how he needed to go on holiday. He also blamed their elimination purely on Portugal's team and his injury, failing to admit he missed many good chances against the USA and Ghana, which could have put them through. There is never at any point any self criticism. He does not portion any of the blame on himself for things at any point not just footballing wise, but in all aspects. There was also no mention of his break up with his ex girlfriend in the movie and it showed nothing of her, considering they were dating for a some time over which it was filmed. There was a fleeting mention of her but nothing else.
In terms of his rivalry with Messi, I would say the obsession with manifests itself in the movie more than ever. The film makes no secret of his disappointment at seeing Messi winning four years in a row, which is to be expected; but this was one of the first things you see at the start, all but confirming this is what football for him is all about. Whilst he goes on to say he says he sees Messi as more of a person now, I think that stems from Ronaldo winning the last two Ballon D'ors. Had Messi won both, I think there wouldn't have even been a movie and he certainly would not be talking about Messi in a more positive light. It's good he has not taught his son that Messi is someone he sees as his rival, but you can figure out Messi is never far from his and his agents thoughts.
Overall, I can't say the movie endeared me to Ronaldo anymore than before. There was not enough of a connection formed with him to make you think this is a person who actually is quite humble and is not afraid to show himself at his worst. He was very wrong to claim the movie is an honest look at how he is, because you can see it's not. He has some good points shown, but the overriding theme is a huge ego and unhealthy obsession to be the best.
enlightening
hangarra3 December 2015
Warning: Spoilers
i never fully understood why Portugal never could do better with the best player in the world than we once did without him. up until now. hands down to ronaldo for creating the mindset needed to become what he is today. That being said, he simply drowned in is created and self induced idea that he is a demigod.
In the entire documentary not one single reference to a teammate. Instead only subtle accusations that the team is not as good as him. They don't have the talent he does, the motivation he does, the belief he does, the endurance to pain he does. Boy it must suck to be in the same team as this guy. We win praise me, we lose its your fault. You can have the best player in the world in the team, and if it is ronaldo you are sure the get the absolute most out of 1 guy all season, but you are also sure not to have the most out of the other 10 because of him. maybe 1 day he will realize that some people don't like him nearly as much as they like the money he gets them, and that for a man to be truly great he cant be out grown by his ego. In the end, i was left feeling kinda sorry for him. although I'm sure that getting in on one of the 30 sports car sitting in his garage (that he so smoothly used his son to show us), is all it takes to make him feel great about himself.
In the entire documentary not one single reference to a teammate. Instead only subtle accusations that the team is not as good as him. They don't have the talent he does, the motivation he does, the belief he does, the endurance to pain he does. Boy it must suck to be in the same team as this guy. We win praise me, we lose its your fault. You can have the best player in the world in the team, and if it is ronaldo you are sure the get the absolute most out of 1 guy all season, but you are also sure not to have the most out of the other 10 because of him. maybe 1 day he will realize that some people don't like him nearly as much as they like the money he gets them, and that for a man to be truly great he cant be out grown by his ego. In the end, i was left feeling kinda sorry for him. although I'm sure that getting in on one of the 30 sports car sitting in his garage (that he so smoothly used his son to show us), is all it takes to make him feel great about himself.
A Great Documentary
Lain66627 February 2020
Depressing Movie by a Narcissist
kwameboame4 December 2015
The movie was awful for me. From the beginning to the end, you see a lad who loves being pampered and praised. Throughout the movie, there is a feeling of obsession of Ronaldo by himself and he seems to surround himself with people who only obssess over him like he needs some kind of validation. His obsession on wanting to be considered as a better player than Messi is also clear and even his agent joins in on that.
The only parts I loved was the parts with his son...even there, there was a bit of narcissism but you can see he genuinely tries to be a better dad for his son and he really tries to make time for him.
Overall, the movie was boring after about 20 minutes for me.
The only parts I loved was the parts with his son...even there, there was a bit of narcissism but you can see he genuinely tries to be a better dad for his son and he really tries to make time for him.
Overall, the movie was boring after about 20 minutes for me.
A Deep Deep movie...
sultankazi-7648618 March 2020
Warning: Spoilers
The movie 'Ronaldo' evoked many emotions throughout its running time. From happiness to downright sadness, exploring not only the different aspects of the superstars life and career but also the values and beliefs that steadily edged him into the number one spot in the world. Ronaldo himself states in the beginning parts of the movie that "I have everything I have because of sacrifice, dedication, hard work and belief" his pure passion and single minded approach to his career even with his addiction ridden brother and drunk of a father, emphasizing his dedication and love for his craft. The movie, however, is no attempt to present Ronaldo as a squeaky clean figure. It talks about his sons mother, and is a honest portrayal of him, whether it be his extremely competitive nature or his vanity. The viewer will leave this film with not only a greater respect for Ronaldo due to the sheer honesty in the movie, but also greatly touched by how sacrifice, dedication, hard work and belief can change any mans life.
Great Player! Terrible Movie!
dv_wife27 November 2015
It is really hard to even call this a movie... It does not flow together at all. It is a bunch of videos stitched together.
With that being said... I love soccer and I love watching Ronaldo play!
It completely left out his time spent playing at Manchester United. This WAS some of his BEST years! They gave him his chance to shine and he didn't disappoint! I just wish he had included some of that in this movie.
This movie was more about Ronaldo and his son.
If you want to watch this to see some great Ronaldo futbol, then skip it. Just go to Youtube.
With that being said... I love soccer and I love watching Ronaldo play!
It completely left out his time spent playing at Manchester United. This WAS some of his BEST years! They gave him his chance to shine and he didn't disappoint! I just wish he had included some of that in this movie.
This movie was more about Ronaldo and his son.
If you want to watch this to see some great Ronaldo futbol, then skip it. Just go to Youtube.
The poster of this movies shows half of CR's face...I guess it suggests, half of him.
numedeuser28 December 2015
For this half of his life I gave it a 5. Would love to see the other half of his life...
I would have gave it a 10, if the other missing half would have been included in this documentary.
But anyway, I guess it would have been close to impossible, to talk about the other half which may not be so appealing, and disturb some of the people who think or want to think that, what this documentary showed is pretty much all the truth about his life and the other persons involved in it.
IMHO he is one of the best football players of his generation!
I would have gave it a 10, if the other missing half would have been included in this documentary.
But anyway, I guess it would have been close to impossible, to talk about the other half which may not be so appealing, and disturb some of the people who think or want to think that, what this documentary showed is pretty much all the truth about his life and the other persons involved in it.
IMHO he is one of the best football players of his generation!
Excellent Movie
andretviveiros9 November 2015
Very great movie, i have watched yet in my home before all people in the cinema, i recommend a lot. Please watch it! If you wanna watch it please, put some popcorn and drink, it is a very intensional documentary, i felt with the movie and i enjoyed a lot.
Cristianinho was very funny and the trailer expectation correspondent to the film, 10 and one day only on cinema. Cristiano is a good person.
For the Portuguese people: I hope you like the movie, it will be 1h and 42 minutes of entertainment and good luck to your eyes heehaw
Have a good time my friends and I wish many luck to the grand Cristiano Ronaldo.
Cristianinho was very funny and the trailer expectation correspondent to the film, 10 and one day only on cinema. Cristiano is a good person.
For the Portuguese people: I hope you like the movie, it will be 1h and 42 minutes of entertainment and good luck to your eyes heehaw
Have a good time my friends and I wish many luck to the grand Cristiano Ronaldo.
Hits the crossbar.
Martipee31 July 2021
Nothing any football fan would not already be aware of. Nowhere is his footballing ability actually shown in matches, while his cars clothes and hair is. And just to top things off, the last 10 minutes are about other players even Messi. Entertaining, but disappointing and only good for diehard fans or the CR7 ignorant.
Outstanding movie of the year
meh_kapil9 November 2015
Warning: Spoilers
This is one of the finest movie you'll ever watch. Know life the best footballer in this century. But movie is still incomplete in my opinion. His career should be mentioned more. Everything about Ronaldo is mentioned, his rivalry, his action, his emotion, his family,etc. You guys wont be disappointed though watching this movie. Worth to watch. If someone out there not fan of this guy, please watch this movie. Ull get life of Messi too.Also being greatest fan of Ronaldo, i want to congratulate him giving hit biographical movie in 2015. Love you Ronaldo, my unmet brother till date. PS: i love your stance bro in free kick.
Great Player & Great Movie!
coderacc25 November 2015
Brief explanation:
This movie is emotionally great and wonderfully heart-warming, it's based on C.Ronaldo and what he has been through in the past along with some insight about his close family and friends.
If anyone criticizes this film then they either misunderstood it or just simply dislike C.Ronaldo, because his controversially the best individual footballer in our planet. "Haters gonna hate, it's life."
The moral of the film is basically that C.Ronaldo grew up from nothing and made it successfully something and now is living the dream. C.Ronaldo also makes us viewers understand that most things are not impossible in life, you just got to have true passion, relentless-ambition, confidence and a hard-working mentality towards whatever you want to achieve.
If the above sounds good, then this movie is a must watch for you and your acquaintances! :D
This movie is emotionally great and wonderfully heart-warming, it's based on C.Ronaldo and what he has been through in the past along with some insight about his close family and friends.
If anyone criticizes this film then they either misunderstood it or just simply dislike C.Ronaldo, because his controversially the best individual footballer in our planet. "Haters gonna hate, it's life."
The moral of the film is basically that C.Ronaldo grew up from nothing and made it successfully something and now is living the dream. C.Ronaldo also makes us viewers understand that most things are not impossible in life, you just got to have true passion, relentless-ambition, confidence and a hard-working mentality towards whatever you want to achieve.
If the above sounds good, then this movie is a must watch for you and your acquaintances! :D
See also
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