A fictitious movie moment? Not this one
Roar Rookie By DanEvansJr, 27 Jan 2010 DanEvansJr is a Roar Rookie
- Tagged:
- Invictus, Rugby Union, Rugby World Cup, South Africa, Springboks
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Movies about real life events or people many times leave me wondering if a specific scene or moment in time was exaggerated for effect. With the wealth of information available via the Internet it is an argument that can be solved with some degree of certainty – usually.
Over the holidays I went to see Invictus.
As someone who played a little rugby in college and has a son who recently wrote a terrific report on Nelson Mandela, I was excited to see the movie.
It’s a good movie and provides a decent overview of the circumstances that led up to the significance of the 1995 Rugby World Cup played in South Africa.
I have not read the book “Playing the Enemy” that the movie is based on, but I suspect anyone who has and seen the movie will tell me the book is much better.
Not too surprising, with a subject as complicated as Mandela’s release from prison, his election as President and the truly remarkable moment in time that the 1995 Rugby World Cup was, how it brought a divided country together and the role the Springboks played.
I have a friend, Tony Ridnell, who played rugby at the highest level for the United States Eagles the national team, earning 14 caps in 15s International competition, as well as many others in 7’s matches.
I was fortunate enough to attend the Hong Kong 7s a couple times, which is one of the must-see sporting events in the world.
Tony played in Hong Kong several times with the Eagles and I know he agrees with me – I’ve seen the photos! Tony traveled the world representing the United States playing rugby. Not a bad way to spend a few years.
Following his retirement from rugby, Tony Ridnell launched an extremely successful global chemical distribution company called Tony Ridnell International here in Seattle.
Back to my original comment about exaggerated movie moments for effect. I thought the 747 fly-over in Invictus was not only exaggerated, but probably just a fictional movie moment – until today.
Tony posted the above photo on Facebook taken from his seat at the 1995 Rugby World Cup championship match at Ellis Park in Johannesburg featuring the Springboks versus the All Blacks.
Can’t say I’ll never doubt another movie moment that seems to (fill in the blank) to be true, but as of today I don’t doubt this famous movie moment!
Recommend this story.
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- Invictus, Rugby Union, Rugby World Cup, South Africa, Springboks
January 27th 2010 @ 2:40pm
allblackfan said | January 27th 2010 @ 2:40pm | Report comment
As far as I recall, the game came very close to being deferred. 3/4s of the AB team were stricken to some degree or not the night before the game. However, the movie made me understand how one person like Mandela could inspire a team to perform above itself.
I recall the 747 flyover; that was massive!!
Lomu’s tries came because he created the space himself. The ball was fed to him and away he went; his speed opened up those gaps in the defence. A certain Rupert Murdoch was watching that game as well and is reported to say “we have to get this guy”!! (Was this the genesis of the Super League war?).
And the gold match was given after the grand final, at the post-match dinner; it sparked a walkout by the ABs AND the referees. It was at this dinner that Louis Luyt also proclaimed that the Boks would have won the first two Cups had they been allowed to play!
January 27th 2010 @ 2:45pm
True Tah said | January 27th 2010 @ 2:45pm | Report comment
Lack of confidence was something Louis Luyt never had to worry about!
I guess Mandela is living proof that one man can make a difference, and someone who never lost his dignity.
As good as Lomu was in 1995, I reckon his best try was one against the French in 1999 QF, when he bulldozed his way through about 7 players including a few forwards.
January 27th 2010 @ 5:37pm
NickF said | January 27th 2010 @ 5:37pm | Report comment
Louis Luyt is the reason Francois Pinear pulled out of the agreement he had with Sean Fitzpatrick, representing the All Blacks, and Phil Kearns, representing the Wallabies. He treated FP like a little school boy and Pinear powered, leaving the other two groups in a heap of crap when it came time to negotiate with the unions in the Rugby War. I lost a lot of respect for Pinear during that time.
January 27th 2010 @ 5:14pm
Jerry said | January 27th 2010 @ 5:14pm | Report comment
They replicated the 747 flyover a few years later at the final test at Athletic Park. It was a bit disconcerting as the rumble caused a fair bit of rust to fall from the upper tier of the stand onto the lower stand.
January 27th 2010 @ 6:28pm
Lee said | January 27th 2010 @ 6:28pm | Report comment
Here’s what sir Collin meads said about the food poisoning incident and ‘suzy’
http://www.scrum.com/scrum/rugby/story/76963.html
i do not doubt some of the abs were sick but think the rest is Chinese whispers in an effort to deflect away from being upset when they were clear favourites, ie why the secrecy over who was and wasn’t sick?
January 27th 2010 @ 9:51pm
ohtani's jacket said | January 27th 2010 @ 9:51pm | Report comment
The best part of the whole story is this:
“”There was definitely something in the food. Four of the boys, who shall be nameless, didn’t have a meal at lunch-time.
“They snuck away and might have had something else, like Kentucky Fried Chicken, and none of those four got crook.”
That was Eric Rush, Jonah and some other guys who snuck out to play spacies.
January 28th 2010 @ 5:01am
Lee said | January 28th 2010 @ 5:01am | Report comment
Got to be the first time that you sneak out for KFC and are the only ones who don’t get sick…
I got to go to the prem in Auckland for Invictus and Eric Rush was in the row in front of me, he gave a big cheer(as did most of the audience)when they showed the footage of Lomu running over Mike Catt.
January 28th 2010 @ 1:38am
Dublin Dave said | January 28th 2010 @ 1:38am | Report comment
Looking forward to this movie. Even if it’s not any good, it will be a must see.
On how good was Lomu:
In that tournament he just seemed to be unstoppable. In New Zealand’s first game against Ireland he scored one try in the first half when he just rolled over his opposite number Richie Wallace, but then he Wallace was NEVER a good tackler.
An All Black try in the second half was just awesome however. He got the ball in his own half on the wing and then just ran down the touchline with a succession of IRish players lining him up and bouncing off him. He was finally hauled down a few metres short but Josh Kronfeld was on hand to take the supporting pass and score.
Lomu was awesome.
As for the Suzie nonsense. It was just Karma for Andy Haden’s dive in Cardiff in 1978-79 during New Zealand’s Grand Slam match against Wales.
And I’m not Welsh.
Hey come on. If we’re going to dig up one episode of righteously indignant whinging, why stop there?
January 28th 2010 @ 5:03am
Lee said | January 28th 2010 @ 5:03am | Report comment
Hahaha, good call Dave.
I tend to think of Lomu as just being the first truely big, professional winger, and have always wondered if he was only 19 now and made his debut today would he make that much of an impact in world rugby, or even be considered as good as he is considered now.
January 28th 2010 @ 7:18am
True Tah said | January 28th 2010 @ 7:18am | Report comment
Lee
I highly doubt there will ever be another player as fast, big and strong as Lomu was. There have been many excellent wingers since, Caucau, Tuqiri, Habana, Williams, Roko, Sivi, Corey Jane, but Im not sure if they would be in the same league as the big man.
Defences these days are so much better than back in 1995, but Lomu still would have had the goods methinks to rise to the top.
It would have been interesting to see if he had given the NFL a crack, he would have been an excellent wide receiver or running back, are there many guys in the NFL who would have been as big as Lomu and as fast?
January 28th 2010 @ 10:18am
allblackfan said | January 28th 2010 @ 10:18am | Report comment
there was a bloke who played for Fiji late 80s-early 90s who was as tall as Lomu (6`6) , as big (120kg) as him and as fast as him. His name is Mesake Rasari. Unlike Lomu, however, he preferred to run around his opponents, not through them.
January 28th 2010 @ 10:38am
katzilla said | January 28th 2010 @ 10:38am | Report comment
TT
Im sure there are plenty of guys in the NFL as big and as fast as Jonah.
Whether they have the ball skills and step/swerve that he had is what would set him apart.
January 28th 2010 @ 5:39am
Jerry said | January 28th 2010 @ 5:39am | Report comment
Well, as far as the Haden incident is concerned, while it was poor sportsmanship and Haden is a prize prick, the ref penalised the other Welsh lock for jumping off Frank Oliver’s shoulder. Which he blatantly did, so the Welsh don’t really have any right to feel aggrieved about having a penalty awarded against them. I feel sorry for Brian McKechnie.
January 28th 2010 @ 10:15am
Mark Young said | January 28th 2010 @ 10:15am | Report comment
I read the book over Christmas and really enjoyed it.
He did a terrific job of weaving together the Rugby into his main theme of The role Mandella played in forgin the new South Africa from the melting pot of cultures that is South Africa. I got a terrific feel for the different groups, especially the ‘beer bellied, thick bearded, safari suit wearing, brandy and coke swilling hard men from the veldt’ whom Mandella won over with his honest and fair approach the country and of course, by giving him back their Rugby!
I would recommend it to anyone who wants to better understand an interesting chapter of contemporary history and a truly remarkable man.
The jumbo flyover is included. The pilot was a bit of a maverick who went way lower then anyone had anticipated and scared the pants of everyone in the stadium!
Interesting fact, Mandella’s Johannesburg residence was ten minutes way from Ellis Park.
January 28th 2010 @ 10:19am
Loftus said | January 28th 2010 @ 10:19am | Report comment
Dandy,I think it’s time now for you and all other sore losers to just let this food poisoning nonsense go and move on with the rest of your lives.After 15 years there’s still no proof of any conspiracy and Suzie is the Loch Ness Monster.If any of you have ever had food poisoning you will know very well that you can’t even get out of your bed and go to the toilet.This is another poor excuse by the Kiwis because they choked again and the New Zealand public were looking for scape goats.Why should Eastwood put some Kiwi conspiracy theory in this movie when it hasn’t even been proven and nobody believed it except the Kiwis and some of their cousins in Australia?
January 28th 2010 @ 12:09pm
ohtani's jacket said | January 28th 2010 @ 12:09pm | Report comment
Louis! Great to see you mate. Are you still a prize twat?
January 28th 2010 @ 6:52pm
andystath said | January 28th 2010 @ 6:52pm | Report comment
Allblackfan it was Kitch Christie that proclaimed that the Boks would have won the first two Cups had they been allowed to play.
January 28th 2010 @ 7:09pm
allblackfan said | January 28th 2010 @ 7:09pm | Report comment
Really? I’m sure it was Louis Luyt because he also awarded the gold watch to Derek Bevan(?) which Kitchie wouldn’t have done. I remember it clearly because I was also offended by the comment and I was sitting 5000 miles away!!
January 28th 2010 @ 7:11pm
allblackfan said | January 28th 2010 @ 7:11pm | Report comment
It was Luyt!! Although he didn’t say it in precisely those words!!
Click here
http://www.theage.com.au/news/sport/most-memorable-postmatch-comments/2005/10/09/1128563042757.html?from=moreStories
January 29th 2010 @ 4:15pm
NickF said | January 29th 2010 @ 4:15pm | Report comment
Luyt also refered to Joel Stransky, the five eight and winning field goal kicker, as the “Jew Boy”.
January 28th 2010 @ 7:23pm
Phil said | January 28th 2010 @ 7:23pm | Report comment
Bad movie – but good for rugby I guess
January 28th 2010 @ 10:10pm
Wavell Wakefield said | January 28th 2010 @ 10:10pm | Report comment
RIP Ruben Kruger.
January 28th 2010 @ 10:34pm
ohtani's jacket said | January 28th 2010 @ 10:34pm | Report comment
Wow, that’s awful. I didn’t even know he had cancer.
January 29th 2010 @ 5:33am
Lee said | January 29th 2010 @ 5:33am | Report comment
Rest in Peace Ruben Kruger
One of the toughest and greatest Bok players ever – taken far too early.