''The Final Game'' or ''Olympics'' (; ) is a 2022 Spanish-Andorran sports drama film directed by Àlex Murrull and

Dani de la Orden Dani de la Orden (born 2 June 1989) is a Spanish film and television director. Biography Dani de la Orden was born on 2 June 1989 in Barcelona. An avid consumer of cinema since he was very young, he started making short films alongside his gran ...

from a screenplay by Carlos Franco which stars

Álvaro Cervantes Álvaro Cervantes Sorribas (born 12 September 1989) is a Spanish actor. Life and career Álvaro Cervantes Sorribas was born in Barcelona on 12 September 1989. His younger sister Ángela has also pursued an acting career. Cervantes made a name ...

and

Jaime Lorente Jaime Lorente López (born 12 December 1991) is a Spanish actor. He is best known for playing the roles of Denver in ''Money Heist'' and Nano in ''Elite''. Education Born on 12 December 1991, Jaime Lorente López studied Dramatic Art at The ...

Manel Estiarte Manel Estiarte Duocastella (born October 26, 1961, in Manresa) is a Spanish former water polo player born in Manresa, a municipality in Barcelona, Spain. He is currently a member of Pep Guardiola's technical staff at Manchester City. He is usual ...

and

Pedro García Aguado Pedro Francisco García Aguado (born 9 December 1968) is a Spanish former water polo player and TV personality. He was a member of the national team that won the gold medal at the 1996 Summer Olympics in Atlanta, Georgia. Four years earlier, wh ...

. It is a dramatization of the

Spain men's national water polo team The Spain men's national water polo team (Spanish: ''Selección Española de Waterpolo'') represents Spain in men's international water polo competitions and it is controlled by Real Federación Española de Natación. Spain got the «Triple Cro ...

run Run(s) or RUN may refer to: Places * Run (island), one of the Banda Islands in Indonesia * Run (stream), a stream in the Dutch province of North Brabant People * Run (rapper), Joseph Simmons, now known as "Reverend Run", from the hip-hop group ...

at the 1992 Summer Olympics in Barcelona.

Plot

The plot is a dramatization of the

at the 1992 Summer Olympics in Barcelona, delving into the personal stories of

(and his

substance addiction Addiction is a neuropsychological disorder characterized by a persistent and intense urge to use a drug or engage in a behavior that produces natural reward, despite substantial harm and other negative consequences. Repetitive drug use can a ...

) and

(coping with the tragedy of his sister's

suicide Suicide is the act of intentionally causing one's own death. Risk factors for suicide include mental disorders, physical disorders, and substance abuse. Some suicides are impulsive acts driven by stress (such as from financial or ac ...

). Despite opposing personalities, they end up reaching an understanding built upon the shared suffering under coach Matutinović, characterised by inhuman training methods that earned the latter the team's animosity.

Cast

Production

The screenplay was penned by Carlos Franco. A Spanish-Andorran co-production, the film was produced by Playtime Movies and Sábado Películas alongside Imminent Produccions, with the participation of

RTVE The Corporación de Radio y Televisión Española (; ), known as Radiotelevisión Española (''Spanish Radio and Television'', RTVE), is the Spanish national public Broadcasting, television and radio broadcaster. It is a state-owned enterprise f ...

and collaboration from ICEC and Govern d'Andorra. Filming had already wrapped in November 2021. Shooting locations included

Barcelona Barcelona ( ; ; ) is a city on the northeastern coast of Spain. It is the capital and largest city of the autonomous community of Catalonia, as well as the second-most populous municipality of Spain. With a population of 1.6 million within c ...

and

Andorra Andorra, officially the Principality of Andorra, is a Sovereignty, sovereign landlocked country on the Iberian Peninsula, in the eastern Pyrenees in Southwestern Europe, Andorra–France border, bordered by France to the north and Spain to A ...

Release

Distributed by Universal Pictures International Spain, the film was theatrically released in Spain on 2 September 2022.

Reception

David Pardillos of ''

Cinemanía ''Cinemanía'' is a monthly film magazine based in Madrid, Spain Spain, or the Kingdom of Spain, is a country in Southern Europe, Southern and Western Europe with territories in North Africa. Featuring the Punta de Tarifa, southernmost po ...

'' rated the film 3½ out 5 stars, considering that the helmers "manage to maintain the tension until the last second and demonstrate that sometimes great stories also emerge from defeats". Fausto Fernández of ''

Fotogramas ''Fotogramas'' is a Spanish digital and print film magazine which has been in circulation since 1946. It is one of the early film magazines in Spain. History Founded in Barcelona, it was first published on 15 November 1946 by Antonio Nadal-Rodó ...

'' rated the film 3 out of 5 stars, welcoming the delivery of a Spanish-cinema equivalent to '' Hoosiers'' whilst citing "certain digital tweaks" as a negative point. Ekaitz Ortega of ''

HobbyConsolas ''HobbyConsolas'' is a Spanish video game magazine founded in 1991 by Hobby Press and published by Axel Springer SE. The first issue appeared in October 1991. The monthly magazine offers information about games for all consoles, and since 2012 ha ...

'' rated the film 63 out of 100 points ("acceptable"), considering that even if ''Olympics'' suffers from a certain standardization in the way the story is told, it is a sincere film that entertains throughout, highlighting the work by Lorente and Cervantes and the adaptation of the historical context. Manuel J. Lombardo of ''

Diario de Sevilla ''Diario de Sevilla'' is a Spanish newspaper founded in 1999 in Seville Seville ( ; , ) is the capital and largest city of the Spain, Spanish autonomous communities of Spain, autonomous community of Andalusia and the province of Seville. It i ...

'' rated the film 2 out of 5 stars, deeming it to be "a film of basic values and soaked testosterone that is only missing a touch of locker-room homoeroticism to be a true product of its time".

References