Once in a Lifetime: The Extraordinary Story of the New York Cosmos
ESPN | Release Date: July 7, 2006 CRITIC SCORE DISTRIBUTION
67
METASCORE
Generally favorable reviews based on 18 Critic Reviews
Positive:
15
Mixed:
3
Negative:
0
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Critic Reviews

Critic scorePublicationBy date
91
Entertainment WeeklyLisa Schwarzbaum
It's a stylish scramble of evocative footage, groovy music, and crazy-candid reminiscences from key players still proud to score. Read full review
83
Portland OregonianShawn Levy
Funky, scrappy, dishy, screwy story of that star-studded, gilded squad. Read full review
75
TV Guide MagazineMaitland McDonagh
Crowder and Dower's film is a refreshing reminder that without Ross and the Erteguns, pundits would have had to coin an entirely different term to describe "soccer moms," since without the Cosmos' brief and shining moment in the sun, suburban soccer leagues would be as rare as collegiate boccie tournaments. Read full review
75
New York PostLou Lumenick
Once in a Lifetime, which is being released at the peak of World Cup fever, is the sort of sports documentary that will appeal even to nonfans. It's a quintessential only-in-New York story. Read full review
75
New York Daily NewsJack Mathews
Once in a Lifetime performs a belated autopsy on the Cosmos and the North American Soccer League and basically concludes that they died of impatience. Read full review
75
Chicago TribuneKevin Williams
You don't need to be a soccer fan to, like Cosmos fans, fall for this captivating tale, told in "Rashomon"-like style. Read full review
75
San Francisco ChronicleG. Allen Johnson
What fun this documentary is. Read full review
70
VarietyLeslie Felperin
While soccer fans will rep the core aud, even non-fans can enjoy. Read full review
70
The New York TimesJeannette Catsoulis
This is a movie so unabashedly in love with its subject that even audiences who don't know Giorgio Chinaglia from Georgie Best will leave the theater grinning. Read full review
70
Washington PostDesson Thomson
Informative and entertaining. Read full review
70
The Hollywood ReporterFrank Scheck
This tale of the team that for a brief period in the 1970s promised to popularize soccer in the U.S. has it all: heroes, villains, sex and, oh yes, some sports as well. Read full review
70
Los Angeles TimesKevin Crust
An exuberant look at a heady moment in America's soccer past that is well worth remembering. Read full review
67
The A.V. ClubScott Tobias
Once In A Lifetime is less a proper documentary than an extended VH1 Behind The Music episode, but there's only a little bit wrong with that. Read full review
67
Austin ChronicleMarc Savlov
Once in a Lifetime's only major failing is the fact that the iconic Pelé is seen only in period footage. Read full review
63
Boston GlobeWesley Morris
The movie is only so-so, borrowing a little from the VH-1 school of popumentary but lacking the snazzy production values. Read full review
60
Village VoiceBill Gallo
This intermittently fascinating documentary chronicles the rise and fall of the Cosmos --which is also the rise and fall of U.S. soccer. Read full review
50
L.A. WeeklyJoe Donnelly
Though the movie promises a Behind the Music–type look at the meteoric rise and tragic fall of the Cosmos -- a team (if the press notes are to be believed) overwhelmed by wealth, groupies, rivalry and power struggles -- it all adds up to a tempest in a tea pot. Read full review
50
Chicago ReaderJonathan Rosenbaum
Despite the title, this is less a soccer documentary than a corporate hagiography along the lines of "The Last Mogul" or "The Kid Stays in the Picture"; its real hero isn't Cosmos star Pele (who wisely declined to be interviewed), but Steve Ross, CEO of Warner Communications, which owned the team. Read full review
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