World Cup fever is back as England once again dares to believe after 60 years of hurt. Ahead of early Monday morning’s Round of 16 bout against Mexico City, a film to check out this weekend is a classic World War 2 football movie starring Michael Caine. Back in 1981, the Italian Job legend starred opposite Sylvester Stallone in Escape to Victory. Caine played English Captain John Colby, a West Ham professional footballer who leads a group of Allied POWs in an exhibition football match against the Germans, while simultaneously plotting their escape.
The film also co-stars real footballers Bobby Moore and Pelé, plus a ton of Ipswich Town players who were even stand-ins for Caine and Stallone. Meanwhile, England World Cup-winning goalkeeper Gordon Banks and Alan Thatcher helped train Stallone for his goalkeeping sequences. Although it wasn’t an easy shoot for the Rocky star, who ended up with broken ribs and a dislocated shoulder.
Stallone had publicly declared football a “sissy sport” until brutal encounters on set put him in the hospital. In one instance, he broke a finger trying to block a penalty by Pelé.
Escape to Victory is streaming on NOW.