Pelé: Birth of a Legend

"A boy with nothing who changed everything."

2016 1h 47m EN

👍

7.3

SOLID

★7.3TMDB · 1,172

Drama

Synopsis

Spoiler shield

The life story of Brazilian football legend, Pele.

“A boy with nothing who changed everything.”

WhatsApp X Facebook Telegram

Where to watch · US

PhiloSubscription

AMC+ Amazon ChannelSubscription

Sundance NowSubscription

Google Play MoviesBuy

YouTubeBuy

Fandango At HomeBuy

Cast

Kevin de Paula
Pelé
Leonardo Lima Carvalho
Younger Pelé
Seu Jorge
Dondinho
Milton Gonçalves
Waldemar de Brito
Seth Michaels
Mário
Vincent D'Onofrio
Feola
André Mattos
Santos club's coach
Mariana Nunes
Celeste Arantes

Credits

Behind the camera

Director: Jeff Zimbalist
Writers: Michael Zimbalist, Jeff Zimbalist, Tarso Pizzorno
Languages: English, Russian
Countries: United States of America

Want more? Switch to Cinephile mode in the header for DP, composer, budget, box office, production companies, keywords, and release history.

Did you know?

Fun facts 🍿

1 / 8

MONEY

Did you know

Shot for just $2.3M — micro-budget by Hollywood standards.

MoodPlayr · trivia#01

2 / 8

MONEY

Did you know

Made its money back 3.4× over at the box office.

MoodPlayr · trivia#02

3 / 8

ERA

Did you know

Released 10 years ago.

MoodPlayr · trivia#03

4 / 8

WORLD

Did you know

Dialogue crosses 2 languages: English, Russian.

MoodPlayr · trivia#04

5 / 8

DIRECTOR

Did you know

Directed by Jeff Zimbalist, shot by Matthew Libatique. Note their partnership — DPs and directors often return to each other across a career.

MoodPlayr · trivia#05

6 / 8

DIRECTOR

Did you know

Original score by A.R. Rahman. Worth a dedicated listen after — most great films lose half their impact without the score.

MoodPlayr · trivia#06

7 / 8

ERA

Did you know

Editor Naomi Geraghty shaped the rhythm. On an edit-heavy film, the editor does more to control your pulse than the director.

MoodPlayr · trivia#07

8 / 8

CAST

Did you know

Kevin de Paula and Leonardo Lima Carvalho and Seu Jorge carry the top of the cast.

MoodPlayr · trivia#08

Cinephile deep dive

The take

Jeff Zimbalist directs. Matthew Libatique behind the camera. A.R. Rahman scores. Naomi Geraghty cuts. Made its budget back several times over at the box office. Produced in United States of America. Dialogue in English, Russian.

Trivia

Things worth knowing

1Shot for just $2.3M — micro-budget by Hollywood standards.
2Made its money back 3.4× over at the box office.
3Released 10 years ago.
4Dialogue crosses 2 languages: English, Russian.
5Directed by Jeff Zimbalist, shot by Matthew Libatique. Note their partnership — DPs and directors often return to each other across a career.
6Original score by A.R. Rahman. Worth a dedicated listen after — most great films lose half their impact without the score.
7Editor Naomi Geraghty shaped the rhythm. On an edit-heavy film, the editor does more to control your pulse than the director.
8Kevin de Paula and Leonardo Lima Carvalho and Seu Jorge carry the top of the cast.
9Marketing tagline: "A boy with nothing who changed everything.".
10IMDB entry: tt0995868 — still the authoritative cross-reference for credits and trivia.
11Released under 13 different titles around the world.

The technical file

Cinematography: Matthew Libatique
Original score: A.R. Rahman
Editing: Naomi Geraghty
Production design: Dominic Watkins
Costume design: Inês Salgado
Runtime: 107 min · 1h 47m
Aspect ratio (typical): 1.37:1 (Academy)
Status: Released
Budget: $2,300,000
Box office: $7,860,000
Return: 342% of budget
Original language: EN
Certification (US): PG
IMDB: Pelé: Birth of a Legend (2016)

Also by

Jeff Zimbalist

Stills · wallpapers

Selected frames

Full-resolution frames — open one to save it as a wallpaper.

Wallpaper

Trailers & featurettes

Watch the pieces

Community reviews

What people are saying

r96sk2023-02-16
★ 7/10
A straightforward, hearty sports biopic, is <em>'Pelé: Birth of a Legend'</em>. I love football, if I'm not watching films I'm watching the beautiful game, so was looking forward to checking this 2016 flick out, as it portrays the early years of the late, great Pelé. The film isn't quite as amazing as the Brazilian baller himself, but I think it just about creates a pleasant enough 100 minutes or so. It does have the usual biopic clichés, but if we're being honest that's to be expected. Kevin de Paula and Leonardo Lima Carvalho do well as the titular character, though the standout from an acting standpoint is, in my opinion, Seu Jorge. I, to be honest, did not know of him until just over a month ago when I watched 2019's <em>'<a href="https://letterboxd.com/film/marighella-2021/">Marighella</a>'</em>, I was thoroughly impressed with him in that and sames goes for this - a very capable actor. Elsewhere, Vincent D'Onofrio and Colm Meaney are involved too. My only main criticism of this is the fact that it's told in English. That obviously makes it that tad bit more watchable to English speakers like myself, so I wouldn't complain too hard, but it does slightly irritate me when the whole story is rooted, in this case, in Portuguese-speaking life and yet everyone speaks Anglais. Nothing major, granted.
Andre Wilfred Sanders2023-06-21
★ 7/10
How to be Brazilian through Pele's movie One of the wonderful movie that are classified in the biographical category. When you watch Pele: Birth of a Legend, you feel a sense of belonging to Brazil because of everyone's love for the legendary star Pele. The director and screenwriter made us feel that we belong to this story that is told through the film. The story revolves around a person named Pele, and the difficult experiences he went through in his life, including hardship and poverty for him and his miserable family, until he reached the Pele we know now. What impressed me more about the film than Pele's directing is that the director was able to produce impressive sports clips. The performance of the actors was good, especially the little Pele, who was skilled in his acting performance. A great person like Pele Many people don't know that Pele went through harsh experiences until he reached Pele who we know now. He grew up in a poor family, and the film showed us the extent of the suffering that Pele was in until he arrived from Santos to the national team. I liked the Brazilian samba music, which gave the viewer stimulation and made him feel that he was Brazilian. I felt the passion watching one shot after another. I was hooked from the first shot.