Solers United

Solers United follows a women’s football team that faces financial uncertainty, while tensions arise between longtime friends Bills and Nelly. Newcomer to the team, Sals further complicates their issues, as Bills can not help but feel an instant connection to Nelly. During halftime of a substantial match, conflict reaches a turning point, and Nelly and Bills must confront their feelings and mend their relationship. Loosely inspired by director Sara Harrak’s local football team, the film is a celebration of women’s sport and queer identity, wearing its influences on its sleeve from titles such as Bend It Like Beckham (2002) and Bottoms (2023). The film played at the BFI Flare Film Festival earlier in the year and will later be shown on Channel 4 for a broader audience to experience.

One of the most groundbreaking achievements of the piece is its ability to immediately create warmth and connection to the central characters, thanks to the script and the chemistry-laden cast. The entire ensemble is terrific, led by Leah Harvey, who is the standout of the piece due to their charming and endearing character traits. The chemistry between Anna Demetriou and Leah Harvey, in particular, is comforting, and it is a joy to watch their relationship unfold. While its focus on the romance aspects, such as the cliché of who is going to confess their feelings to one another first, can feel overdone by this point, it still manages to feel refreshing due to the setting and character dynamics.

The script is hyper-focused on the comedic elements of the team and their relationship, and many of the gags work thanks to how well-balanced tonally this feels in contrast to the more serious moments of dialogue. While the screenplay sadly fails to fully flesh out the characterisation and relationships between the central characters, it is due to a lack of runtime and an open-ended conclusion that leaves the viewer wanting more. Perhaps the feature film that is currently in development can flesh out these ideas more eloquently.

The themes present throughout the piece are timely thanks to the current landscape of women's football and the popularity that has grown for the sport over the years. Tackling themes such as queer identity in football is incredibly important, and the filmmakers conveying this could potentially reach out to a wider queer audience with future exposure. The coming-of-age aspect thematically is another draw to the target demographic for younger audiences, potentially seeking representation in a crowd-pleasing narrative. Even with its brisk pacing, you really get a sense of community and love for women within the sport, which is astoundingly heartwarming as a viewer.

The sequences of football are kinetic in their energy from the editing and make the experience visceral and engaging. However, the piece would have benefited from more actual football woven into the narrative. Sara Harrak’s direction is splendid; it is evident she is clearly in love with the material and the characters, thanks to the naturalistic and warm tone she creates. Chaimaa Ormazábal’s cinematography is another highlight, with a blend of aerial shots and tracking the actors across the pitch and through the changing rooms for more intimate scenes. The musical score implemented into the football sequences is dynamic and pulse-pounding, alongside suitably placed needle drops.

Solers United is a refreshing tale of the insecurities of daring to reach out to another before it is too late. Infused with a kinetic energy on and off the pitch, the film delightfully charms you with its electric ensemble led by two terrific central performances from Leah Harvey and Anna Demetriou. While it may tread familiar ground in its narrative and leave the viewer wanting more, this is a great start that will undoubtedly improve as a feature-length film.