Maradona: Blessed Dream review: Chronicling the rise of a genius in the backdrop of a civil war

Story:

The mini-series is a dramatised account of the early days of Diego Armando Maradona in the post-Juan Perón era in the country. The series focuses on Maradona’s rise from the ghettos of Fiorito to a global superstar in the backdrop of the military genocide in Argentina and the Falkland wars. The narrative often cuts to his time in a coma in 2000, after overdosing on cocaine while on holiday with his family in Uruguay.

Review:

Diego Maradona is probably one of the most well-documented footballers to have ever graced a football field. There have been countless documentaries and books that have put his life under the microscope from the highs of his 1986 World Cup and his time in Napoli in Italy to the lows of his drug abuse and health problems. Maradona: Blessed Dream has attempted to flesh out the meteoric rise of the left-footed playmaker. However, it fails to keep the viewers engaged due to a series of missteps in how the show was produced.

The series is split into five parts, focusing on the significant clubs he’s played for during his career in Cebollitas, Argentinos, Boca Juniors, and Barcelona. Surprisingly, his most memorable period in Europe with Italian Serie A team Napoli does not feature. The opening episode does offer a unique perspective into Maradona’s life growing up in a destitute town. The socio-economic crisis of Argentina at the time is subtlety captured through carefully crafted frames and visuals. It is intertwined with Maradona’s early life and his first shot at turning professional.

There is a very deliberate effort by the creators to highlight the political turmoil that had engulfed Argentina at the time. The passing of Juan Perón escalated into a power struggle between the military and Perón's wife and former Vice-President Isabel Perón. The resulting Coup d'état by the military resulted in the army seizing control of the country. The narrative suggests that the 1978 World Cup, which was held in Argentina and eventually won by Argentina, was Jorge Rafael Videla’s idea of distracting the global population from the atrocities committed by Videla’s army on civilians, with an estimated 30,000 murdered.

The series does not shy away from admitting that it was sympathetic towards Perón and Peronism, which is not surprising considering the military regime that ensued committed mass genocide and is widely held accountable for the Falkland War with the United Kingdom. However, despite being empathetic towards the minorities and the Jewish community, Perón has been sympathetic towards fascism as well. He was instrumental in harbouring Nazi war criminals who fled Germany after World War II — which is something the series completely leaves out.

Even though the political aspect of the series is informative to an extent, it fails to blend in smoothly with the overall narrative. The emphasis on Maradona’s political allegiance is justified, but the lack of a coherent script has undermined its influence in the narrative. However, it does manage to capture Maradona's many vices, and of course, all the good he has done both on and off the pitch. His relationships with his parents, siblings, friends, daughters, his ex-wife Claudia, and the several women in his life, are what are used as plot devices to add drama and intrigue.

The one aspect where the documentary shines is with the set design and aesthetics of the different eras. Football fans will also enjoy the archival footage and the dramatised events from his time with the Catalonian giants Barcelona. The colours of the Blaugrana in arguably one of the most romantic stadiums in the world, the Camp Nou, is an allure to almost anyone who follows European football - apart from maybe those who are loyal to the Los Blancos, Real Madrid.

Verdict:

The mini-series makes a genuine attempt at capturing the real Deigo Maradona, but poor writing and inconsistent performances by the cast makes it a tedious watch.