The Referees

2009
7.3| 1h17m| NA| en| More Info
Released: 10 August 2009 Released
Producted By: Entre Chien et Loup
Country: Belgium
Budget: 0
Revenue: 0
Official Website:
Info

How can a few crucial minutes in a football match change the life of an entire family? How do the "men in black" feel when they are attacked by supporters? Kill the Referee unveils the lives of several professional football referees at the EURO 2008 championship; amongst them, the English referee Howard Webb, who provoked incredible controversy when he gave a penalty to Austria just before the end of the match with Poland, and the Italian Roberto Rosetti, who refereed the final.

Genre

Documentary

Watch Online

The Referees (2009) is currently not available on any services.

Director

Yves Hinant, Eric Cardot, Delphine Lehericey

Production Companies

Entre Chien et Loup

The Referees Videos and Images

The Referees Audience Reviews

Diagonaldi Very well executed
Claysaba Excellent, Without a doubt!!
Tyreece Hulme One of the best movies of the year! Incredible from the beginning to the end.
Cassandra Story: It's very simple but honestly that is fine.
shakercoola This documentary is a compelling insight into the life of a professional football referee at a major international football competition. There are moments in the match when the forensic view of the decisions on a football field almost feels like the scene of a crime where the officials are the accused in a diabolical arena. The main areas of focus are the decisions and their implications for the referees chances of career progression, but in more sinister terms for the adverse effects on their private lives. Never credited when they do well, but the focus of attention if they make a mistake - sometimes when it is not their fault. It's interesting to see the personal lives of the referees to humanise these hitherto voiceless lawkeepers, butperhaps too much was given over to this in the final third.
Sourav Saha A fly on the wall documentary, that essentially captures the lives of Referees and how their families are influenced. The "real heroes" where their superpowers are that of integrity, honesty and hawk vision. Portraying a calm demeanor, while the adrenaline is pumping does require a lot of strength, which a referee time and again illustrates.Different trios entrusted with responsibilities, that can cause a flutter among the political elites as well. All in all, a very insightful documentary and a must watch for anyone who enjoys the game of football and wants to understand the mentality of all the personnel involved which ensure the smooth running of the beautiful game.
valleyjohn While "The Referees" lacks the cutting edge of a lot of current documentary films , it's still a fascinating look at how the system works during a major tournament . England's leading ref , Howard Web is one of the protagonists and it's interesting to see how he communicates with his assistants during the game.It's interesting to see how the refs treat a game as if they are playing themselves and how they all work like a team just like the players they are reffing. I would have liked to have seen some kind of narrative and it would have been much better if we could have seen the world cup in 2010 instead of the European Championships of 2008.
thijsbroekhuizen The documentary shows an insight into the work of multiple referees during the European Cup 2008. If you like to see how referees act and what they experience during and after a match, this film is highly recommendable. This documentary provides an insight into how frequent the referee interacts with his linemen, what they say against football players, how they react after the match, and how their families are involved into refereeing. After seeing this documentary, I have gained much more respect for the job they do. It clearly shows under how much pressure these referees have to operate. It also shows the personalities (egos) of the referees.