Anelka: Misunderstood
netflix
The most substantial draw yet most problematic element to director Frank Nataf's documentary Anelka: Misunderstood is its titular subject: aloof and controversial figure Nicolas Anelka.
Fans of football or supporters of the reported misunderstood genius will have their appetites filled with a whole host of material for them to eat up. A sizeable amount of interviewees – such as colleagues and family – are on offer here to discuss the personality that is Anelka, and to that extent, it is undoubtedly eye-opening.
Teammates Thierry Henry, Didier Drogba and Emmanuel Petit are just a few names that add their own two cents, but it is the family-centric insight from Anelka's brothers, cousins and wife that are the most engaging and fascinating to behold. Granted, the interviews themselves are aesthetically poor and cheaply crafted, and the archive footage is often limited.
The issue arises with the titular subject himself. Anelka, while not being his quintessential cold self the media has reported, only gives the interview precisely what he wants to say – and rightly so. More often than not, the documentary feels like an effort to clean his image and with Anelka's history and the contextual discussion of media bias about his character, that would be a fair defense.
That being said, the documentary only wants to work on Anelka's time and never digs deep enough to be an exposé or an investigation into the extent of each controversy. Even on the surface, Anelka: Misunderstood is interesting enough to suffice but fails to showcase the true self of Nicolas Anelka. But with the media circus surrounding most of his career, it is his time to fire back.
