Film trailer of the week: Eddie the Eagle

A truly British story of heroic failure and lofty ambitions, Eddie the Eagle sees Hugh Jackman and Christopher Walken alongside rising stars Taron Egerton and Anastasia Harrold
By SOFIANE KENNOUCHE
Published 23rd Dec 2015, 14:59 BST
Eddie the Eagle, starring Hugh Jackman and Taron Egerton, tells the story of Britain's Eddie Edwards, who found brief fame as an enthusiastic amateur competitor at the 1988 Calgary Winter Olympics. Image: ColliderEddie the Eagle, starring Hugh Jackman and Taron Egerton, tells the story of Britain's Eddie Edwards, who found brief fame as an enthusiastic amateur competitor at the 1988 Calgary Winter Olympics. Image: Collider
Eddie the Eagle, starring Hugh Jackman and Taron Egerton, tells the story of Britain's Eddie Edwards, who found brief fame as an enthusiastic amateur competitor at the 1988 Calgary Winter Olympics. Image: Collider

WHAT IS IT?

HUGH Jackman plays disgraced American coach Bronson Peary, who helps British amateur winter Olympian Eddie “The Eagle” Edwards, played by Taron Egerton of Kingsman: The Secret Service fame, to the 1988 Calgary Winter Olympics amid international adulation and condemnation.

WHAT’S IT ABOUT?

Eddie the Eagle, starring Hugh Jackman and Taron Egerton, tells the story of Britain's Eddie Edwards, who found brief fame as an enthusiastic amateur competitor at the 1988 Calgary Winter Olympics. Image: ColliderEddie the Eagle, starring Hugh Jackman and Taron Egerton, tells the story of Britain's Eddie Edwards, who found brief fame as an enthusiastic amateur competitor at the 1988 Calgary Winter Olympics. Image: Collider
Eddie the Eagle, starring Hugh Jackman and Taron Egerton, tells the story of Britain's Eddie Edwards, who found brief fame as an enthusiastic amateur competitor at the 1988 Calgary Winter Olympics. Image: Collider

In the words of Hugh Jackman, this feel-good film is a blend of the unlikely ambitions of the Jamaican bobsled team in Cool Runnings and the amateur perseverance of Billy Elliot.

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The plot focuses on Eddie “The Eagle” Edwards’ journey from aspiring downhill skier to amateur ski-jumper at the 1988 Calgary Winter Olympics as Great Britain’s first-ever competitor in the sport.

As Edwards’s fame begins to grow, so does opposition and ridicule from the ski-jumping establishment, with event organisers even asking the long-sighted Edwards not to compete at one point. Peary, played by Jackman, supports and tutors Edwards, even though the real-life plasterer from Cheltenham never had one as he was entirely self-funded.

DOES IT LOOK ANY GOOD?

As a motivational story of against-the-odds competition, the Dexter Fletcher-directed picture looks set to be popular when it lands next February, with early previews of the film praising Egerton’s transformation from svelte Kingsman spy to the clumsy, underbite-sporting Edwards.

The real-life Edwards, however, has expressed concern over the authenticity of the storyline, suggesting that parts of the tale may be embellished for the movie.

• Eddie the Eagle is set for release in cinemas April 2016

Related topics:American