Michael Fassbender stars in Taika Waititi’s feel-good sports film, Next Goal Wins, which takes its inspiration from real events.

It tells the story of the American Samoa soccer team that in 2002 lost to Australia 31 to 0, and had never scored a single goal since the team was created. They are a bottom of the rung club, but in 2014 they were determined to make another run at qualifying for the World Cup.

Enter Thomas Rongen (Fassbender) who has been exiled to American Samoa to coach the team. He has anger issues, can’t deal with being separated from his wife (Elizabeth Moss), and comes across as a terrible coach.

He has four weeks to turn the group into a sports team but he’ll have to learn to deal with the Pacific culture which seems to be at odds with his own angry outlook. The team is haphazardly thrown together and seems more interested in playing a game than pursuing a sport.

He can’t find a way to coach them, and he can’t connect with his players, including a trans-gender player, Jaiyah (Kamina), going so far as to dead-name them at one point. But they and their culture are able to eventually reach Rongen, and even if the team sucks (and they do), they may end up reminding Rongen that it is a beautiful game.

Incredibly funny, smart, vibrant, and surprisingly emotional, Next Goal Wins is a feel-good movie that you don’t want to see end.

The team lives on the support of the country they come from, and Tavita (Oscar Knightley) serves as the go-between for Rongen and the rest. And as Thomas attempts to coach the team, Tavita works on coaching him.

You know how things are going to play out before the film ends, whether you had seen the documentary about the team, knew the film’s back story or not. But it’s the emotional ride, delivered hilariously by Waititi’s direction and a sharp-as-a-tack script that he co-wrote with Iain Morris that makes this one not only endearing but a perfect cinematic confection.

I love how Jaiyah’s story is handled, and how it’s not even a thing in Samoan culture, they are accepted and loved for exactly who they want to be. It’s Thomas’ perceptions that are out of place, and he’s the one who needs to change to recognize that.

And it’s done with understated grace.

Next Goal Wins is joyous. It screens again Tuesday 12 September at the Princess of Wales Theatre and Thursday 14 September at the Royal Alexandra Theatre. Get tickets, find showtimes and other events here.

If you don’t get a chance to see this at TIFF, don’t worry, a wider release is coming, and if you miss it there, you’ll know this one will be a big hit on the streaming services. But if you can seek this one, please do. They don’t make feel-good sports movies like this one.