Kuningas Litmanen

In his home country of Finland, a statue was recently erected in honor of Jari Litmanen, the taciturn soccer player whose first name became widely popular among new parents in and around Amsterdam in the 1990s. In this film portrait, Litmanen talks about his life as an international sports hero. He visits places that were important to him in his long career: Amsterdam, Barcelona, Liverpool, and Lahti, Finland. Key figures from his life and career appear before the camera, and friends and colleagues have their say, too. These scenes are combined with footage from legendary games Litmanen played for Ajax Amsterdam, Barcelona, Liverpool and the Finnish national team. Litmanen displays his phenomenal bicycle kick, and we also watch as he - a paragon of fair play - gets a red card. Litmanen achieved his greatest successes in the seven years he played for Ajax, winning everything that could be won and even managing to become the top scorer in the Champion's League. But because he hails from a minor soccer nation, he never got to play a major championship at the national level, and Litmanen has also had his share of injuries. (International Documentary Film Festival Amsterdam)