Pelé’s death at the age of 82 last Thursday (29) touched not only football fans, but the world as a whole. Edson Arantes do Nascimento became an icon of the sport thanks to his ability with the ball and, quite rightly, he has always been revered as the King of Football.
And the title is no exaggeration. Just look at all the achievements he had in his life as an athlete and the symbol he became even after his retirement. The only player to win three World Cups, in addition to several other achievements, incredible moments and more than a thousand goals in his career, Pelé’s trajectory and legacy deserve to be always remembered.
For this very reason, there are several films and documentaries that do this rescue work, both to remember the accomplishments of the football genius and also to present to the new generations why he always deserved this crown and all the laurels for the genius that he was.
5. Pelé: Birth of a Legend
We start our list with the most different feature of all. Pelé: Birth of a Legend takes literally the story of the King like something out of the movies and brings a romanticized version of the early years of the ace as a player. It is, therefore, the most accessible way for anyone who wants to begin to understand who this legend was.
The feature focuses mainly on Pelé’s early career, showing from his childhood and his entry into the Santos team, culminating in winning the first world title for the Brazilian national team in the 1958 World Cup, when he was only 18 years old.
Pelé: Birth of a Legend it is available on Globoplay
4. This is Pele
If the previous film shows Pelé’s first steps as a professional player until he won his first World Cup, the documentary This is Pele presents the next chapter of this story. The 1974 film was released shortly after winning the tri and takes stock of the King’s career on the eve of his departure from the pitch.
The most interesting part, of course, is the vision of the time on each of the world cups won by Brazil. There are behind-the-scenes scenes from the 1958, 1962 and 1970 World Cups, in addition to several testimonials from players who were with the ace, as well as speeches by Pelé himself, who makes a very emotional balance of everything he has lived up to then.
the documentary This is Pele it is available on Globoplay and also on YouTube at national screen channel.
3. Pele: The Origin
One of the most recent productions on the history of the King of Football, Pele: The Origin it is also focused on myth building. The feature film directed by Luiz Felipe Moura shows how little Edson decides to become a soccer player in a Brazil that is still very racist. Overcoming all these obstacles, he becomes a professional at the age of 15 and uses all these obstacles to write history.
Pele: The Origin it is available on Prime Video.
2. Pele
Despite its simple and straightforward name, the documentary Skin is not just limited to telling the story of the King of Football. In fact, the main point of the production is to sew the image of the idol with the history of Brazil itself and how the player’s trajectory has always been very intertwined with the national identity and the events of recent decades.
It’s a different cut than usual and it shows very well the importance of Pelé for Brazil, both as an idolized hero and as a personality that also symbolized many things off the field.
Skin it is available on Netflix.
1. Eternal Skin
It’s hard to say anything else about a film whose title translates so well what the King of Football was: eternal skin. As many people commented shortly after the athlete’s death was confirmed, the man Edson Arantes do Nascimento is leaving, because Pelé is forever.
And the 2004 documentary works well on the construction and strength of this myth of the ball. And although it is a slightly older production, it remains very current for showing both remarkable moments and little-known scenes in the history of the star player, giving a good dimension of how eternal he will be in the history of Brazil and football.
eternal skin it is available on itunes.
