Review: Ultras
by Jan Lumholdt
- Ragnhild Ekner crafts an epic appreciation of football fandom across the world, which she shot in eight countries across four continents over seven years

World-premiering in the Nordic Documentary Competition of the 48th Göteborg Film Festival, Ultras [+see also:
interview: Ragnhild Ekner
film profile] is an epic account of the global football subculture of the same name, shot in eight countries across four continents over seven years. Although it is often depicted from a destructive and violent angle, in several interviews, Swedish director Ragnhild Ekner has clearly stated that her focus is on the affirmative spirit of the ultras community.
Herself a true aficionado, Ekner also provides the main narration, guiding the viewer on a panoramic journey that goes to Italy (where the term “ultras” also originates from), Poland and the UK, Morocco and Egypt, and Argentina and Indonesia. It all starts out in Sweden, and indeed Gothenburg, where Ekner was born and has her club of preference, the blue-and-white-striped IFK Göteborg (no wonder all of the festival screenings were immediately and entirely sold out). The film then proceeds to capture moments and voices from all of these corners of the world, depicting both the similarities and the differences within the movement, depending on the respective societal context.
Some of the best scenes are from Indonesia, where young Muslim girls wholeheartedly partake in the fandom, a warm and cheerful revolt against structures that regard women as second-class citizens. It’s also here that we get some of the rare close-up shots of the faces of the fans, with nothing to hide – and proud of it. In the UK, the film takes us to Eastbourne and the non-league supporters, sipping pints and singing (well, bawling) quaint fan chants to the melodies of “When the Saints Go Marching In” and “Yellow Submarine”. “It’s so sanitised now, so stage-managed,” says a man about the Premier League games. “And so quiet.”
Some of the aforementioned violent aspects are also seen, notably in the Moroccan and Egyptian episodes. We get harrowing accounts of the Port Said Stadium massacre in 2012, entailing over 70 deaths, alleged by some to be police-masterminded “payback” for regime-critical demonstrations with ultras involvement. Here, the interviewee has even had his voice “modified for anonymity”.
Most voices, however, are real and talk sincerely about the community and its strengths, the loyalty, the unity and the helping hand, ever stretched out to a fellow fan in need. Ragnhild Ekner’s voice-over defines the movement quite distinctly: “I see it as an act of resistance, an uprising against loneliness. A defiance of logic: to expend your energy on something that is not absolutely necessary. It’s driven by something else. It’s the intoxicating power. It’s the greatest consolation. It’s the only constant. It’s the best security. It’s the ultimate euphoria. It’s the strongest companionship. It’s the radical happiness.” Or even better, as Swedish football legend Gunnar Gren put it back in 1940: “The ball is round.” Needless to say, he played for IFK Göteborg.
Ultras is a Swedish-Danish-Finnish co-production staged by Story AB, with co-production by Film i Väst, SVT, Wacky Tie Films and Ström Pictures.
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