Trailblazers
Stan
The 2024 Paris Olympics are nearly here, so this week's streaming column is all about the Games. One of Australia's most supported teams in Paris will undoubtedly be our women's soccer stars, the Matildas. This Stan original documentary film explores the rise and journey of the Matildas, from their first FIFA-recognised game in 1979 to more recent endeavours like the squad's heartbreak at the Tokyo games and nation-capturing performance at the 2023 Women's World Cup right here at home. Superstar players like Sam Kerr, Mary Fowler, Katrina Gorry and more share their experinces in the doco, which is the perfect appetiser to cheering along the green and gold in France.
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Freeman
Stan
There are few Aussie Olympians more famous or beloved than Cathy Freeman, the hero of the 2000 Sydney Olympics. Who can forget her race in that iconic bodysuit? This 2020 documentary film, coming two decades after the Indigenous runner's victory in the 400 metres spring, features archive footage and interviews with Freeman, as well as dances from the Bangarra Dance Theatre to explore her inner emotions.
Simone Biles Rising
Netflix
This fresh new documentary series shines a light on one of the more famous international names taking part in the Olympics this year, pint-sized American gymnast Simone Biles. The four-episode documentary series follows Biles after her shocking withdrawal from events in Tokyo, to her preparation to get Games-ready again in Paris. It looks at her struggles with mental health, traumas in her past and rebuilding herself from the ground up to shake up the sport one more time.
The Redeem Team
Netflix
This documentary film follows the US men's basketball team's quest for redemption at the 2008 Beijing Olympics after failing to make the final at Athens in 2004, ending up with the bronze medal for defeating fourth-placed Lithuania. The 2022 film uses a mix of archive footage and recent interviews to track their journey to China. The team featured such big names as LeBron James, Kobe Bryant, Dwyane Wade and more.
The Boys on the Boat
Prime Video
George Clooney directs this film, which stars Aussie Joel Edgerton, about the men's rowing team from the University of Washington who, in the height of the Great Depression, beat the odds to qualify for the 1936 Berlin Olympics - where a certain dictator is rising to power. Also stars Callum Turner in the lead.
Chariots of Fire
Stan
The score is even more iconic than the Oscar-winning British film, and Chariots of Fire documents the journey of two runners at the 1924 Olympics, Eric Liddell and Harold Abrahams.
Race
Stan/Prime Video
Back to the '36 Olympics, Race stars Stephan James as legendary US runner Jesse Owens, and the trial and tribulations he faced in his journey to, and at, the Games.
