United Passions
| United Passions | |
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Theatrical release poster
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| Directed by | Frédéric Auburtin |
| Produced by | Louisa Maurin |
| Written by |
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| Starring | |
| Music by | Jean-Pascal Beintus |
| Cinematography | Inti Briones |
| Edited by | Olivier Gajan |
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Production
companies |
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| Distributed by | Screen Media Films (US) |
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Release date
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Running time
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110 minutes |
| Country | France |
| Language | English |
| Budget | US$25–32 million |
| Box office | $150,000–200,000(Other territories) |
United Passions is a 2014 English-language French drama film about the origins of the world governing body of association football, Fédération Internationale de Football Association (FIFA). Ninety-percent funded by FIFA, it stars Tim Roth, Gérard Depardieu and Sam Neill, and is directed by Frédéric Auburtin. It premiered at the Cannes Film Festival on 18 May 2014.
The film's release in North America on 5 June 2015 was particularly unsuccessful, coinciding with the 2015 FIFA corruption case. In the USA the film grossed just $918 in its opening weekend and is now considered to be one of the worst films of all time. Globally, the film lost $26.8 million and failed to obtain a theatrical distribution in many markets.
Principal photography took place in Switzerland, Azerbaijan, France and Brazil. FIFA wanted the film finished for release in the summer of 2014, ahead of the FIFA World Cup in Brazil. The film's script was completed in four months. FIFA's original title suggestions for the film were Men of Legend and The Dreammakers.
The film's United States release coincided with the 2015 FIFA corruption case, in which several current and former members of FIFA's executive committee were arrested for charges of corruption. The corruption investigation led to the resignation of FIFA's president, Sepp Blatter, following decades of speculation and accusations of corruption at FIFA under his leadership.
The film was accused of ignoring these long-running claims. Roth has said that he asked the filmmakers: "Where's all the corruption in the script? Where is all the back-stabbing, the deals?" He said he attempted to convey these elements through his performance, saying: "It was a tough one. I tried to slide in a sense of it, as much as I could get in there." The film's director, Frédéric Auburtin, claimed he inserted "ironic parts" into the film.
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