THE Keeper, a film that tells the fascinating life of German PoW turned St Helens Town and Manchester City legend Bert Trautmann, is about much more than football.
A special pre-screening took place at Cineworld St Helens on Friday, March 22, a few miles from where Bert once lived.
And anyone expecting this to be simply a romanticised sporting tale about the goalkeeper who famously played on with a broken neck at Wembley will be surprised.
This is truly a heartwarming story of reconciliation and the human condition, with working class northern wit and St Helens kindness shining through.
Trautman, who was a prisoner of war in Ashton-in-Makerfield, came to the attention of Jack Friar, a grocer and then Town chairman, who saw him playing football with other PoWs. Town were struggling to win games, and in an act of desperation he asked if Bert could play in goal at the weekends...the rest, as they say, is history.
The Keeper does a remarkable job of showing two perspectives of war; of forgiveness of others and in oneself. It also shows how a chance meeting can completely change a person’s life.
You don’t have to be a football fan to enjoy this film.
Brilliant Northern humour by actors such as John Henshaw (who plays Friar) and the often heart-wrenching story of reconciliation among men, communities and nations following the fallout of the Second World War mean this is one not to be missed – especially for any Sintelliner proud of their hometown.
Kelsey Maxwell
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