We’ve all seen films centered around the Olympics before, but never have we seen a narrative film set and shot within an actual Olympic Games, with the Games themselves becoming a character against which is set charming performances from Nick Kroll and Alexi Pappas who delight at every turn. But that’s exactly what director Jeremy Teicher delivers as he brings home the gold with the sweetly charming OLYMPIC DREAMS.
Shot during the 2018 Winter Olympic Games in Pyeongchang, South Korea, as part of an ever-expanding Olympic presence with an IOC “Artists in Residence” program, indie filmmaker Jeremy Teicher (serving as a one-man crew directing/writing, handling cinematography and sound) together with Pappas and Kroll (all three of whom are credited as writers) take us inside and behind the scenes of the games themselves with the story of Penelope and Ezra. Penelope is a cross-country skier making her first appearance in Olympic competition. Ezra, an unathletic Olympic wannabe who settled for becoming a dentist, is at the games doing the next best thing to fulfill his own Olympic dream – volunteering as a dentist in the Olympic Village.
For two Americans, strangers in a foreign land, the desire to connect with someone who speaks your language is inevitable, but Ezra’s rushed attempts to befriend Penelope fall flat as she is solely focused on her event and winning. Both somewhat socially awkward and shy, they seem destined to at least become friends, perhaps moreso on Ezra’s part as he can’t get Penelope out of his mind, leading to an adorable montage early on with him casually questioning every patient and person he sees as to the results of the cross-country race. His shy earnestness is beyond endearing.
Unfortunately, Penelope doesn’t fare well in her competition and isn’t really in a socializing mood when Ezra tries to chat her up and cheer her up. But, at the Games with nothing to do but wander around after you’re out of the running, it doesn’t take long before the two strike up a friendship. As to be expected, we watch the two volley back and forth with emotions and potential romantic interest, making the rounds through the Olympic Village, hanging out with real athletes, and all the while giving us a true feeling of the goodwill and camaraderie on which the Olympics is based. But, will they go for the gold with each other?
It’s difficult to imagine Nick Kroll as charming and sweet, but that’s exactly what he is as Ezra. Kroll delivers a character with heart, shyness, timidity, and innocence. You feel for him as Ezra tries his Olympic best to connect with Penelope. Hands down a favorite Nick Kroll performance. Then pair him with Alexi Pappas and get the Valentine heart memes ready! Their chemistry is off the charts.
Alexi Pappas enchants. Herself a competitor in the 2016 Rio Olympic Games in the 10K representing Greece (Pappas holds the current Greek record for the 10K), she knows first-hand of the Olympic experience and it’s because of her being an Olympian that enabled the full access the team was granted for this film. As Penelope, you feel her isolation and loneliness and her own timidity in going outside her comfort zone of snow and skiing and interacting with the human race. There is a sad sweetness to Penelope that touches the heart.
So much of the adorableness of Ezra and Penelope comes Peter Ohs’ editing. Seamlessly melding the intimacy of this blossoming friendship/romance with the wonders and grandeur of the Olympics themselves, the result is precious. Engaging. Warm. The montage as Penelope is competing intercut with Ezra asking every patient who comes in do they know anything about her and her race, sets the tone for the whole film. That sequence will warm the coldest heart on the coldest day in Pyeongchang.
Teicher’s guerilla-style shooting in the Olympic Village during the 2018 Winter Olympics in Pyeongchang is inspired. A daunting task given the olympic level security at the Games, the result is casual and effortless, making the entire experience of the Olympics for Ezra and Penelope very natural and free-flowing. The lensing itself is light, natural, real. The emotional and visual tonal bandwidth of the film is light and upbeat, even in sad moments where Penelope is desperate for the relationship with Ezra to go deeper. A testament to Pappas and the heartache and longing she brings to Penelope in those moments while also capturing pure joy running around the Village and sharing the time with Kroll’s Ezra.
Having had the opportunity to personally know many Olympic athletes since the 1984 Games in Los Angeles, the one constant all talk about is that relationships among athletes and volunteers are always forged, many lasting decades or even a lifetime thereafter. While everyone at the Games has their eye on the prize – be it competing or being a dentist or supporting staff – those personal connections that come from this experience is the true gold of the games. And that’s exactly what Teicher, Kroll and Pappas deliver – Olympic caliber gold.
The interactions with actual athletes and volunteers is icing on the cake and just adds to the naturalism and realism of the film, the Olympic experience, and the value of personal connections and relationships versus a piece of metal around the neck. With OLYMPIC DREAMS, Jeremy Teicher and company show us what is truly golden in the world.
Directed by Jeremy Teicher
Written by Nick Kroll, Alexi Pappas, Jeremy Teicher
Cast: Nick Kroll and Alexi Pappas
by debbie elias, 12/10/2019
