*Virtually spoiler free*
Arsenal: All or Nothing is an Amazon Prime documentary which looks at the turbulent 2021-22 season of Arsenal Football Club, and it’s actually pretty good. The style, for those who haven’t seen the previous editions of All or Nothing, is a fly-on-the-wall look at Arsenal’s season with the club allowing an inside look into (some of) the goings-on of the team, containing a mixture of interviews with players and staff, manager Mikel Arteta’s speeches to the team before, during and after matches, clips from training and much more. This 8-episode documentary series is actually pretty good, like the Spurs edition the season before last it very much dramatises the events of Arsenal’s season. You can tell the producers of All or Nothing intentionally aim to put a more inspirational spin the episodes to make it feel more triumphant and emotionally charged but surprisingly even though (since I’m a football fan and I know what happened with Arsenal last season) I watched it with a degree of scepticism, I did enjoy the narrative they manage to add to the episodes through focusing on certain players, foreshadowing upcoming events and all the dramatic music they add when Arteta starts praising or ranting at his players.
I’m a Chelsea fan myself but the thing I definitely took away the most from this documentary is an extra degree of respect for Mikel Arteta. I definitely doubted his managerial capabilities until he started turning things around for Arsenal last season but the documentary does prove that he is undoubtedly, at least tactically, a very solid manager. I guess I might have been swayed towards the manager no matter who it was in a documentary series which centres around him as the most prominent figure, but knowing the decent turnaround job Arteta did last season I admit I definitely have a higher opinion of him now I watched the documentary. Also, Arsenal are top of the league this season, but don’t get too excited. We’re 3 games in.
I don’t have a whole lot of issues with it, to be honest. The only time it irritated me was when Josh Kroenke, the son of Arsenal owner Stan Kroenke, showed up and the producers made a big display of making him seem like a really stand up guy despite the fact he and his father aren’t super popular with the Arsenal fans because they doubt their owners actually care that much about the club. Honestly I can’t blame them a lot but long gone European Super League controversies aside it definitely feels like they were pushing a narrative and it felt pretty performative, like when he talks to Bukayo Saka about the abuse he received after England’s Euros loss in 2021, Saka just seems hilariously confused at why he’s even there. But it’s a small nitpick, if someone wants to tell me Josh Kroenke really is a great guy I’ll accept it I guess.
Different episodes putting emphasis on certain players gives quite a humanising feel to them, especially when the spotlight was on Granit Xhaka. All I’ve really ever thought of him was “scores occasional screamers, poor discipline, mediocre at Arsenal” but All or Nothing presents him as an actual person, shows his family life at home, which puts things into perspective a bit. Others like Bukayo Saka, Aaron Ramsdale and Ben White being interviewed and portrayed as more than footballers again makes them seem like real people and it’s actually quite a refreshing portrayal, even for football fans who don't support Arsenal.
Like I said, the almost soap opera feel of the documentary actually makes for quite entertaining viewing for football fans. It may even be more interesting for non-football fans as they get the drama of following Arsenal’s season without knowing what actually happened so it may feel even more intriguing. I don’t know for sure, but I’d definitely give it a try if you have any spare time before going off into uni or gap year or whatever you’re doing next year. (Good job getting through results day by the way guys.) The documentary definitely would have been more satisfying if Arsenal had actually made the top four and gotten into the Champions League last season as that was definitely the aim of their season and the theme that was emphasised throughout the documentary for the Gunners-as a Chelsea fan, I’d have rather they gotten in over Spurs anyway to be honest! But still, I’d give it a watch if you have been at all convinced by this review.
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