#publisher alternate Skip to main content [ ] * switch to the International edition * switch to the UK edition * switch to the US edition * switch to the Australia edition current edition: International edition The Guardian - Back to home Support The Guardian Contribute Subscribe Contribute Search jobs Sign in (BUTTON) My account * Comments & replies * Public profile * Account details * Emails & marketing ______________________________________________________________ * Membership * Contributions * Digital Pack ______________________________________________________________ * Sign out Search * News * Opinion * Sport * Culture * Lifestyle [ ] Show More * (BUTTON) News + World news + UK news + Science + Cities + Global development + Football + Tech + Business + Environment + Obituaries * (BUTTON) Opinion + The Guardian view + Columnists + Cartoons + Opinion videos + Letters * (BUTTON) Sport + Football + Rugby union + Cricket + Tennis + Cycling + F1 + Golf + US sports * (BUTTON) Culture + Books + Music + TV & radio + Art & design + Film + Games + Classical + Stage * (BUTTON) Lifestyle + Fashion + Food + Recipes + Love & sex + Health & fitness + Home & garden + Women + Family + Travel + Money ____________________ What term do you want to search? (BUTTON) Search with google * Make a contribution * Subscribe * (BUTTON) International edition + switch to the UK edition + switch to the US edition + switch to the Australia edition * Search jobs * Dating * Holidays * Digital Archive * The Guardian app * Video * Podcasts * Pictures * Newsletters * Today's paper * Inside the Guardian * The Observer * Guardian Weekly * Crosswords * Facebook * Twitter * Search jobs * Dating * Holidays * Digital Archive * Books * Music * TV & radio * Art & design * Film * Games * Classical * Stage (BUTTON) More Film Make Us Dream review - the agony behind the ecstasy for Steven Gerrard 4 / 5 stars 4 out of 5 stars. A revelatory documentary about the Liverpool stalwart, whose explanation of his career ups and downs make for fascinating viewing Andrew Pulver Andrew Pulver @Andrew_Pulver Fri 16 Nov 2018 15.51 GMT Last modified on Wed 21 Nov 2018 13.15 GMT * Share on Facebook * Share on Twitter * Share via Email Steven Gerrard: Make Us Dream - film still [ ] Captain fantastic ... Steven Gerrard in Make Us Dream Photograph: PR Apart from a somewhat redundant top-and-tail sequence in which Steven Gerrard is seen putting his feet up in a plush LA pad as he plays out his final months for the LA Galaxy, there's a lot to admire about Sam Blair's profile of the former Liverpool midfield dynamo who is currently embarked on the Herculean task of restoring Rangers to their former glory in the Scottish Premier League. Football documentaries often sacrifice quite a bit in return for access to their subjects (and there's certainly significant amounts of "legend/icon/genius" burbling in Make Us Dream), but it's Gerrard's own readiness to open up and reveal something of the agony behind the permascowl he was famous for as a player that marks this film out. Gerrard, of course, is indelibly associated with Liverpool's 2005 Champions League win, inspiring a comeback from three goals down against AC Milan. But it is his status as the main man of a team that never quite lived up to its supporters' ambitions - or the sensational achievements of Liverpool's 1970s and 80s vintages - that has come to define him, and Gerrard reflects on this at length: the oppressive sense of personal responsibility for the team's fortunes, the persistent attentions of Jose Mourinho who repeatedly tried to sign him away, the pervading sense of disappointment as Liverpool kept on losing players and falling short. Gerrard is also surprisingly open about his disappointment with certain individuals, particularly Michael Owen's decision to leave Liverpool for Real Madrid in 2004, and his "cold" relationship with manager Rafael Benitez. Above all, Gerrard is not afraid to enumerate his own failings: his terror of "fucking it up" in the Champions League final, his confusion and shortsightedness during constant media speculation as to whether he too would join the Liverpool exodus in the mid-2000s, the gruesome details of the injuries that mounted towards the end of his playing career. To his credit, Gerrard appears uninterested in playing the world-weary hero; he just seems exhausted by it all. 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