The Phantom of the Open

The Phantom of the Open (2022) is a British comedy-drama you can watch online on iFILM. Mark Rylance leads as a shipyard crane operator from a sleepy seaside town who one day decides he'll turn professional golfer, despite barely having held a club in his life.

None of this is made up. Maurice Flitcroft taught himself the rules from books at his local library, entered qualifying for the 1976 British Open, and then played the worst round the tournament had ever recorded. The organizers were furious. The public, on the other hand, fell for the oddball who simply refused to quit. Sally Hawkins anchors the home front as Maurice's wife, alongside twin sons chasing a dream of disco-dancing stardom.

Director Craig Roberts keeps it gentle and a little naive, a film about an ordinary man's right to one big, foolish dream. No snark, no manufactured tears, just a warm comedy carried by a wonderful Rylance. It lands best with anyone who loves British stories about lovable underdogs. Stream The Phantom of the Open (2022) online on iFILM.