Dream

Dream (드림, 2023) is a Korean comedy-drama you can watch online for its warm tale of a team nobody believed in. After a scandal sidelines him, disgraced footballer Yoon Hong-dae (Park Seo-joon) gets roped into coaching a squad of homeless men toward an international tournament.

The recruits are a ragtag bunch: some sleep rough, some are dodging debts, some just lost their way — and barely any of them can kick straight. Hovering nearby is pushy documentary maker Lee So-min (IU), who wants a tidy underdog story more than she wants actual people. The coach is fed up, there's no budget, and the tournament is only weeks off. Bit by bit, the shambolic practices turn a group of broken men into something resembling a team.

It's directed by Lee Byung-hun, the same filmmaker behind the box-office smash Extreme Job, and his trademark mix of rough comedy and tears is firmly in place. The film draws on a real event, the Homeless World Cup. It tips into sentiment now and then, but Park Seo-joon's charm and a lively ensemble carry it through. Stream Dream (2023) online on iFILM.