‘Heysel 85’: A Real Soccer Riot Becomes a Tense Political Metaphor

Variety

by Siddhant Adlakha

February 14, 2026

AI-Generated Deep Dive Summary

Teodora Ana Mihai’s *Heysel 85* is a gripping blend of real footage and fictional drama set against the backdrop of the infamous Heysel Stadium disaster of 1985. The film follows a Belgium-based Italian reporter, Luca (Matteo Simoni), and Mayor Dumont (Josse De Pauw) as they navigate the escalating chaos before and during the European Cup final between Juventus and Liverpool. Mihai masterfully combines historical archive footage with her own 16mm拍摄 to create an intense, cinéma vérité-style experience that feels both deeply rooted in the past and eerily relevant today. The narrative unfolds through a series of interconnected vignettes, shifting focus from Luca’s radio interviews with fans—some of whom are his own family members—to Mayor Dumont’s increasingly detached and optics-focused approach to the unfolding disaster. As the riot escalates, Mihai zeroes in on Marie (Violet Braeckman), Dumont’s daughter and press attaché, who becomes a crucial perspective character. Her efforts to manage the crisis while being sidelined by her male counterparts highlight the film’s undercurrent of misogyny in both sport and politics. Through its layered storytelling and seamless integration of real and recreated footage, *Heysel 85* serves as a sharp political metaphor for the power dynamics at play in moments of crisis. Mihai’s use of Marie as a protagonist reflects her recurring focus on marginalized voices, particularly women navigating oppressive systems—a theme that adds depth to the film’s critique of egos and blame-shifting among those in positions of authority. While its 91-minute runtime occasionally feels weighted down by its thematic heft, *Heysel 85*

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Originally published on Variety on 2/14/2026