Will Ferrell lets the rage take hold in Jesse Dylan's knockabout comedy Kicking & Screaming. Coaching a team of pint-sized soccer players is only half the story as Phil tries to outdo his competitive father played by Robert Duvall. At its heart, this is a "sweet-centred kiddie flick", but the wavering tone divided critics and in the end it only scored a half-decent $52m in ticket sales.

A Game Of Two Halves

Cameras go on location for a making of featurette Behind The Net. You may be surprised to learn that Ferrell used to play soccer as a kid while co-star (and ex-athlete) Mike Ditka explains the bitter rivalry between parents as a specifically "American" thing. Jesse Dylan contributes the odd soundbite here and there, but writers Leo Benvenuti and Steve Rudnick provide the most insight when they reveal that this film is (sort of) based on a true story. It was originally about two immigrant Greek boys who took their T-ball team to the State championships, but Hollywood execs changed the vital details for "better foreign distribution".

In the end the story featured two Italian kids who turn out to be minor soccer stars and we're introduced to them in From Rome To Hollywood. As the title suggests, the boys (Alessandro Ruggiero, Francesco Liotti) were plucked from obscurity thanks to their grace on the pitch and Ferrell is happy to admit, "Even at their age, they have more style than I'll ever have in my whole life!"

The rest of the team get a forum in Kicking It With The Kids, which is brief but cute. "On set you only have to do three hours [of lessons], but in regular school you have to go six," says Timmy Deters (Alex), "So, that's minus three". He can obviously afford to miss a few maths classes!

Ball Control

A run-of-the-mill package is elevated by Ferrell's masterly improv in generous reels of bonus footage. Twelve minutes of deleted scenes find him in a Vietnam-style flashback as his team gets slaughtered on the pitch and later he becomes embroiled in a bizarre telephone conversation about meat with the Italian butcher shop employees. Meanwhile the outtakes showcase Ferrell's genius inclination to just make up words whenever he talks himself into a corner. "Fire is good," he tells the team as they gather around a barely flickering campfire, "The Indians called it kooninookinaraholo, which means yellowy orange thing that is hot..."

And there's more of this crazy extemporizing in a batch of alternate takes. Ferrell takes the crucial sting out of a half-time tirade, when he barks, "I will not stand for slothingness - that is acting as a sloth!"

Finally the children are put through their paces in Soccer Camp. It's an inside look at the two-week training regime that was crucial for helping to make the football scenes look as authentic as possible. It's just plain funny watching British coach Dan Metcalfe mercilessly haranguing the children - although he stops just short of pushing them into the mud. Naturally Robert Duvall was around to take notes for his hardnosed turn as Coach Buck and even gets a little carried away when he assures Ferrell's ragtag team, "We're gonna kick your butts!"

Even though it lacks kid-specific features this DVD boasts enough silliness to keep the family amused. Still, a clear explanation of the offside rule wouldn't have gone amiss...

EXTRA FEATURES