Shane documentary review: Inside Spin King Shane Warne’s highs and lows!

Jon Carey, David Alrich, Jackie Munro

Run time: 1h 36m

Rating: 3/5

The Amazon Prime Original documentary, Shane is a 90-minute film that attempts to depict the life of legendary Australian cricketer Shane Warne’s 15-year-long career with all its glory and setbacks.

It features talking heads by several cricket team captains, coaches, and Shane’s family. Strangely, pop stars Ed Sheeran and Chris Martin were also featured.

Although they’re supposed to be close friends of the Aussie cricketer, the singers’ commentaries were largely irrelevant to the film.

Besides that odd cameo, directorial trio Jon, David and Jackie have done a stellar job at methodically dissecting Shane Warne’s life and giving fans a glimpse of the man behind the game.

Shane’s ability to shut out the sledging on the field, behind-the-scenes of the fame he earned, his relationship with his children and the sacrifices he made to chase the title of the ‘best’ – all of these are explored with an honest first-person account.

Right off the bat, leg-spinner Shane Warne’s ‘bowl of the century’ in 1993 at Australia’s Ashes tour of England to English batsman Mike Gatting was examined.

With all the praise and acclaim that spin brought him, Shane showed his humbleness and honesty by admitting that the ball was a fluke that he was never able to recreate.

Nonetheless, it still remains a big part of cricket history.

To be the best, you need to give it your all – a mantra Shane Warne found to be true. It’s no wonder that he sacrificed time with family to chase his cricket dreams.

Shane Warne doesn’t shy away from talking about his lowest moments. For instance, when he was turned down and told he wasn’t ‘good enough’ to play football, a game he loved to death.

He transformed this pain into determination and came out as one of the best bowlers in cricket history. The ‘good enough’ taunt became what drove him ahead.

The documentary didn’t delve much into Shane’s controversial past such as the bookie scandal, a failed drug test before the 2003 World Cup due to consumption of a banned diuretic, and his rocky marital life.

It was glossed over but not without an explanation from the subject of the documentary.

Shane’s children, who are all young adults now, were largely supportive of their father despite the controversies.

This shows that, although Shane, as an international cricketer, wasn’t home most times, managed to be a part of his children’s lives.

Shane Warne’s fantastic IPL innings were also depicted, how he led the Rajasthan Royals to victory in 2008.

All in all, it’s a must-watch for cricket lovers as they’d thoroughly enjoy revisiting Shane Warne’s best moments and his impactful insights.

Shane’s humble and determined attitude will leave you a bigger fan of his than before watching this documentary. You may even discover a few untold, hilarious anecdotes by Shane’s fellow cricketers and his family members