‘Eddie the Eagle’ feel-good (mostly fictional) true-life tale

Yes, there was a fellow known as Eddie the Eagle, and yes, he looked something like the fellow that plays him onscreen, and yes he was an Olympic ski jumper — but everything else is just made up.

The filmmakers set out to make a movie about Eddie the Eagle, because he is an inspirational figure with a great story.

Wasn’t that amazing? And then we find out that no, they just took the name and a few details and changed everything else, including his history as a skier, his training, his personal relationships and even the details of his last Olympic jump.

An experienced skier, he decided to train to be a ski jumper, because there were no British ski jumpers, and so it would be easier to qualify.

At the Olympics, his exuberant spirit — his pure joy at being there — captured the imagination of the public, and he has remained a beloved figure in Britain ever since.

In the movie, he goes to Germany, where he meets a chain-smoking, down-on-his-luck drunk, whose job it is maintain the ski ramps.

To be sure, ski jumping is a beautiful sport, and a fascinating one.

Just watching the movie’s ski jumps is enjoyable, and everything about the science of jumping and the risk jumpers take is engrossing.

On several occasions, the camera puts you at the top of the ramp looking down, and it looks as though the jumpers are about to slide off the side of a building.

All it means is that Egerton goes through the movie thrusting his jaw forward and evincing extreme mouth and jaw tension, something the real Eddie does not have.