Bend It Like Beckham delivers a positive message that doesn't tax viewers in the delivery. It's frothy and undemanding, and proud of it. For director Chadha, this is a decided improvement over her previous feature, 2000's What's Cooking? It unashamedly wears the crowd-pleaser tag, and it's likely that some critics will gripe that it's too eager to enrapture the masses. Bend It Like Beckham is enjoyable enough that the sprinkles of artificial sweetness in the mix don't do lasting or irreparable damage.