Top 5 Baseball Movies

Spring is in the air and baseball is finally here after a long, long winter. We’re big fans of America’s pastime here at The Movie Brothers, so we decided to present to you our Top 5 Baseball Movies. There are a lot of great baseball movies, probably more than any other sport because of its tradition, history and heartfelt place in our country. Many great baseball movies didn’t make the list, like “Bang the Drum Slowly,” “61,” “A League of Their Own” and “The Bad News Bears.” But to get to the Top 5, a lot of them had to be cut.

5. The Sandlot
This is definitely as sentimental a movie as they come, but it’s hard not to fall in love with. It’s the story of a new kid on the block who has no club about baseball, but it’s how he connects with the children in his new town. Placed in the 1960s, it’s a coming-of-age story wrapped in a love letter to baseball. It’s a great one for the entire family, with plenty of memorable scenes and moments.

4. Eight Men Out
There  may be no sadder story than that of Shoeless Joe Jackson — who makes two appearance in our Top 5. He went down with the ship when his teammates threw the 1919 World Series, even though he played incredibly well. This is a great film with a great cast that pulls the cover off a sad chapter in baseball with plenty of frustrating drama.

3. Moneyball
It could be easy to write this film off as too “inside baseball” — no pun intended — but it’s understandable. It’s a movie about guys who created a numerical system to put together a baseball team on the cheap and win. But it’s more than that. It’s the story of Oakland A’s general manager, Billy Beane, and what is often a very sad and frustrating existence. It puts a human element to the story and offers some genuine human drama.

2. The Natural
I get goose bumps every time I see Robert Redford in The Natural. That final scene, with the light being blown out, rounding the bases. It just gets me every time. It’s loaded with great performances, especially by Glenn Close and Robert Duvall, and heaps on authentic period uniforms and fields with timeless production value. If you haven’t seen it, it’s a wonderful film full of romance, drama, humor and baseball lore.

1. Field of Dreams
The final scene of this film gets me every time. Who wouldn’t like to have one last catch with their dad. One more chance to heal his pain, and yours in the process through a common glue — baseball. This is a film that has everything to do with baseball, and yet nothing at all to do with the game itself. It’s a wonderful fantasy drama where a farmer hears voices to clear his corn field and build a baseball field — which ends up being a portal for dead ball players to visit and play on. On the surface, illogical. But I like ilogical. This film is an incredibly imaginative film, loaded with nostalgia, history, excellent acting, and engaging as the game itself. Hands down, the best baseball film ever made.

Brian’s Review – “Moneyball”

An all-star cast brings to life the true story of Billy Beane (Brad Pitt), a former jock turned general manager who uses unconventional methods to bring the best players to the Oakland A’s, a major league baseball team struggling against financial hardship.

Brian – 10 out of 10

I was not expecting this. A movie about baseball’s business side directed by a guy who hadn’t made a film in 6 years (Also, only his 3^rd directing effort) and co-starring the fat kid from “Superbad” being the best film I’ve seen this year? You bet! “Moneyball” is a smart, sophisticated, and purely enjoyable trip through the life of an MLB general manager who’s desire to win is only matched by his financial limitations within baseball’s monetary system. We’ve all seen it year after year. The big money clubs like the Red Sox, Yankees, and Cardinals make it to the postseason year after year because their budgets are 3X or more than the poorer teams. But, every once in a while a team like the A’s or the Twins make it in. Well, how does that happen in a sport without a salary cap to keep the teams matched competitively Ala the NFL? You have to break apart what makes a winning ball club and see if there’s a way to make your team better by finding undervalued and cheaper alternative players. This film is so brilliant at breaking this down in a way where those who are MLB fanatics as well as those who could care less for baseball will find it interesting and easy to understand. At this point if you’re thinking this is a boring trip down sport’s financial system, think again.

The entire movie is populated with fantastic acting across the board that bring their characters to life. All of the interpersonal relationships within the DNA of a professional sports team are explored in interesting and thought provoking ways. It also explores what makes Brad Pitt’s character tick. We learn about his relationship with his daughter, his own playing career experiences and how they relate to how he handles his job, and how he relates to the the coaches and ball players.I mentioned the performances before but I have to single out Brad Pitt who is growing one of the great movie resumes of all time. He is absolutely note perfect as Billy Beane. He conveys all of his thoughts without even saying a word at times and when he does speak, he brings the business side of baseball to life. I mentioned before that this film is my current pick for film of the year. I’ll take it one step further. It’s one of the greatest sports films ever made.

Brian’s Review – “The Tree Of Life”

Brad Pitt and Sean Penn star in Terrence Malick’s 1950s adventure about a confused man named Jack, who sets off on a journey to understand the true nature of the world. Growing up in the Midwest with two brothers, Jack has always been torn between his mother’s guidance to approach everything he encounters with an open heart and his father’s advice to look after his own interests. Now, Jack must find a way to regain purpose and perspective.

Brian-

Rating-3 out 10

The Tree of Life, Terence Malik’s Palme D’or winning film, is the most beautifully shot, well acted, and well directed piece of shit I have ever seen in my life.  How can a film with this much talent miss this badly?  It contains so many elements that could have worked well but because the original concept was so enormous, it literally crushed the story under its own weight.  It’s a shame because it might have been an interesting examination of two parents with completely contrasting personalities struggling with the loss of a child. Instead, we are given an entire history of the creation of planet earth complete with volcanic activity creating land, dinosaurs, an ice age, and the formation of sea life.  Now, you’re probably wondering why this choice was made.  Some may say that it’s an examination that all life and death is part of the evolution of creation.  Others may say that it shows how insignificant we are in the grand scheme of things when compared to the vast infinity of space and time.  I, however, think that it’s the conception of an arrogant director who wrote a script about a Midwestern family and it just wasn’t “big” enough a story to fit the vastness of the ideas contained within his massive ego.

I have read some reviews where the film was compared to 2001 and I couldn’t disagree more.  2001 was about how machine caught up with man and how we were forced to evolve to keep up.  It was relevant, poignant, and challenging.  The Tree of Life is more of a cross between Ordinary People and a Planet Earth special on the Discovery Channel.  It’s a complete waste of a director who has proven he has talent and a terrific cast that brings great work to the table.  Instead of getting a modern day risk taking masterpiece, we get one of the most pretentious films ever made.

The Curious Case of Benjamin Button

David Fincher directs this Oscar-nominated tale of Benjamin Button (Brad Pitt) — a man who was born old and wrinkled but grows younger as the years go by — with a screenplay adapted from a short story by F. Scott Fitzgerald. The plot throws linear conventions upside down to explore love, loss and memory from the perspective of a character living under incredibly unique — and unexpectedly difficult — circumstances. Cate Blanchett co-stars.

Brian
Rating: 9 out of 10

Every once in a while there is a director who comes along who is so special that we’re lucky to have been alive when they were creating films.  The first time I saw “Seven” I knew a new genius had arrived.  His name was Robert Paulson…err… David Fincher (If you’ve seen Fight Club, you’ll understand the joke). He has since gone on to do the underrated “The Game”, “Zodiac”, and “Fight Club” (One of the top 10 best films of the 1990’s;  I’ll do that list soon).  So, it was with little hesitation that I saw this movie despite its boring trailer.  Well, I was not disappointed.

Fincher is a marvel with a camera.  There is a visual style to his work that is completely identifiable and unique.   Every shot almost looks like a painting.  If that wasn’t enough, his work with actors and storytelling is equally good.  He was always known as someone who could make a gripping tale but rarely an emotional one.  Benjamin Button proves he’s adept at that as well.  There is an aura of originality to this film that is almost otherworldly, like a lucid dream.  You become involved with these characters and when their hearts break, so does yours.  It takes a talent to pull off that feat.  If there’s one criticism I’d point of this film, it’s that it does take a long time getting to the end.  I suppose it’s hard with a film like this where you could fall in love with every shot to leave some of it on the cutting room floor.