Film 82 (Goal: 300) of 2024
Boy, I love sports movies. And The Natural is no exception. There's so many iconic moments in this film, that have been copied or reproduced into other media - things such as The Simpsons for example. And is there a better swell of music than the triumphant moments within The Natural. Robert Redford is fantastic as the kid with a dream, armed with natural talent and a hell of bat.
The film has a great opening act but admittedly around act 2 it starts to get bogged down in repetition and Director Barry Levinson doesn't do enough to freshen up the palette of the film. However the last 10 minutes of the film, are some of the best put to screen that I can recall in some time. The drama, the music, the direction, the iconic imagery. Those last 10 minutes alone are perfect.
A twilight film about a price-tagged baseball player.
Adequate I guess, but a lot was changed from the book. People who haven't read it would be confused I think.
The most whimsical Baseball movie of all time. A true classic.
It's hard to make a good sports movie and I know this movie is based off a book and all but that dosen't mean I have to like the way everything goes in the movie. I mean this movie was just to out of the ordinary but with a tone that said it wanted to be simple. {SPOILERS} I mean the dude gets shot because he wanted to be the best baseball player who ever lived? Jump to 16 years later... wait are we not going to talk about that or..? Then this movie dives into luck a lot with the lighting bolt on his bat and the tree that was struck by lighting which the bat was made out of, and the lighting patches on jerseys which made the team all play better then a curse when he starts seeing this one girl and then something about a bet with a manager or someone and him also trying to pay players to make the game go a certain way. I mean come on if you want to go those directions with the movie go there just stop just poking these ideas then moving onto the next thing. If it wasn't for Redford and Glenn Close this movie would be even a travesty.
One of my two favorite sports movies ever (along with "Hoosiers"). It's one of the few times I didn't feel that Hollywood changing the ending from the book made the story worse or robbed it in some way. Kids can enjoy it for the sports scenes alone, but it also has deeper emotional meanings that become evident the more times you watch it. IMO, Redford is perfectly cast for what Roy Hobbs is supposed to be in the movie's version of the story. You can imagine why he'd be tempted by Memo Paris (the young and beautiful Kim Basinger), but you also believe that Glenn Close's Iris would have his heart, even after all the years. Plus, you get Wilford Brimley AND Richard Farnsworth? Just a great movie.
Shout by DeletedBlockedParent2013-09-27T03:32:35Z
Great lesson on fidelity and loyalty. I loved the symbolic aspect of the entire movie - deep and academic almost.