 This is a fine example of a movie that one might not necessarily see as a "good movie", and I might have to admit to some of the material contained within to be somewhat dated (which I may just have to start referring to as the "General 80s/90s Comedy Warning" (it feels like I have to do that a lot with movies from those eras). However, this is a fascinating example of an all-star cast movie, as it covers a sort of all-over range of performers.
The film is as simple as a cross-country race that starts in Connecticut, and all the humour that ensues, as celeb vs celeb vs celeb races for the finish line. Our "mains" in this include a race car driver named JJ McClure (Burt Reynolds) and his mechanic, Victor Prinzi (Dom DeLuise) who choose do disguise themselves as paramedics and drive an ambulance fitted with a NASCAR engine, as that can cut through traffic like butter. Along for the ride with them is Doctor Nikolas Van Helsing (Jack Elam) who they kind of need for the whole operation. As the race begins and progresses, we meet a group of colourful characters. This is a large cast, so I'll try to keep things simple. First, former F1 racer, Jamie Blake (Dean Martin) and his teammate, Morris Fenderbaum (Sammy Davis Jr.) in their Ferrari 308 GTS 1979, dressed as priests. Second, the lovely, but manipulative Jill Rivers (Tara Buckman) and Marcie Thatcher (Adrienne Barbeau) in their Lamborghini Countach. Third, Seymour Goldfarb Jr. (Roger Moore), who's a "Roger Moore look-alike" and even drives an Aston Martin DB5. Fourth, a couple of hilariously stereotypical southerners named Terry (Terry Bradshaw) and Mel (Mel Tillis), driving a replica of Donnie Allison's Hawaiian Tropic-sponsored NASCAR Winston Cup Series Chevrolet stock car. Now, where the movie will probably really get offensive for viewers involves our fifth racer, Sheik (Jamie Farr), driving a Rolls Royce Silver Shadow, and that's all I probably need to say about him. Remembering this was 1981, we still hadn't quite hit that point where "race face" wasn't acceptable anymore. However, speaking of multiculturalism, Lastly, we have Jackie Chan and Michael Hui, seemingly playing themselves, driving a computerized Subaru GL 4WD. That's right, 1981 Jackie Chan, in only his second American movie (the first being 'The Big Brawl', only just the previous year). I'm pretty sure there are several other characters I haven't even mentioned yet, but as far as the main cast goes, that's pretty much it - two whole paragraphs worth. But despite some of these character perhaps being a little too much at times, there's a lot of real fun to be had with this movie. In many ways, it reminds me of 'Rat Race', which is practically the 'Cannonball Run' for the next generation - a race featuring an all-star cast, and it's much more fun than serious all the way through. I have to say, I got quite a few genuine laughs from this, but I also have to say, there was a lot of it (especially when it comes to the character Shiek) that I had to cringe at. I think this film is perfectly enjoyable IF you can accept the leeway of its time. Having said that, I would probably suggest that this is far more made with my generation, or even the previous generation in mind, considering its cast. While a lot of those names will jump off the page to some readers, other younger readers will no doubt be asking "who?" So I recommend this mostly as a sort of Sunday afternoon comedy for anyone who knows and enjoys all (or almost all) of these performers. And they really do cover a wide range, from dramatic actors, to singers, to athletic talent, I think there's at least one character here for anyone to route for. Not for everyone, but if you like a good race featuring colourful characters, I might suggest checking it out if you can.
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 When it comes to "feel-good" films, this is a title that's at the top of my list, and has been for quite a long time now. And yes, part of that is, predictably, nostalgia. But there's so much more to this than just a movie I love from my past. This is one of those movies I like to put on if I need cheering up, if I need inspiration, or often, if I'm simply bored. Of course, the presence of John Candy always helps because you simply can't not like that guy.
As sunny winter approaches in beautiful Jamaica, a sprinter named Derice Bannock (Leon) is in the training process to qualify for the 100 meter race in the 1988 Summer Olympics. During the qualifying sprint, he, and fellow athlete Yul Brenner (Malik Yoba) are tripped when a young runner named Junior Bevil (Rawle D. Lewis) falls during the race. This disqualifies all three of them. But when Derice vents to President of the Jamaica Olympic Association, Barrington Coolidge (Winston Stona), he picks up on a potential chance to qualify for the '88 winter Olympics, if only he can get disgraced ex-coach Irving Blitzer (Candy) on board. With the help of his best friend, Jamaican push cart derby champion, Sanka Coffie (Doug E. Doug), they seek the help of Irving, who they learn lives on the island. At first, Irv is reluctant, but nevertheless arranges a meeting for any Jamaican athletes who wish to become the first Jamaican Bobsled Team. Soon, Derice, Sanka, Yul and Junior end up being the necessary team of four. The rest of the story does play out pretty much as one might expect, with a couple of differences - this inspires in ways far beyond being good at sports, and the way the film ends, without going into too much detail, is actually quite refreshing. What I do love about this one though is a bit of a list. I'm not gonna say it's the "perfect movie" or anything, but there's a certain something about it. There is a short list of movies that I have in mind that, when they end, I am left with a sense of warmth and happiness. Some of these (just personally) include 'Soul' and 'Love, Actually'. Usually there's something that stands out significantly about it on a personal level. 'Cool Runnings' does it with each of its characters, who match this thing I like to call the "Formula of Four" (and to be fair, credit goes to "Cracked - After Hours" for that one.) Concerning the "Formula of Four", basically it's a concept we've seen in a lot of different things like 'Ghostbusters' and 'Ninja Turtles'. You have a leader, or heart - a sort of lawful good character (Derice); you have the comedy relief (Sanka); you have the brain, or the little guy (Junior); and finally, you have the "other guy" - often a hot-head of sorts, but also often just the cool one in the group, or sometimes even "the audience" (Yul). For me, especially in re-watches of it, I try to take into account the subtle lessons these guys learn along the way. The big one is simply "don't give up", but there's more in here like "follow your dreams" and "stand up to your parents once in a while". This one is a timeless classic, almost guaranteed to leave you with a smile on your face. It should also be pointed out that a big part of this has to do with the Jamaican team being ridiculed for trying something they couldn't possibly be familiar with. They were further ridiculed for... let's just say other things... and quite honestly, John Candy delivers one of my favourite lines here, addressing the issue. As much as I watch this for laughs and a good time, I should also note that there's a few things here and there that need to be seen and heard today. This is a lot of fun to watch, sure, but I daresay it's also somewhat important in today's society. And honestly, that goes for more than just the racial issues the film addresses.  Here's about where Sandler really started getting on critics' nerves, and audiences started to get a little bit split on whether or not Adam Sandler was funny or annoying. Being 1998, and being that I was 16 at the time, it was still very much up my alley, and to this day, I have an appreciation for it, and it still gets a good laugh from me when I watch it. It's not quite in the classic vein like 'Billy Madison' and 'Happy Gilmore', but it stands on its own, featuring honestly one of the more charming characters he ever plays.
As the film opens, we're introduced to the kindly but seemingly mentally disabled Bobby Boucher (Sandler); the water boy for the University of Louisiana's football team, the Cougars. The team bullies him, but he takes it because all he cares about is whether or not the team is hydrated. So just to forewarn audiences, there's definitely a mean-spiritedness to the film. But don't worry, without spoiling anything, it does lighten up significantly by the end. However the film does start with his being fired by the team's coach, Red Beaulieu (Jerry Reed), as he's such a distraction to the team. Bobby lives with his strict and overprotective mother, Helen (Kathy Bates) who explains her overprotectiveness away with the story of Bobby's father, Roberto (Frank Coraci) who apparently died of dehydration in the Sahara Desert while serving in the Peace Corps before Bobby was born. Even in such a goofy comedy as this, Kathy Bates is one of the best things about it. You believe she loves and cares for Bobby in such a way that it's almost disturbing. In some ways, she brings a bit of her 'Misery' role to the character; ready to kill anyone who messes with her son. Bobby eventually finds a job at South Central Louisiana State University, working for the failing and depressed Coach Klein (Henry Winkler), once again playing the role of water boy. Once the new team starts to dig into him a little, Bobby finally snaps and tackles one of the team members with such force that Klein asks him to play on his team, the Mud Dogs; a team on a forty game losing streak with a handful of alcoholic cheerleaders who have given up. While the main plot revolves around Bobby's newfound football career, there's a whole subplot involving Bobby torn between doing what makes him happy and following the demands of his Mother. While overbearing, she is one of the only people who care for him. But she soon finds competition in Vicki Vallencourt (Fairuza Balk), a rebellious, tough southern girl who has a bit of a thing for Bobby, mostly just because he's such a sweet guy. The real clencher to the whole thing is that Bobby sees Vickie and plays football behind his disapproving mother's back. As mentioned before, one thing that sort of stood out to me this time was just how mean-spirited things got with it. Nowadays, I would think the filmmakers would have trouble getting it off the ground because a lot of it has to do with people making fun of someone with a mental disability. On the other hand, it's not like Bobby doesn't come back with a perfectly decent revenge plan, somewhat equivalent to finally punching that horrible bully of yours right in the nose. These bullies get what they deserve, no more, no less. Again, it bears mentioning that it all ends very positively, and it's kind of a good movie for several different types. If you are a jerk who picks on people, here to watch Sandler, you might learn something. If you're an overprotective family member, you might learn something. If you're the person getting picked on, you might learn something. It's another very split movie where Sandler fans love it for what it is while critics pan it just because it's predictable, harsh and stupid. It is all of those, but it's also a lot of fun, clearly not to be taken too seriously, and most of the laughs you get aren't actually at Bobby's expense. It's just a solid underdog flick done in classic Sandler fashion.  If you were ever a Sandler fan back in the day, the coin flip tended to be between 'Billy Madison' and this for his best movie - the coin ultimately landing on this most of the time. The humor involved is a little less goofy than 'Billy Madison', leaning a little more on sarcasm, but still keeping enough of that randomized humor we've come to love so much with Sandler films (at least the older stuff). Though I do tend to lean towards 'Madison' a bit more, it makes more sense to recommend this one to the masses for what it is.
Happy Gilmore (Sandler) is an aspiring hockey player, and though he's not entirely good on the ice, he has an insanely strong slapshot. We learn through the intro that since his Dad passed away, he became a bit of a trouble-maker with a short fuse, and he holds the record for the only skater in the league to take off his skate and try to stab someone with it. But there is balance in his life, as his kindly, loving grandmother (Frances Bay) shows us his soft side, as he'd do anything for her. That "anything" now involves paying the IRS a lot of back taxes that she owes, or else her house gets repossessed. During a bet with two of the repo men, Happy learns that he can makes some cash hustling people at the driving range when he smacks a golf ball an incredible distance. This eventually leads him to Chubbs (Carl Weathers); a former golf pro who sees Happy's skill, and takes him under his wing to play professional golf. Happy denies him at first, but when it comes to getting back his grandmother's house, he listens to the sound of the potential money he could make on tour. Here, he meets golf favorite, Shooter McGavin (Christopher McDonald) who quickly becomes his nemesis, disapproving of Happy's style, and claiming him as pretty much an insult to the game (like a punk rocker at a ballet). Public relations head Virginia Venit (Julie Bowen) on the other hand is very impressed by Happy's long drive and overall skill, and implores Tour Commissioner Doug Thompson (Dennis Dugan) to allow him to stay on, but while watching his outbursts, and trying to keep them under control. It's relatively predictable how it all goes, but it can't be denied that the execution of it all is hilarious, and it fits very well as a blend of the sports movie craze of the 90s, as well as the Sandler craze of the 90s. It would all eventually come around again with 'The Waterboy', but that's a review for a couple of weeks from now. A few more things that make this one a bit more memorable for people include some celebrity cameos, not the least of which is former 'Price is Right' host, the late Bob Barker - who gets in a fist fight with Happy, providing us with a pretty funny and unexpected fight. But also on board are the late Richard Kiel as Happy's former boss. He'd be most recognized as Jaws in the 'Bond' film 'Moonraker', but he was also the voice of Vlad in 'Tangled'. Let's also not leave out a fellow Canadian, Joe Flaherty, as "Jeering Fan" (or as I like to refer to him as, the "Jackass" guy) or Ben Stiller as a nursing home orderly with a short fuse. 'Billy Madison' didn't have much of that, unless you count Chris Farley as the bus driver, but even that's really just an SNL attachment. I'm not entirely sure what else can be said about 'Happy Gilmore', sadly. It's a great way to see Sandler in his prime, and it's great that the comedic formula does a sort of shift from 'Madison' to 'Gilmore', showing us a decent range for him right off the bat. I'd say that if you wanted to see a more stereotypical goofy Sandler, 'Billy Madison' is the one to watch, but if you prefer his comedy through anger and sarcasm, this is the one to lean towards. Otherwise, on the surface, it's really just another underdog sports movie with a bit of a twist. But still, it yields hilarious results, and a lot of the comedy in this isn't even from Sander as opposed to the dry and seemingly accidental deliveries from Christopher McDonald. So definitely check it out if you are a little curious about Adam Sandler's early work. Hell, back-to-back 'Billy Madison' and 'Happy Gilmore' just to say that you've seen the films that lead to Sandler's production company, 'Happy Madison Productions'. Let's face it, that's a company with more misses than hits, but there are a few titles under their belt that I can say I still enjoy. If it weren't for these movies bringing Sandler into the spotlight as almost a direct competition to Jim Carrey, who knows what could have happened to the randomized comedy I've grown to enjoy so much from Adam Sandler - unless we're talking about 'Zohan'... dammit, that was just too random.  Back when this movie was released, I remember not really liking it. But in my search for sporty movies to look at and recommend while sports were gone (welcome back, sports - I'll clearly remain as out of touch as ever), I came across 'Goon' as being one of the best ranked hockey movies out there. I got curious, and decided to check it out again for the first time since its release. I also figured I could recommend this as a "rage" movie - something to channel your frustrations through with plenty of on-screen violence; in this case, the frustration sports fans have felt during this pandemic. I guess I'm a little late, but here we are.
While there's still bits and pieces of it I think are pretty low brow, I actually enjoyed it much more this time around. I caught myself laughing quite a bit, and recognizing various faces that I didn't pick up on before, such as the 'Swearnet' gang ('Trailer Park Boys'). I also didn't quite pick up how authentically Canadian the film is, with its lead being one of the few American actors. I'll cover that as the review goes on, but for starters, the crew behind it includes Director Michael Dowse (London, ON) and writers Jay Baruchel (Ottawa, ON) and Evan Goldberg (Vancouver, BC). The film centers on Doug Glatt (Seann William Scott) of Orange, Massachusetts, who can't quite figure out where he fits in. He feels he lacks the intelligence to become a doctor like his adoptive father (Eugene Levy - Hamilton, ON) or his gay adoptive brother, Ira (David Paetkau - Vancouver, BC). He further lacks the passion for anything special, like his friend Pat (Baruchel), who hosts a cable call-in show called 'Hot Ice'. In the meantime, due to being a heavy hitter, Doug makes his living as a bouncer. Here we learn how funny things get, as much of the film's sense of humor is about him being so tough but with a friendly, child-like demeanor when it comes to diffusing situations. One day, during a hockey game, Doug gets into a brawl with one of the Orangetown Assassins players. When coach Rollie Hortense (Nicholas Campbell - Toronto, ON) sees what he can do, he offers him a tryout for the team as its enforcer, regardless of whether or not he can actually play the game. We learn very quickly that he can't really, but he learns enough to get by, and be the team's muscle. He hits so hard, however, that Rollie soon passes him off to his brother, Ronnie (Kim Coates - Saskatoon, SK), who coaches the Canadian Farm Team, the Halifax Highlanders. Doug's role in the game is to protect the recently traumatized Xavier LaFlamme (Marc-André Grondin - Montreal, QB), victim of a vicious hit by Ross "The Boss" Rhea (Liev Schreiber). Since the hit, LaFlamme has been a nervous wreck about playing, and lost all of the drive that was leading him into a promising NHL career. However, while relishing in his new role, and seemingly finding a place, Doug still has to prove himself to his team, his coach, and a girl named Eva (Alison Pill - Toronto, ON). Hardest to impress may boil down to his own non-violent family, and of course, Ross "The Boss", who you pretty much know is gonna be his "final challenge". I think the important takeaway from this, for myself, was the fact that Doug felt he didn't have it in himself to be what other people wanted. However, he found himself doing something he loved, and to him, it meant protecting people, and doing good in that sense. It might be a somewhat twisted look at things in this case, but the message is that there's a lot of us out there who are trying to find that special something, and we might be able to find it in the last place we think to look. More importantly, if you want something bad enough, don't let anyone stand in your way by telling you you're letting them down by not following in their footsteps. While I still don't love the movie, I definitely enjoyed it more this time around. Its sense of humor is pretty rowdy at parts, especially when it comes to Baruchel's role, and it can get grating. There's also this really weird mix of homophobic humor in there, where I don't fully know how to take it. It often makes whoever is saying it look stupid, anyway, Doug's adoptive brother is gay, and one of the most likable characters in the film, and it's actually a homophobic crack that leads Doug to the brawl that gets him into hockey. So when it was all said and done, I'd probably say it's still passable. But check it out if you need some sort of outlet for your anger and frustration through this Pandemic. It was a strange breath of fresh air for me, perhaps it will be for you, too.  Before we get started, I should probably point out that the Adam Sandler version of this is the one I'm more familiar with. This comes as a Screening Suggestion to fans of that version, as it's essentially the same exact movie, beat for beat, but was released 30 years earlier. It's kind of amazing how identical the two are, while the differences are very little. So, if you know the Sandler version, you know the plot. But for those unfamiliar, I'll play fair.
Ex football player, Paul Crewe (Burt Reynolds) starts to lose his grip after he's caught shaving points from a game, and booted from the league. After a few bad decisions, which include getting drunk behind the wheel of his girlfriend's car and leading the police on an awesome car chase, he eventually goes too far and finds himself arrested. When Crewe is sent to prison, the warden, Hazen (Eddie Albert), picks him to coach the prison's semi-pro team of guards. He's face with a double-edged sword though, and refuses, upon the secret demands of the head guard, Captain Knauer (Ed Lauter), which lands him in the prison work force. One day, Crewe and Warden Hazen have a chat about the prison football team. Hazen takes Crewe's suggestion of a "tune-up game" to heart, setting Crewe on a mission to recruit a convict team for the guards to knock around, while he plays quarterback. The hitch is as simple as early parole for Crewe. While recruiting his team, Crewe meets an arrangement of colorful convicts; primarily, Caretaker (James Hampton) - a man who can get anything, and helps a great deal with assembling the team. Alongside them is another ex football player, Nate Scarborough (Michael Conrad), who knows a thing or two about recruiting a good team. Then there's Pop (John Steadman); a kind of father figure - an aged convict with decades of experience, who may or may not also have the role of Crew's guide. It always used to fascinate me that the '05 Sandler version was so lowly rated while the '74 version was rated so high. If you're looking at the Tomatometer, '74 has a rating of 79% while '05 is only 31%. I never could wrap my head around that low rating, rather than perhaps a few dated racial bits. But I finally discovered that the real reason was that it's a simple carbon copy of this film, 30 years later. Probably to bring the story to a new generation. But the thing is, to make a remake work, you've gotta do something different. I promise, if you've seen the '05 version, you've already seen this version. But with that said, I still say it's worth taking a look at the original. Some of the more racy stuff is a little more acceptable for the time period (though both contain a few stereotypes that may just be for no one), but beyond that, it's just seeing the original. Try to imagine if the only version of 'Psycho' you saw was the 1998 carbon copy of it, starring Vince Vaughn, or the only version of 'A New Hope' you saw was 'The Force Awakens' - you just need that original in your life at some point, if only to decide which version you might like more. For me, while the Sandler version has its moments, It may very well be this one that takes the cake on being the better movie, if only for the reason that the '05 version just stole it, altogether.  Continuing Sports Month, this week we take a look at the only sport I ever really got into, personally, basketball. This one is based on a true story, and once again may be a film that tinkers with dates, and the overall unfolding of events. But the tale of Coach Carter's method is still real, and historically, he stands as a figure who stood up and fought for young minds to achieve full potential rather than waste away.
Taking place in 1999, in a poor area of Richmond, CA, Ken Carter (Samuel L. Jackson) ends up visiting his old Richmond High School, where he once played on the basketball team, the Richmond Oilers. While the Oilers are on a bit of a losing streak, Carter soon accepts a job as their coach, in hopes to make them straighten up and fly right as a team. It's a bit of a 'Dangerous Minds' scenario. His players come from broken homes, give him bad attitude, and perform poorly both on the court, and academically. Among them, Kenyon Stone (Rob Brown) who may be looking at an early family life with his girlfriend, Kyra (Ashanti); Jason Lyle (Channing Tatum), who may be a student heading down the wrong path; Timo Cruz (Rick Gonzalez) who struggles between proving himself and quitting out of frustration; Worm (Antwon Tanner) who tends to act as a sort of class clown, and needs straightening out; and eventually, Carter's son, Damien (Robert Ri'chard) who wants nothing more than to prove himself to his father. Carter owns up to being a coach for them, not just on the court, but in life as well. A contract is assigned to each student that demands things like a dress code, respectful behavior, and maintaining a 2.3 GPA (around a C+). Attitudes shift soon enough when, under Carter's coaching, the team rolls through the basketball season undefeated. However, once the coach learns of their class slacking, punctuated by the faculty's lack of faith in their success, Carter locks his players out of the court, while running undefeated, until they can meet his assigned quota. As I mentioned before, I find this one to be something on par with a title such as 'Dangerous Minds'; a "true story" where a teacher comes in to set things right for a classroom. Just replace teacher with coach, and classroom with gym. There's also hints of something like 'Boyz n the Hood' here, as the neighborhood is pretty broken, and worse, there's no faith put in these kids to go anywhere. Carter ends up being exactly what they need, and it's altogether inspiring. He's a man who stands up for his beliefs, and will not give in when people try to keep him down. The critic consensus is that it repeats the same things we've seen before (again, 'Dangerous Minds'), and seems formulaic. However, Samuel L. Jackson's performance here stands out enough to make the film enjoyable. It's equally enjoyable seeing a few familiar faces in some of their early work - namely Channing Tatum in a role where he's not dancing. But you may also pick up on Rob Brown, who was also in 'Finding Forrester', 'The Dark Knight' and currently plays Edgar Reade on 'The Blind Spot'). Robert Ri'chard, one may remember as Blake from 'House of Wax', which came out the same year. One might recognize 'Rick Gonzalez' from 'Arrow' or 'Old School', and Ashanti's fame speaks for itself. Though it never went on to win any Oscars or Golden Globes, it has been recognized by the BET Awards, Black Movie Awards, Black Reel Awards, Image Awards and others for Jackson's performance, and the directorial skills of Thomas Carter. As far as my own opinion, I remember considering it to be in my Top 10 of 2005, somewhere behind 'Revenge of the Sith', but ahead of 'Goblet of Fire'. My big takeaway from this was the thought that while you're being punished for not following through, the "punisher" is doing it because they believe in you. It's just a push in the right direction, and while everyone around him is deeming him as "ridiculous" or "holding them back", his team sees very clearly that he believes they can accomplish something while even their own parents don't seem to have any faith that they'll make it. The film can currently be found on Netflix (Canada), so if you want a solid, motivational film, it's a good place to look. My only real precautions before heading into it are the forewarning that it runs a little long (2h, 15m), and to try not to read into the history and accuracy of everything too much. The importance of the film has more to do with the message it's conveying, and any true story that gets the movie treatment will be brushed up with a little more drama and exaggeration. At the risk of beating a dead horse, treat it just like a 'Dangerous Minds' for a new decade.  Imagine a time when movie magic didn't consist of crazy CG special effects, amazing camera work or uncanny makeup, but existed in a sort of reality where budget barely entered into it quite as much as a great story, lovable characters, and the concept of something like Heaven without being preachy about it whatsoever. 1989's 'Field of Dreams' fits the bill perfectly, and it's easily one of the greatest feel-good films ever made.
A corn farmer from Iowa named Ray Kinsella (Kevin Costner) lives a happy, down to earth life with his wife, Annie (Amy Madigan) and daughter, Karen (Gaby Hoffmann). One day, while working in the field, he hears the famous words "if you build it, he will come". He takes it as a sign to build a baseball field, in the hopes that the late great "Shoeless" Joe Jackson will come back to play. The whole thing is fulfilled within the first half hour or so of the film, and like something from a dream, Joe Jackson (Ray Liotta) and seven more of the 1919 White Sox come to play, but they lack a ninth player to complete their team. Soon, the voices continue, and Ray is lead to reclusive author Terence Mann (James Earl Jones), who he hopes will help him understand the meaning of the voices that he similarly hears. For the record, I'm not the biggest sports fan in the world and know very little about whatever historical inaccuracies there are in the film. That goes double for certain characters here based on real people. But this is one of those films where inaccuracies hardly matter, because the real meaning behind the film is much deeper, and to overanalyze the facts means missing the point. But to dictate the point also means to spoil the end of the movie, so I'll just ease back, even though it's one of those spoilers that's barely a spoiler anymore. What the film does better than anything is provide its viewers with a crazy amount of magic. but does so without it being corny. It's the kind of magic you feel when you meet your favorite celebrity for the first time, or get exactly what you want and then some from a movie you were looking forward to all year, but then it blends that with pure nostalgia. I dare even say that when it comes to baseball memories, in this point in time where sports have all but disappeared, it will tug at your heartstrings even harder than it did before (if you've seen it - if not, I recommend getting on it). This movie is good enough to get three Oscar nominations for Best Picture, Best Adapted Screenplay and its memorably dream-like score from James Horner. On top of all that, it was actually selected in 2017 to be preserved in the US National Film Registry by the Library of Congress for being "culturally, historically, or aesthetically significant". I dunno what else has made that list, particularly, but that does go to show how strong and timeless this story is, with an ending that is bound to bring on some waterworks. |
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