Talent for the Game

What stood out for me was the first half of the film, which has collected a number of apocryphal baseball scouting stories (read "Prophet of the Sandlots" and "Dollar Sign on the Muscle" where some of them appear in print). Edward James Olmos is quietly effective as veteran scout Virgil Sweet, traveling across the country evaluating prospects in an assortment of the usual and unusual places. But the story becomes formulaic as Sweet finds the Holy Grail of scouting: a heretofore unknown pitcher with all the tools to become a superstar in the big leagues. Although Sweet is employed by the Anaheim Angels, the ending is all Hollywood. While not in the pantheon of great baseball movies, it is an enjoyable way to spend 90 minutes.

I really enjoyed this film. It's formulaic, but the performances are excellent. I especially liked the actor who played Sammy Bodeen. He was brilliant. For real baseball fans it is fun to pick out the real professional ball players among the cast. Some of the television networks have begun to show this gem each spring as part of a kick-off to the major league baseball season and I look forward to seeing it each year. Seeing that guy who plays Bodeen is like seeing an old familiar friend. I highly recommend this film for little league coaches to show their teams. It's great for families and kids. My children love it and my wife does too.

I suppose I could be prejudiced in commenting on this movie, since I was a member of the cast ... however, my scene ended up on the cutting room floor (fairly typical) and since I was scared to death when I filmed it and was just shy of awful, I hope you'll cut me some slack! Edward James Olmos is good, Lorraine Bracco gave some zip to an otherwise marginal role. Using real-life location settings in my beautiful home state of Washington, as well as Cour D'Alene, Idaho, adds some spectacle and reality to what is, admittedly, a somewhat clichéd story. But then again, so is just about every other baseball movie I've seen, and yet I love 'em all. Perhaps the most cogent part of the story is the battle between corporate greed and the simple love of the sport, which Olmos portrays well. He is an excellent actor (and I'm happy he's found success with Battlestar Galactica.) This movie had a very limited theatrical release and was rushed to video shortly thereafter. If you really love baseball, and in particular if you dislike the way the sport (and many other sports, too) has been sullied by big bucks, I think you'll enjoy it. Oh, and Olmos was a real gentleman to the rest of the cast, something I'll always appreciate. You'll have to overlook plot devices (in that, it makes me think of "It Happens Every Spring") and you won't have the awe-making spectacle of "Field of Dreams." What you get is a mostly realistic depiction of the sport, and the hope that beats eternal that another "phenom" is about to make an appearance.

The movie will satisfy baseball fans: the imagery is nice, the acting is good (especially by Olmos), and the baseball scenes are well done.

The main issues are that the movie is predictable, with tons of cliches (eg evil baseball team owners); certain parts are layered with unrealistic or downright impossible details (eg a pitcher with no professional baseball experience just jumps into the major leagues; and the movie leaves some areas undeveloped (like the lead character's baseball past). It's an OK movie, but not excellent.

I'd switched on the TV because I couldn't sleep, and a film had just started. It was around 1am, and they don't usually show this kind of feel good movie around that time, so the film was very welcome.

I'd never seen James Edward Olmos in a film before this one, or I didn't remember him because I must have seen him in Bladerunner. So I didn't realise that he was such a decent actor. He's got such a common face, like a farmer, so this charismatic performance was surprising.

Anyway, it was a cute little film, and it is worth watching if you've got nothing better to do.