The Kid from Left Field

I know it's only a fantasy film but, still, if you know the slightest thing about baseball this movie can be annoying at times because ballplayers would NOT act like this. Even worse, Major League players wouldn't be this inept, to begin with. These guys couldn't make a Little League team, and they are playing professional baseball??? Come on...how much are we supposed to swallow here?!!

Listen.....it's a nice story and a good-natured film, but it's just too far-fetched. However, I can some non-baseball fans enjoying it, or older folks enjoying this for the pure nostalgia of seeing some baseball back 50 years ago. I like that part, myself, and appreciate a movie with some sentimentality and sweetness to it, which this does. I also like Dan Dailey, who plays the boy's father. Billy Chapin is likable as the kid, too....so what I am crying about?

It's just that no ballclub is going to employ (or even listen to) some little kid, even if it is secretly coming from his knowledgeable dad. Maybe I've watched too many Steven Spielberg movies. He always portrays kids as smarter than adults, which is ludicrous. I hate to see the same in a classic-era film in which writers had more sense than the twisted politically-correct morons of today.

Remade with gary coleman.

Lauren chapin's brother, Billy Bisons.

This review is for the original version of "The Kid from Left Field", not the remake with Gary Coleman from 1979.

The story is about a VERY precocious kid, Christy Cooper (Billy Chapin*) is a fanatic about baseball. Much of this is because his father, Larry (Dan Dailey) used to be a major leaguer and the pair talk almost non-stop about baseball. Eventually, Christy gets a job as a batboy for the local team, the Bisons, who are one of the worst teams in the majors. However, batboy Christy offers suggestions to some of the players...and soon these suggestions are paying off. Word spread amongst the players that Christy can help and soon he's secretly coaching the team. But the actual manager of the team learns what is happening and instead of acting like a grown up and letting the kid help, he tosses him off the team. Then, however, the team returns to its losing ways and the players all go to the manager to ask something crazy....for Christy to actually be the coach! What's next? See it and find out.

While the story is ridiculous, it is fun and a nice family picture...one today's kids might also like. But, fortunately, it's not schmaltzy and it's a film any age can enjoy. A cute little fantasy baseball movie.

*Billy is the brother of Lauren, who used to be a regular on "Father Knows Best". Unlike his sister, Billy worked mostly in movies.

'The Kid From Left Field' is a wonderful baseball film made in the early fifties and breathes the nostalgia of that time period. Child actor Billy Chapin becomes a batboy for the woeful Bisons (a copy of the old St. Louis Browns) and proceeds to inform the players of how they can correct their individual problems. Unbeknownst to the team, Chapin's wisdom is from his father, a washed-up player who has become a peanut vendor and lacks confidence and courage - in spite of his obvious baseball knowledge. Pretty soon, Chapin becomes the nine year old manager of the team with dramatic results that bind father to son; you can't help but root for the Bisons! A baseball fantasy - but filled with much innocence and charm. Surprisingly, this movie has never made it to VHS or DVD. I loved it as a kid - equally as an adult!

Jack Sher wrote this undemanding feel-good baseball comedy which drips with sentiment but isn't insufferable about it. Former major league ballplayer, now a single dad living on a slim salary hawking fresh roasted peanuts at the ballpark, gives his son invaluable player-tips once the kid becomes a bat-boy for the Bisons. The youngster passes his father's advice on to the teammates (along with some of his own baseball savvy) and soon the team is winning every game. Original sports entry for families is nearly an anomaly for the genre; the screenplay doesn't resort to heavenly assistance or wild gimmickry to get the team to the winners' circle, although little Billy Chapin is briefly appointed the team's manager. The pacing only drops off in the romantic subplot between 'over-the-hill' 36-year-old ballplayer Lloyd Bridges and secretary Anne Bancroft. Otherwise a very likable film, not sharply directed or incisively written, but entirely pleasant. Remade for TV in 1979. **1/2 from ****

Since no one really knows about this movie and no one will re-release it, it contains a magical innocence that helps you take it seriously when watching it. This is a baseball movie but you don't have to be a fan to enjoy the father and son relationship that exists and blossoms throughout this loving fantasy. While watching, you can't help but hope your own kid has half the heart that Christie Cooper does(played by Billy Chapin). The rest of the cast is great and this is one of those sweet, fun movies that just works. Dan Daily (the father) does a great job but the real joy is how he doesn't steal the spotlight from Chapin and lets the story really develop.