The Sandlot....The Movie (1993)

Simply a CLASSIC!  My daughter and I have Father/Daughter films.  Sandlot is one of them along with Remember the Titans and The Natural.  I'm glad you got to enjoy that with your son. 

In order of the number of times I've watched them.....Grease (well over 200 times...100+ the summer it came out...).  Field of Dreams (50+), Remember the Titans (50-ish)....Hoosiers (alot)...are the ones I think of right away. 

Sergeant York (Gary Cooper) 1941

 

The Natural (Robert Redford) 1984

 

Rudy (Sean Astin) 1993

 

Summer Catch (Jessica Biel) (Brian Dennehy) 2001

Slap Shot.

Best Baseball Movie - The Natural (I guess)

 

Best Baseball comedy - Bull Durham

 

Best Sports Movie - Hoosiers

 

Best Sports Comedy - Slap Shot

 

The great baseball movie has yet to be made. 

A couple of my favorites not already mentioned are The Final Season with Sean Astin (based on a true story) & Mickey with Harry Connick Jr (based on a John Grishm book I think).

Sports movies to watch with family...

Remember the Titans, Blind Side, A League of Their Own, Miracle, Rudy, 42, Major League, Sandlot, Cool Runnings, Mystery, Alaska, The Rookie, Coach Carter, Kicking and Screaming.

 

I agree.

 

Many entertaining baseball movies, but no great ones.

 

For me, a great baseball movie would have to:

 

1.  Present credible athletic movements by the actors or stuntmen or whoever.  My willing suspension of disbelief dissolves when I see an actor pretend to be a professional pitcher with a delivery that couldn't produce a 70 mph fb or hit a home run with a rusty gate swing that employs no lower half power at all.  Maybe they need to come up with some of those Mission Impossible rubber masks and put them on real athletes or CGI actor faces onto ballplayer bodies.  I don't know how, but this must get solved before I will call a baseball movie great.  

 

2.  Offer a plot transcends the outcome of a particular game, season or career and one that does not lead to an inevitable championship by an improbable assemblage of mismatched parts.  Normal baseball games in real life have so many ways of creating drama and ending unexpectedly that the screenwriters ought to banish the mighty swing, slo-mo, walk off grand slam for ever.  A great baseball movie would have some element of surprise in the baseball action, and the baseball action should support the larger human drama of the movie.

 

3.  Portray baseball players as credible humans with full lives away from the game, not as stereotypical stock characters (e.g., the washed up pro seeking one last moment in the sun, the callow young superstar, the gruff old coach).  Many baseball players are interesting, fascinating people with varied interests and meaningful relationships.  A great baseball movie would have characters who are compelling as individuals even away from the ballpark.

 

4. Provide insight into the game itself.  Credibly show some of the game within the game and heighten the casual fan's appreciation of how much is happening when it doesn't look like much is happening.

 

5.  Be capable of standing as a great movie in its own right.

 

Several movies already mentioned in this thread get partial or better credit on as many as two or three of the criteria, but I haven't seen anything that meets all of them.

 

 

 

 

cabbagedads list good.

 

I loved Pride of The Yankees, old but loved it. Just watched it the other day.

 

My family really liked Million dollar arm yet not a classic .

 

Angels in the Outfield was good too. I loved moneyball, Fever Pitch was great as well.Field of dreams. Maybe not classics but love them all.

FOG, it's funny you mentioned Angels in the Outfield. My wife loves that old movie as it was one that we watched when son was younger. I LOVE Pride of the Yankees. We want to see Million Dollar arm but, I am having a hard time buying the theme of that story.

 

What are your thoughts on 42? It reminds me of how people use Glamour shots to make someone look better than they are. This story could have been sold without all the bells and whistles added in. I can understand Hollywood wanting to sell tickets but, why embellish some details that just don't need it?

 

Take Rudy for example. The part where Dan Devine was sitting in his office and all the Seniors came in and began laying their jersey's on his desk in support of letting Rudy dress out for the last game of the season? That didn't happen. Dan Devine was actually the ONE who let Rudy dress out. Rudy also played in 3 plays in the game against Georgia Tech, not 1.

 

YGD

YGD,

My son didn't care for 42 said it seemed to Hollywood. I like the actor a lot.

 

I loved the story with million dollar arm, loved the cultural part, Tom House,(he is really that way as in film).One of those kids I believe is close to the majors and the other is still involved with baseball. I looked them up when I got home. I am sure I like the USC connection, although  most shot elsewhere.

 

I liked Fear Strikes Out and The Stratton Story. I can't think of the title but the one about the Dean brothers was good. 

 

Now if we really want to go back, you can do Alibi Ike with Joe E. Brown

So many great movies are listed. A great "what to watch" list....let's keep it going!

Rookie of the year (not a great movie) was the goto movie in our house when the kids were younger. the little league district tourney in our area is played on the fields used for the movie. It was kinda cool for our kids to play games on those fields.