Navy Seals

The Navy Seals have gotten a lot of publicity over the last few years, most of it positive. Seal Team 6 led the assault that ultimately killed Osama bin Laden, and then saw their mission get a big screen treatment in Zero Dark Thirty. Just last year, Act of Valor was released in theaters, a great action movie starring real-life seals as themselves. Those are pretty good movies though. How about some oh so bad guilty pleasure flick? Enter stage right, 1990's Navy Seals.

Trying to rescue American pilots taken hostage by extremist terrorists, veteran Navy Seal Lt. James Curran (Michael Biehn) leads his Seal team into a heavily guarded terrorist hideout and executes the mission. During the mission though, his right hand man, Lt. Dale Hawkins (Charlie Sheen), discovers a warehouse full of Stinger missiles, accurate handheld American surface-to-air missiles. Under heavy fire though, the Seals can't destroy the missiles and must leave for their extract point. The missiles remain a high objective though, but the trail goes cold except for a link to an unknown terrorist, Ben Shaheed (Nicholas Kadi). Curran follows a lead in a Lebanese journalist (Joanne Whalley) who has ties and sources in the Middle East. Can they find Ben Shaheed, his extremist followers and their extremely dangerous missiles before they're put into use?

Released in 1990, 'Seals' barely recouped its budget, making about $25 million before finding popularity on home video. It was almost universally panned by critics and is currently rocking a sterling 5.2 IMDB rating. So why then do I like it so much? The only real response I can come up with is that it's a bad movie, and it embraces the badness. The complaints are ridiculous. Sheen and Biehn's hair doesn't fly with Navy regulation. The script is pretty lousy, relying on cliches and stereotypes with just about each passing scene. The one-liners are beyond goofy. Not one of those complaints is unfair in the least. They're all quite legit. It's a pretty stupid movie, and you know what? It's the better for it. 'Seals' tries to entertain, and it never lets us down as an audience in that way.

Part of the fun comes from the casting. An underrated star of the 1980s, Biehn is all business, no nonsense as Lt. Curran, the tough as nails Seal team leader. His second-in-command is Sheen's Lt. Hawkins, a crazy thrill seeker who pushes it too far at times in getting his "rush" on. There's a solid, enjoyable dynamic between the two as they butt heads over how to get things done. Curran's team includes Leary (Rick Rossovich, another 80s icon in Top Gun), the corpsman, Rexer (Cyril O'Reilly), explosives, Dane (Bill Paxton), the sniper, Graham (Dennis Haysbert), the team chief, and Ramos (Paul Sanchez), the interpreter. The only real development any of them are given is Graham getting a fiance story (a pre-Law and Order S. Epatha Merkerson), but that's beyond the point. This is a men-on-a-mission movie at its best (and worst I suppose).

At its heart, this is an action movie pure and simple. A movie running 113-minutes never goes too long without some shootouts and pyrotechnics. The opening raid on the terrorist port hideout is a great scene-setter for what's to come. In an episodic story that has the Seals moving from location to location, we never stay in one place more than a few minutes. Mission after mission, some quick and hard-hitting, others a little more drawn out and allowed to breathe. The finale when Curran's team tracks down the Stinger missiles is not surprisingly the best. The Seals must fight their way through the bombed-out, war-torn streets of Beirut in Lebanon in the night. It's a tense scene with a more than solid payoff as the surviving Seals (Yes, there are casualties) race through the streets with heavily armed terrorists behind them in hot pursuit. Sure, the action is a tad overdone at times, but it's fun stuff.

This is a dudes being dudes movie. You don't go into it for the dialogue scenes between Biehn's Curran and Whalley's comely journalist. You go into it for the action and ridiculousness in director Lewis Teague's shootout-heavy flick. Where else can you see a goofy 1980s-esque montage with the Seals goofing around on a golf course to an awful cover of the Boys Are Back in Town? Cheesy soundtrack in general in a movie that won't strain any brain cells. An introduction has Sheen's Hawkins jumping off a bridge out of a moving jeep to avoid going to a fellow Seal's wedding. How stupidly over the top is that? But that's the movie. Entertaining at times in spite of itself, it's a movie released in 1990 that might as well be considered as a schlocky 1980s flick. Whatever and whenever it was released, it's a good one that's oh so bad.   

Navy Seals (1990): ***/****

Major League II

I love 1989's Major League. It's one of my all-time favorite sports movies, a great story of a bunch of screwball underdogs working together to overcome an owner trying to move the franchise. A baseball movie that's very funny with a ton of great characters and one-liners. Naturally, a sequel came along some five years later, 1994's Major League II, and it's nowhere near as good. On the other hand....it's still a baseball movie, a funny one, most of the characters are back, and though it is bad, I still love it.

Having won the division the year before, the screwball Cleveland Indians are back and ready to take another run at the World Series. The Indians came up short in the playoffs the previous season -- swept at the hands of the Chicago White Sox -- but retired third baseman turned owner Roger Dorn (Corbin Bernsen) has brought back the core of the team, including fireballing pitcher Rick "Wild Thing" Vaughn (Charlie Sheen), veteran catcher Jake Taylor (Tom Berenger), fleet-footed outfield Willie Mays Hayes (Omar Epps) and slugging outfielder Pedro Cerrano (Dennis Haysbert). Dorn even signed a slugging, free agent catcher, Jack Parkman (David Keith), to bolster the lineup. Everyone and everything seems posed for a great season and hopefully a big postseason run, but have the Indians become complacent? Manager Lou Brown (James Gammon) certainly has his work cut out for him with this bunch.

Did you like 1989's Major League? No? What the hell is wrong with you? I'm guessing you hate America and/or baseball. Maybe both. If you answered 'yes,' then you're going to enjoy this movie too. Director David S. Ward returns from the original to direct this sequel which will appease and entertain a lot of fans because....well....it's the same movie. Yeah, yeah, some things are tweaked, but it's basically the exact movie. This season the Indians start off as front-runners, hit an epically rough streak, and then have to turn things around to get back into the playoffs. It should feel familiar -- even a little phoned-in at times -- and while it isn't on the same level as its predecessor, it is funny, entertaining and a solid if unspectacular sports movie.

A big reason it's worth putting up with some of the stupid laughs is because the characters are back. Amidst all the laughs and baseball goofiness of the original, the characters were likable (sometimes in spite of themselves). The success of the previous season has gone to the Indians' heads though, starting with Wild Thing who's now trying to clean up his image with the help of girlfriend-agent Flannery (Alison Doody). Oh, and he's lost some heat off his fastball. Veteran catcher Jake Taylor finds himself on the bench as a coach when the Indians decide to bring up a young talented catcher to backup Parkman. Replacing Wesley Snipes, Epps is solid as Willie Mays Hayes, base-stealing outfielder who's turned himself into a power hitter....and B-movie action star. Haysbert's Cerrano has forsaken his voodoo ways, turning to Buddhism and losing his ability to hit in the process. As cantankerous manager Lou Brown, Gammon is hilarious -- not surprising -- as he progressively loses his mind with his underachieving players. Playing owner-third baseman Dorn, Bernsen makes the most of a smaller supporting part.

What would a Major League sequel be without the triumphant return of Milwaukee Brewers radio man Bob Uecker as Harry Doyle, the Indians radio play-by-play guy who lives and dies with how the team does. His brutally honest banter is beyond perfect, usually questioning what the hell is going on out on the field. He has some great scenes with virtually silent partner, Monty (Skip Griparis). There aren't as many ridiculously funny, memorable lines as the original, but that's a relative complaint. How could you not love 'And the Indians have a base runner.....I think I'll wet my pants" or "He'll need a rocket up his ass to catch that one." It's his perfectly subtle, underplayed deliveries that work, and seeing him drink on-air more and more as the Indians go under is beyond perfect.

How about some additions to the team though? David Keith is the ideal egotistical star player as Parkman, the star free agent catcher. He's interested in himself and his stats, and he isn't going to be long for the Indians. Eric Bruskotter is a scene-stealer as Rube Baker, the young minor league catcher trying to make it with the big league team. He has a problem though....he can't throw back to the pitcher. Baker also just loves the game, and it rubs off on his teammates. Takaaki Ishibashi plays Kamikaze Tanaka, a Japanese outfielder trying to get his teammates, especially peaceful Cerrano, to embrace "their marbles." Think about it, you'll get it. Also with his fair share of memorable scenes is Randy Quaid as Johnny, a superfan who goes up and down with each game the Indians played. Rene Russo makes a quick, blink and you'll miss it appearance as Lynn, Jake's wife, while Margaret Whitton plays Rachel Phelps, the Indians former owner who reappears at the worst possible time.

Does it all work? No, especially Wild Thing trying to reinvent himself as a clean-cut salesman. His scenes with Flannery and former fling, Nikki (Michelle Burke), drag down the story to a snail's pace, especially because Nikki works with underprivileged kids. Yeah, a message! And with a 105-minute movie and so many characters, things feel rushed at times. Characters get brushed aside too often for long stretches, and there's never really a doubt where the story's heading. That said, it's a bad good movie. You know it's bad, but it's enjoyable from beginning to end.

Major League II (1994): ***/****

Wall Street: Money Never Sleeps

One of the more iconic movies to come out of the 1980s, 1987's Wall Street is memorable because of star Michael Douglas and his infamous line, "Greed is good." The movie itself is pretty good, and 23 years after its release, director Oliver Stone decided to return to his iconic character and continue the story with 2010's Wall Street: Money Never Sleeps.

After spending 13 years in jail for insider training and securities fraud, Gordon Gekko (Douglas) is finally given his parole. Some seven years pass, and now he's promoting his new book 'Is Greed Good?' when he meets a young stock broker, Jake Moore (Shia LaBeouf), who is engaged to Gordon's estranged daughter, Winnie (Carey Mulligan). Gordon wants to form a relationship with a daughter who might as well consider him dead. At the same time, Gordon begins to help Jake, a talented, intelligent broker in his own right, as he starts a new job with a high-level firm broker, Bretton James (Josh Brolin), who has rubbed plenty of people the wrong way in his rise to power. With millions and billions of dollars on the line and the massive egos to boot, an epic confrontation looms, but the struggling economy may have the last laugh over everyone involved.

For starters, let's get this somewhat obvious statement out of the way. Like just about any sequel ever, this is basically the definition of unnecessary. Why go back to a movie from 23 years ago and revisit a character -- however iconic -- and story that didn't need revisiting? Oh...the sequel made $130 million in theaters? I suppose that's as good a reason as any. Well, in business at least. Other than the epic economic issues of the last 10 years, there's no real reason to make this sequel. That said, it's not bad. The biggest thing working in positive fashion is the acting. The story lacks a bit of punch -- it's missing something in the energy department -- but I liked it just the same. Unnecessary? Oh, you betcha, but you could do worse.

I like movies, sports, reading. I can B.S. my way through a fair share of conversations. The financial crisis of 2008 is most definitely not one of those things. I have a very basic knowledge of the economic collapse that this sequel goes into in depth, but I'm far from an expert. In other words, some background and/or understanding in big money, Wall Street, stocks, and everything financial will no doubt help your enjoyment of this flick. Because my knowledge of the subject material is limited, I wasn't always crystal clear on what was going on. I still liked it, but it's an issue just the same. End of sidenote.

Without question, the best thing going for Stone's sequel is the return of Michael Douglas as Gordon Gekko. His introduction is perfect, Gekko getting his parole and being released from prison after serving 13 total years in jail. We see him get his possessions back from a suit to a watch to a rather massive cell phone. The message is clear; times have changed, and Gordon is a dinosaur who has to adjust with the times. I think Stone makes an incredibly wise choice. For much of the movie, Gekko is a secondary -- if incredibly important secondary -- character that fleets in and out of the story as needed. Any scene with Douglas in it is worth watching, his appearances bringing the entire movie up a notch just by being there. He makes the others around him better. The new movie itself is unnecessary, but Douglas's appearance makes it worthwhile.

The rest of the cast is solid if unspectacular. It seems no matter the movie, LaBeouf takes grief for any number of things -- wooden acting, bad acting, off-screen antics -- but as long as he's not in loud, obnoxious, and obvious Transformers mode, I like him. It isn't a flashy part (that is left to Douglas, nailing it in subtle fashion), but LaBeouf's Jake is the main character, and for me, an interesting one. Mulligan too is pretty good as Winnie, Gordon's estranged daughter who wants nothing to do with her father. Behind Douglas, I thought the best part was from Brolin as the Wall Street rival with some ulterior motives. Frank Langella is a scene-stealer as well as Louis Zabel, Jake's aging mentor who hates what Wall Street is becoming, Susan Sarandon plays Jake's mom who's heavily invested in real estate, Eli Wallach as a Wall Street dinosaur, and Jason Clarke as the NYC Fed chief. Not necessarily great performances, but it's fun to see all those names assembled.

This 2010 sequel is missing that special something from making it an above-average, truly enjoyable flick. It's good enough, but it's never more than that. Clocking in at 138 minutes, it feels incredibly long in certain stretches. Lots of dialogue isn't a bad thing, but at times, it gets a little tedious, a little slow. Douglas certainly helps the momentum pick up a bit, especially late when we see the Gekko we all love to hate. Charlie Sheen even makes a cameo as Bud Fox, the protagonist in the original Wall Street. I liked this one, didn't love it. Not bad stuff.

Wall Street: Money Never Sleeps (2010): ** 1/2 /****

Red Dawn (1984)

Just about any movie can -- and most likely will -- be remade at some point. After a debacle of a free screening of the new Red Dawn movie (I missed it, didn't get there early enough), I consoled myself with the original, a 1980s classic that is still as good as ever. Guilty pleasure? Eh, maybe, I maintain it's just a good movie. Enter 1984's Red Dawn.

It's an October day like any other in the town of Calumet, Colorado. As classes start at the local high school though, parachutes appear in the sky, hundreds of them. What exactly is going on? It's Russian and Cuban paratroopers dropping in as an advance element of the invasion of the U.S. The school and town gets shot up in the process with many casualties, but a group of teenagers including Jed (Patrick Swayze), a former jock working with his Dad, and his younger brother, Matt (Charlie Sheen), manage to escape the town and head for the Rockies where they'll be relatively safe. A month goes by though as they hide, and then the news hits. The invasion was a success -- to a point -- but the fighting has now gone stagnant. Well behind Russian/enemy lines, Jed, Matt and their friends decide to take the attack to their invaders, becoming a partisan group of resistance fighters.

From tough guy writer/director John Milius, 'Dawn' is definitely a product of the times, but in good ways. With the Cold War still very much alive between the U.S. and Russia, this potential invasion story hits home. People had wondered and questioned for years if this was where the conflict was heading. In the years since, 'Dawn' has gained a reputation as a so bad it's good movie, even a guilty pleasure. Yes, I suppose it qualifies, but I tend to disagree. The acting is over the top at times, the ultra-patriotism evident everywhere, and some scenes do produce some unintentional laughs, but I maintain this is just a good movie. If it is a little heavy-handed at times, so be it. It is entertaining as hell from the start, and that doesn't change by the end.

The screenplay from Milius and Kevin Reynolds wastes no time setting the stage. Less than two minutes into the movie, parachutes are descending on Colorado, sending Calumet into chaos. People are running for their lives as paratroopers start shooting anything that moves. Talk about a tone-setter. As an opening, it's hard to beat. 'Dawn' has its fair share of memorable moments, probably most famously the teenagers yelling 'Wolverines!' after successful attacks on invading forces (Wolverines was the school mascot). Aided by Basil Poledouris' score, the action scenes -- of which there are plenty -- and dramatic scenes are balanced out perfectly. Listen to the main theme HERE. The film was shot on location in New Mexico in the mountains, giving it a hard-edged look that benefits the ever-darkening story as well.

It is an 80s movie, and the cast certainly reflects that. I have a theory about Swayze in 1980s movies. He's in every great movie from the decade. If you can't find him, you're not looking hard enough. A 32-year old playing a recent high school graduate? Right. But who cares?!? It's Patrick Swayze, and he's ridiculously cool! Along with Sheen, the Wolverines include Lea Thompson, C. Thomas Howell, Jennifer Grey, Darren Dalton, Brad Savage and Doug Toby. Swayze and Sheen as brothers stand out, as does Howell as Robert, the Wolverine so bent on revenge for his parent's death he becomes a hardened killer. Also look for Powers Boothe as Col. Andy Tanner, a downed fighter pilot who fights with the Wolveines, in a scene-stealing part. In smaller parts, old pros Ben Johnson and Harry Dean Stanton (as Jed and Matt's imprisoned Dad) certainly make positive impressions too.

On repeated viewings, I've come to like this movie more and more. I think you can chalk that up to the darkness of the story. Yes, there's a fair share of fantasy here; school kids getting guns and taking on invading forces, becoming heroes in the process. But actually considering the story, it's incredibly dark. Case in point? The Wolverines start getting picked off one-by-one. The Russian invaders call in a specialist, a hunter, Strelnikov (William Smith), to brutally hunt them down, using any tactics he has at his disposal. We see the war from basically the opposite side of how the U.S. has fought in any conflict. We're being attacked. We're defending. When the Wolverines kill Russians, Americans are killed in retaliation, but on we fight. In a sympathetic part, Ron O'Neal plays Colonel Bella, a former revolutionary now fighting from the opposite perspective, an officer trying to quell an uprising.

This darkness comes through in the final 45 minutes, building to a surprising but highly effective ending. I love Swayze and Sheen's conversations they have in between fights. Swayze's Jed puts it best as these two friends/brothers plan their line of attack, knowing their odds are slim. He states "It's not easy being brothers, huh?" Shakespeare? No, but it works. As the Russians turns the tables on the Wolverines, that is 'Dawn' at its best. I love the ending as well, Jed and Matt taking the attack to the Russian base. It's a great ending, and not surprisingly, a patriotic one. Heavy-handed guilty pleasure? Maybe, but I think it's just a really good movie.

Red Dawn (1984): *** 1/2 /****

Major League

Just as a sports fan, I can appreciate there's something more special about certain sports than others. I love watching basketball, football, soccer and volleyball, but baseball will always be my favorite one to watch. That opinion not surprisingly makes the jump to sports movies where baseball movies rule supreme, especially 1989's Major League.

It's been 40-plus years (in 1989 at least) since the Cleveland Indians last won an American League pennant when a new owner, Rachel Phelps (Margaret Whitton), takes over the franchise. She's got a plan though for the struggling franchise. A clause in the city contract allows the franchise to move if attendance is at a league-low, and Rachel wants to move the Indians to sunny Miami. With hopes of driving fans away from the stadium, she assembles a team of past their prime vets, unrecognizable rookies, and in general, a team of misfits. Among the group is creaky-kneed veteran catcher Jake Taylor (Tom Berenger), ex-con with a live arm Ricky Vaughn (Charlie Sheen), and speedster on the bases Willie Mays Hays (Wesley Snipes). The team starts off badly enough, but then they figure out Rachel's plan. Can they turn it around in time?

Ignoring the two sequels (entertaining but admittedly mediocre), Major League is hard to beat as far as sports -- and more specifically  baseball -- movies go. It's truly funny with countless memorable bits and running gags, but the drama also feels real. From director David S. Ward, 'Major' used Milwaukee's County Stadium as a replacement home for the Indians. The actual MLB stadium gives an authentic feel to the developing season, especially late in the movie during the climactic one-game playoff with thousands of extras packing the stadium. It's also the little things, the running bits about different fans from the never-say-die fans in the bleachers (Too high! being a classic, watch HERE), the foul-mouthed, doubting Japanese grounds-crew, and then the average fan on the street, bonding together around their team. As a baseball fan in real life, it feels authentic.

The misfit underdog is nothing new to the sports genre, but the assembled group of misfit characters help make this movie a classic (even making the sequels tolerable in their own awful uniqueness). Some 23 years later, fans typically talk about Sheen's Vaughn or Snipes' Hayes, but Berenger is the star here. His creaky veteran has in baseball purgatory, wasting away in Mexico and hoping for a chance to get back to the majors. While the other characters may be more memorable, Berenger's Jake ends up being the heart of the movie, delivering a career-best performance. Sheen and Snipes are scene-stealers as the youngsters and breakout stars on the Indians. Sheen did his own pitching and looks like a baseball player while Snipes' infectious attitude makes it impossible not to like the character who's cocky and confident without being obnoxious.

Not so fast though, there's more, starting with James Gammon as gravelly-voiced, no-nonsense, old school baseball manager Lou Brown. A long-time minor league manager, he brings his gruff manner of coaching to the Indians, not wanting to put up with any primadonnas or attitudes. Among the other players are Roger Dorn (Corbin Bernsen), the third baseman more interested in his post-baseball career than showing effort now, Pedro Cerrano (Dennis Haysbert in a scene-stealing part), the Cuban exile outfielder who can crush fastballs but not offspeed pitches and turns to his voodoo roots, and Eddie Harris (Chelcie Ross), the junkball, rag arm pitcher who uses every trick in the book to keep batters off balance. Also worth mentioning is Charles Cyphers as Charlie Donovan, the Indians GM forced to keep his mouth shut as the team crumbles.

Now as good as all of these characters are, most people think of one thing when 'Major League' comes up, and that's long-time Milwaukee Brewers radio man Bob Uecker as Indians radio play-by-play Harry Doyle. A review dedicated solely to Doyle's on-air one liners would be one of the easiest reviews ever written. He drinks Jack Daniels while on-air and lacks even the slightest censor as he describes the action ("Indians manage one hit....one hit? One goddamn hit?"). Doyle's unique spin always keeps the radio listeners involved, famously describing a pitch seven to eight feet off the plate as 'Jjjjjjust a bit outside.' His on-air banter is perfect, his asides to his silent color man even funnier. A part that makes a good sports movie a great sports movie.

This isn't a perfect sports movie though, Berenger's love story subplot with ex-wife Rene Russo grinding the movie to a halt. Far too much time is spent on their backstory, distracting from the baseball action. As a baseball movie though, it is about as perfect as it gets. It gets the baseball right though with plenty of laughs, in-game action, and a great finale as the Indians battle to get into the playoffs. One of the best sports movies around.

Major League <---trailer (1989): *** 1/2 /****

Eight Men Out

Growing up a sports fan in Chicago, I learned to love the White Sox from an early age, going to countless games with my Dad over the years. The 2005 team that won the World Series is still one of the coolest moments of my life to this point and is something I'll never forget. But as much as I love the Sox, they will always be responsible for one of the darkest moments in baseball history, and bigger than that, professional sports. In 1919, eight players (allegedly) took money to fix the World Series, losing to Cincinnati. Their story was immortalized in 1988's Eight Men Out, one of the all-time underrated sports movies.

Tearing through the American League and winning the pennant, the Chicago White Sox, led by five-tool player Joe Jackson (D.B. Sweeney) and 29-game winner Eddie Cicotte (David Strathairn), head into the World Series against the Cincinnati Reds the heavy favorites. Gamblers from Chicago to New York City see a chance for a big payday, starting by approaching Sox first baseman Chick Gandil (Michael Rooker) to see if enough players would be interested in throwing the series for a payoff. The plan sounds awful. How could professional ballplayers on one of the best teams ever assembled throw the championship? Having been mistreated and poorly paid for years by owner Charles Comiskey (Clifton James) though, Gandil finds suitors, finally settling on eight players, some more committed than others. When the best-of-nine series starts though, will the players go through with it?

As a sports fan, there is something incredibly uncomfortable about watching this movie. As a Sox fan, there is something really unpleasant watching the story unfold. The details of the Black Sox scandal plagued the franchise for years, the 2005 World Series team finally wiping some of the embarrassment away. Just as a sports fan and a baseball fan, you feel wrong watching something like this. 'Eight' neither condemns nor makes the eight players into heroes. Some like Eddie Cicotte are looking for money as his career winds down, Gandil is looking for a quick payday, and others like Jackson and third baseman Buck Weaver (John Cusack) aren't even sure they should be involved. Director John Sayles simply tells his story, and lets the viewer come to his own conclusions.

Any fan of sports, history, or doesn't live under a rock is at least somewhat familiar with this incident. Eight players were kicked out of baseball two years later for throwing at least part of the 1919 World Series although it's a personal judgment call as to whether all eight were guilty. In other words, you know how the story will end before it starts. Sayles takes on that challenge, directing a story that never failed to keep me interested. He builds a sense of doom throughout as the series develops, the fix clearly in. Cicotte's signal that he's going along with the fix -- hitting Game 1's first batter -- is a simple but surprising and even shocking moment. It is very real from here on in, and with one pitch things changed forever for baseball. The series bounces back and forth, even the Sox questioning if they should go along when their promised pay isn't provided. Give Sayles credit. He made the known content of history interesting, keeping us guessing.

With at least 30 or 40 speaking roles, a handful of performances still manage to rise to the top. Cusack especially as 3B Buck Weaver is a scene-stealer, a hard-nosed baseball player who claimed to the day he died he had nothing to do with the fix. He sees what's going on around him but is basically helpless to do anything. Sweeney plays Jackson as the immensely talented but naive Shoeless Joe, a player caught up in something bigger than he is. He knows nothing else other than baseball, and to this day fans still say he played as hard as ever in the 1919 Series. The movie's final shot focuses on Jackson, an incredibly moving closing. Strathairn as Eddie Cicotte delivers an understated but very effective performance, a pitcher who sees the finish line in sight, a man who's been mistreated by his boss, the dirt-cheap Charles Comiskey. John Mahoney plays Kid Gleason, the Sox manager who sees what's going on but is helpless to stop it.

That's far from all though, just the best of the bunch. The other players include Rooker's Gandil, Charlie Sheen as Happy Felsch, Don Harvey as shortstop Swede Risberg, Gandil's conniving partner, James ReadPerry Lang as Lefty Williams, a southpaw and second pitcher in on the fix, and as Fred McMullin, a little-used benchwarmer. Gordon Clapp, Bill Irwin and Jace Alexander play members of the Sox playing it straight come game-time. Michael Lerner plays Arnold Rothstein, big-time gambler putting the money up for the fix, with Christopher Lloyd, Kevin Tighe and Michael Mantell as other gamblers involved. Sayles and Eight Men Out author Eliot Asinof are good playing off each other as two sports writers suspicious of what's going on with the White Sox on the field.   

Good or bad, shown in a positive or negative light, there is something to be said for a baseball movie (of which there are too few). The baseball action is handled in exciting fashion without getting bogged down. The actors look like baseball players, appearing very natural on the field. The late 1910/early 1920s look of the movie doesn't hurt either, fans coming out to the stadium wearing suits. Throw away just about anything else though, and baseball and its simple beauty make up the heart of the movie. Even in the sport's darkest days, it is great to watch. Why it isn't remembered more fondly I'll never know.

Eight Men Out <---trailer (1988): ****/****