Review of
The
Natural, starring Robert Redford, DVD version of the
director’s cut
Five out of five stars
Set in the late
1930’s, this movie is arguably the best sports movie of all time. The only
detriment is the mysticism that occasionally arises as a fundamental part of
the plot. Robert Redford stars as Roy Hobbes, an incredibly talented baseball
player that is destined for stardom when he runs afoul of a crazed female fan.
He disappears
from the game for almost two decades to re-emerge as a major league rookie in
his late thirties. Even with his relatively advanced age, his talents are so
great that he is still an incredible hitter. However, there are undercurrents
of a devious and crooked owner with a gambler determined to make a fortune off
of the failure of Roy’s team.
Much of the
power of the movie is derived from the strength of the performances of the
supporting cast. Robert Duvall as a somewhat crooked sportswriter, Wilford
Brimley as the manager of the baseball team, Kim Basinger as a bad luck femme
fatale and Glenn Close as Hobbes’ childhood sweetheart are all outstanding and
serve to provide the backdrop for the Hobbes character to reach the appropriate
stature.
While I don’t
consider this the best sports movie of all time due to the mystic aspects, it
certainly is justifiable for some people to consider it as number one.
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