OT: Bull Durham or Field of Dreams
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Bull...great story of people, age, youth, politics and love. Honestly, I've never understood the baseline of Field of Dreams. What does "if you build it, they will come mean?" I know a lot of people that built a lot of stuff but people didn't come.
I will say, I never thought either of them were that great. Decent movies but neither one of them was all that. The Natural is by far the best baseball movie.
I’d watch anything with James Earle Jones in it, and Field of Dreams was a heartwarming story. But hands down for me Bull Durham was the better flick.
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On a side note, after that move came out, a local farmer down the street from where I lived didn't plant the corner of his corn field near his house and built a backstop and baseball field pretty much similar to the movie. Crazy part was he had no young kids. He let us play on the field whenever we wanted although we probably only met the guy once or twice, he would just waive to us when he went past on the tractor or in his truck. So we used it for maybe 2 summers and then basically grew out of it. He kept it up for another few years with nobody using it before eventually replanting essentially where the outfield was but the infield and backstop still was there. Must have been a good decade went by before I drove past one time (long after I had graduated from Penn State) and finally the backstop was down and the field planted up to the corner. Made me a touch melancholy when I saw it had finally come down.
As a baseball fan, both were "entertaining" and I enjoyed both. However, comparing the two movies is like comparing The Natural (My all time favorite baseball movie although I am NO Robert Redford fan) to Ball Four. One shows what WE WANT baseball to be, the other pulls the curtain back and shows us how baseball really is. I am drawn more to The Natural because I see The Judge as the corrupter he is, trying to change things his way, making the game better (for him) in his mind while Roy Hobbs is the natural talent who plays the game because he loves it. To me, the moral is just leave the game alone, it's fine just as it is. I have always looked at the end of The Natural as fates way of saying leave the game alone, don't change it.
yes...I get teary eyed when I watch the end of that movie....a deliverance from bad decisions made in earlier days. Brian's Song is that movie for football for me.
This is a tough choice. "Field" appeals to people on a spiritual level. It deals with life pain and redemption in relationships with family and friends. There is also an element of supernatural. If you are of strong faith, then I think "Field" is your preference.
"Bull" is good, old-fashioned fun. It romanticizes the love of the game, coming of age and capitalizing on (or losing) those big life moments to do what you really love. It's also really hard to beat Susan Sarandon in her prime. It's not her in Rocky Horror, but she's still great here.
I don't look at it as an either-or. It depends on my mood. "Field" will leave me with a deeper impression and thought. I'll reflect on who in my life might play a central role such as Roy's father and the ghosts of the past. I enjoy movies that do that.
"Bull" is good, old-fashioned fun. It romanticizes the love of the game, coming of age and capitalizing on (or losing) those big life moments to do what you really love. It's also really hard to beat Susan Sarandon in her prime. It's not her in Rocky Horror, but she's still great here.
I don't look at it as an either-or. It depends on my mood. "Field" will leave me with a deeper impression and thought. I'll reflect on who in my life might play a central role such as Roy's father and the ghosts of the past. I enjoy movies that do that.
Field of Dreams. I've seen it dozens of times and I cry every time Ray asks his Dad for a catch.
Though not nearly as popular, I guess, For The Love of The Game, was better than either one, IMO.
Baseball movies?
A League of Their Own, Eight Men Out, Bang the Drum Slowly, and Trouble with the Curve all deserve equal consideration.
A League of Their Own, Eight Men Out, Bang the Drum Slowly, and Trouble with the Curve all deserve equal consideration.
If you ever get a chance, visiting the field of dreams is awesome. I stopped before the 2012 PSU game at Iowa. It was early in the morning, foggy, and I was the only one there. Just a great memory.
First movie growing up that made me cry (Brian's Song). One of my all time favorite movie scenes is at the end of the Natural while everybody is celebrating, Pops is just sitting there taking everything in while the lights are exploding, knowing he got his dream and knowing he will never have a moment like this again or see a player such as Hobbs again.
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Bull Durham. Would've been more enjoyable without Sarandon, though. She's anything but sexy.
It's a story of redemption. All of the characters in the story find redemption and are able to overcome regret, including Ray who builds a field so he can play catch with his father. His father died a broken man, unhappy with life and his son. Ray wishes he had not treated his father poorly, even criticizing his father's favorite player whom we find out has entered heaven despite scandal. The novel is less dramatic and has less story lines. The movie has dozens, maybe hundreds of references to other novels, historical facts, famous incidents -- its really a well done screenplay.
Except the reality is that Hollywood corrupted a good novel and changed it to have a self indulgent Hollywood ending. In Malamud’s novel, Hobbs not only takes the bribe, he negotiates a larger sum and strikes out to end the game.
Also, Bull Durham over Field of Dreams everyday of the week, and a double header on Sundays.
If you grew up in the 50's like I did, so much of your life revolved around baseball. Every little hamlet had a "semi pro" team and you would have killed to be the bat boy. If you were lucky you might be gifted a broken bat to put a wood screw in and tape up for use. Never mind that you were 4ft 4 inches tall and the bat was as big as you were. Each day meant hopping on your bike and finding your pals at the nearest diamond. There would be endless games of "scrub" unless the only ball you had (no cover but a taped) started to unravel. No one ever stopped a game due to "real feel" and you didn't need water breaks. You knew the starting lineup and likely the BA RBI and HRS of every one of the 16 major league teams. Those guys were gods and no one ever heard any nonsense about any of them. My older brother (7years older) taught me to love and respect the game.
I regret to say that by my high school years I drifted away from baseball, as I found a new love (football) that turned my head with big crowds, cheerleaders, huge marching bands and magic under the lights.
I rediscovered the love of the game after I retired from coaching football when my sons came along. I made sure they had all the game ready new baseballs and state of the art aluminum bats they wanted. I pitched batting practice till my arm practically fell off and more often than not retrieved the balls they hit and placed them in a bucket so we could do another round. I watched them play for their high school and they both made their college teams (although they sat at that level more than they played). We will text back and forth tonight during the Yankee game, talk baseball and share the bond that will be "ours" until I take my last breath.
Then, I hope just like the movie.....I'll see my Dad like he was "before life beat him down." I think that would be the wish of many guys of my era. Our Dads were WW2 combat vets and sometimes we were like the round holes and square pegs. There wasn't a lot of hugs and "I love you" talk getting thrown around.
Yes, I think it would be nice to have that catch.
Bull Durham, but that's because I live in Durham.
By the way, Annie's house is for sale. Yours for $1.15 million. Just six blocks from the old stadium.
www.realtor.com
By the way, Annie's house is for sale. Yours for $1.15 million. Just six blocks from the old stadium.
'Bull Durham' Home in Durham, NC, Simply Needs a Buyer To Take a Swing
The Queen Anne Victorian that served as Annie Savoy’s home in the movie "Bull Durham" is for sale. Be prepared for baseball-loving crowds out front!
www.realtor.com
Awesome post...baseball has been hugely important in my life. Played pick up games all day like you did, played in high school, coached my son and watched him play in high school and college. It was how my dad and I communicated and how me and my son communicated. More than just a game.
Bull Durham, but that's because I live in Durham.
By the way, Annie's house is for sale. Yours for $1.15 million. Just six blocks from the old stadium.
'Bull Durham' Home in Durham, NC, Simply Needs a Buyer To Take a Swing
The Queen Anne Victorian that served as Annie Savoy’s home in the movie "Bull Durham" is for sale. Be prepared for baseball-loving crowds out front!
$1.15 million? For Durham? Maybe we should get Glov’s opinion on this. Rank the better place to live- Raleigh, Durham, or Chapel Hill?
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Bull Durham is a movie I can watch every time it is on cable. Costner is very good in these sports movies. Same with Tin Cup.
