Plot: Roy Hobbs (Robert Redford) is an amazingly gifted baseball player until a horrific incident derails a promising career. Years later an aging Hobbs decides to give it one last shot at the majors and joins the lowly New York Knights led by manager Pop Fisher (Wilford Brimley). As Hobbs starts hitting, the Knights suddenly start winning. However fame, an unscrupulous owner, and Hobbs's own past threaten to unravel his career and the Knights stellar season.
Review: The Natural is hands down my favorite sports movie of all time. Nothing even comes close. Whenever I hear the name Robert Redford, I don't think of The Sting, or Ordinary People. I think of his role as Roy Hobbs.
In the twenty six years since its release, The Natural has become one of the most beloved sports movies of all time. However, that was not the case when it first came out. Many people were outraged at the drastic changes made to Bernard Malamud's original novel. But while Malamud's novel focuses on the failure of American innocence, director Barry Levinson's film concentrates on the fable of success. Critics John Simon and Roger Ebert were particular brutal calling The Natural "the ultimate triumph of semi-doltish purity" and "idolatry on the part of Robert Redford" respectively.
I couldn't disagree more. In fact I'm on the side of sports writer Bill Simmons who said, "Any 'Best Sports Movies' list that doesn't feature either Hoosiers or The Natural as the number one pick doesn't count."
However, in a sense Ebert is on to something when he talks about "idolatry." The Natural is the first baseball film that really explores the idea of baseball player as myth. Hobbs in many ways is the archetype of the American baseball hero, someone whose accomplishments on the field are just awe inspiring. It is no wonder therefore that Redford copied his swing after the greatest hitter ever, Ted Williams. He even wore Teddy Ballgame's number as an homage to the Red Sox left fielder.
Any sports movie (or any movie for that matter) needs to have four cohesive ingredients: story, acting, tone, and score. The Natural's story is the essence of America because it revolves around a comeback. Who doesn't love a story about a guy who has been through hard times but somehow finds a way to turn it around? That's why we love come back stories like Bo Jackson or Rick Ankiel. It is an essential part of what it means to be human.
The Natural also has the added advantage of having a fantastic ensemble cast. At the forefront of course is Hobbs who at 48 years old was able to convince the audience he was a twenty year old youth just by changing his clothes and hair. Not an easy thing to do. Hobbs's quiet grace and passion to be the best ever in the game shines through just as clearly as the shame of his past. Robert Duvall is excellent as the smarmy sportswriter digging into Hobbs's past who, with the flick of his typewriter, can make anyone into a goat or a hero. The Natural does an excellent job of exploring the constant give and take between athlete and sportswriter. Glenn Close, in an Academy Award nominated role, steals the show as Iris Gaines, Hobbs's former girlfriend. Her elegance and connection to Roy's past serves as a reminder to Redford's character about how important it is to hold true to your roots.
Without question my favorite performance of the film comes from Wilford Brimley. Many people today only know Brimley as the Liberty Mutual guy who has a distinct pronunciation of the word diabetes. However, he'll always be manager Pop Fisher to me. Brimley delivers a funny, gruff, and endearing performance. His relationship to Roy is just as important as Iris's, maybe even more so. I tell you I still get chills every time I see the scene towards the end of the movie where Hobbs tells Fisher that his Dad always wanted him to be a baseball player. Fisher responds, "Well you're better than any one I ever had. And you're the best goddamn hitter I ever saw. Suit up."
I mentioned earlier how The Natural focuses a lot on the baseball player as mythology and the tone of the film reflects that. Director Barry Levinson does an excellent job of creating that sense of electricity and excitement that baseball gives little boys and grown men alike. It's even set in the 1930s which many consider to be the golden age of baseball. Everything seems larger than life, from the sweeping cornfields of Roy's hometown to the majesty of Wrigley Field. Watching the final scenes of The Natural in many ways is like being at baseball game. I still get wrapped up in the intensity of the crowd when Hobbs steps up for that final at bat. Randy Newman's score is epic and sweeping which fits perfectly with the grand scale tone of The Natural.
The Natural uses baseball as a metaphor for the struggles all human beings go through. At the same time it also represents the pure beauty of the game, the passion of those who play it, and the fans who come to cheer them on. Perhaps that is why so many years later it remains a classic. It's also why The Natural remains my all-time favorite sports movie to this day.
My rating: 10/10
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