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The Natural (1984)
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Overview
User Rating:
Release Date:
11 May 1984 (USA) moreTagline:
The best there was! morePlot:
An average baseball player comes out of seemingly nowhere to become a legendary player with almost divine talent. full summary | add synopsisAwards:
Nominated for 4 Oscars. Another 1 win & 4 nominations moreNewsDesk:
(13 articles)
Streep Nom #7-8: The Abundant Riches of 1987-88 (From FilmExperience. 5 July 2009, 3:00 PM, PDT)
Review: My Sister's Keeper
(From Cinematical. 26 June 2009, 7:02 AM, PDT)
User Comments:
The Ultimate Sports Fantasy Movie moreCast
(Cast overview, first billed only)| Robert Redford | ... | Roy Hobbs | |
| Glenn Close | ... | Iris Gaines | |
| Kim Basinger | ... | Memo Paris | |
| Wilford Brimley | ... | Pop Fisher | |
| Barbara Hershey | ... | Harriet Bird | |
| Robert Prosky | ... | The Judge | |
| Richard Farnsworth | ... | Red Blow | |
| Joe Don Baker | ... | The Whammer | |
| John Finnegan | ... | Sam Simpson | |
| Alan Fudge | ... | Ed Hobbs | |
| Paul Sullivan Jr. | ... | Young Roy | |
| Rachel Hall | ... | Young Iris | |
| Robert Rich III | ... | Ted Hobbs | |
| Michael Madsen | ... | Bartholomew 'Bump' Bailey | |
| Jon Van Ness | ... | John Olsen |
Additional Details
Parents Guide:
Add content advisory for parentsRuntime:
134 min | USA:144 min (Director's Cut)Country:
USALanguage:
EnglishColor:
Color (Technicolor)Aspect Ratio:
1.85 : 1 moreSound Mix:
DolbyCertification:
Norway:12 | Iceland:L | Argentina:Atp | Chile:TE | Finland:S | Sweden:7 | UK:PG | USA:PG | West Germany:6 | Australia:PG | Singapore:PGFun Stuff
Trivia:
While the story is an adaptation of the book by Bernard Malamud the plot has been changed for movie to be more "uplifting". Several characters and symbols are heavily influenced by the writings of Homer and Greek mythology: - the line, "Have you ever read Homer?" - Roy Hobbs = Odysseus (trying to "find his way" [home]) - Max Mercy = Vulcan, God of Fire and Forging (he can "make or break you" and always seen in Red/Brown clothing) - Pop Fisher = Zeus, King of the Gods (his uniform is #1 and both the oak tree and lightning bolt a la the Wonderboy bat are his symbols) - The Judge = Hades, God of the Underworld (always in the dark a.k.a. death, and the dead were "judged" in the underworld) - Memo Paris = Kalypso, a sea nymph (she held and distracted Odysseus from returning home; Odysseus had an affair with her). Kalypso means "I will conceal" in Greek - Iris Gaines = Penelope, wife of Odysseus (his true love from whom he was separated for 20 years while she raised their son) moreGoofs:
Revealing mistakes: When years later Hobbs makes just "one" pitch at the end of practice, ...the ball zooms across the plate and lodges into the net behind. You can clearly see a string attached to the ball as it lodges into the net. moreSoundtrack:
STAR SPANGLED BANNER moreFAQ
Is this based on a book?What was up with the woman shooting Roy? Why did she do that?
How does the film differ from the novel?
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This is THE classic sports-Walter Mitty-fantasy movie, with an ending that may seem corny to cynical critics or those who prefer the book, but was perfect for me and a lot of other people.
Granted, I am a little biased in my review since the movie was made in the area in which grew up. Having made many trips to the ballpark in which the movie was filmed, and to the old-fashioned soda shoppe where Robert Redford and Glenn Close re-unite, this movie was special to all of us in Western New York. It always a kick, too, (and a bit odd) to watch the final scene since the opposing pitcher is a personal friend.
I think I would have loved this movie regardless of the "home-field advantage." It's an interesting, involving story that has you really rooting for Redford's character. To have actors like Close, Robert Duvall, Richard Farnsworth, Kim Basinger, Wilfred Brimley, Darren McGavin, Barabara Hershey, Robert Prosky, Joe Don Baker and others in the "lineup" doesn't hurt, either!
The cinematography is beautiful, too. That was something I never really appreciated until after several viewings. There are some wonderfully subdued brown and golden hues in here. This is very pretty motion picture.
All the characters - the good and the bad, and there are plenty of both - are fascinating. It's also nice to see an actor in a baseball film that actually knows how to throw, hit and field a baseball. This is a great, old-fashioned storytelling.