Hard Ball (2001)

User Rating:

6.0/10   

Director:

Brian Robbins

Writers (WGA):

Daniel Coyle (book)
John Gatins (screenplay)

Release Date:

14 September 2001 (USA)

Genre:

Drama | Sport

Tagline:

The most important thing in life is showing up

Plot:

An aimless young man who is scalping tickets, gambling and drinking, agrees to coach a Little League team from the Cabrini Green housing project in Chicago as a condition of getting a loan from a friend. |

Plot Keywords:

Little League | Coach | Gambling | Irish American | Children

Awards:

2 nominations

Cast

Keanu Reeves	...	Conor O'Neill
Diane Lane	...	Elizabeth Wilkes
John Hawkes	...	Ticky Tobin
Bryan Hearne	...	Andre Ray Peetes (as Bryan C. Hearne)
Julian Griffith	...	Jefferson Albert Tibbs
Michael B. Jordan	...	Jamal (as Michael Jordan)
A. Delon Ellis Jr.	...	Miles Pennfield II
Kristopher Lofton	...	Clarence
Michael Perkins	...	Kofi Evans
Brian M. Reed	...	Raymond 'Ray Ray' Bennet
DeWayne Warren	...	Jarius 'G-Baby' Evans
Carol Hall	...	Pearla Evans (as Carol E. Hall)
Jacqueline Williams	...	Lenora Tibbs
Freeman Coffey	...	Darryl Mackey
D.B. Sweeney	...	Matt Hyland

Also Known As:

Hardball (Germany) (USA) (alternative spelling)

MPAA:

Rated PG-13 for thematic elements, language and some violence. (re-rating)

Runtime:

106 min | Spain:109 min

Country:

USA | Germany

Language:

English | German

Color:

Color

Aspect Ratio:

1.85 : 1

Sound Mix:

DTS | Dolby Digital

Certification:

Finland:K-11 | Iceland:12 | Malaysia:U | South Korea:12 | USA:R (original rating) | Australia:M | Canada:PG | France:U | Germany:12 | Netherlands:12 | Norway:15 | Peru:PT | Philippines:G | Singapore:PG | Spain:13 | UK:12 | USA:PG-13 (edited for re-rating) (certificate #38188)

Filming Locations:

Chicago, Illinois, USA

Company:

Fireworks Pictures

Trivia:

Before the film was released in 2001, posters and ads reflected the rating as R before it was re-edited to dub over the kids using the "f" word. Despite quite a bit of profanity remaining, the film was then released with a PG-13 rating.

Goofs:

Errors in geography: Characters often discuss going to "Sluggers" (a sports bar) and refer to it as being "on the corner of Clark and Addison". "Sluggers" is a real sports bar and several scenes from the film were shot there, however it is not on the corner of Clark and Addison - another famous sports bar, "The Cubby Bear", is the only bar on that corner. "Sluggers" (3540 N. Clark Street) is actually a full block from the intersection of Clark and Addison and is located at the intersection of Clark and Eddy.

Quotes:

Conor O'Neill: [Conor calls his players together, looking at the opposing coach and the league president] Guys, this is the league president. Now, he made me kick Jamal off the team today, because he was born 2 weeks early!
[the players all mutter to each other in amazement]
Conor O'Neill: And now, he is making Miles remove his headphones,
[Turns and glares at the opposing coach]
Conor O'Neill: Because he is PITCHING TOO GOOD!

Movie Connections:

Referenced in "HBO First Look: Constantine: Heaven, Hell and Beyond (#12.3)" (2005)

Predictable but an A+ nonetheless. Parental slant to review-

Tonight I attended a sneak preview of the movie Hardball with a 10 year old boy in tow. Hardball shows the very gritty, dangerous life of some inner city kids who are not only trying to survive, but to find some-thing worth caring about- in this case, baseball.

Though not playing to a sold out house, the audience was very loud and enthusiastic, even breaking into cheers at points. I thought the storyline was predictable (bum coach becomes a better man and gets the girl, kids learn teamwork and sportsmanship) and similar to other movies about kids sports teams. What is unique to this movie is it's view of the kids off the field- their lives in housing projects, the dangers, drugs and problems they face just living every day. It's a daring and very affecting storyline, and the cheering of the audience proved to me that it worked very, very well.

Very solid jobs by cast, including Keanu Reeves, who does a fabulous job as the shiftless/compulsive gambler/reluctant coach who becomes much more to his team after realizing these kids actually have a rougher life than his own. This role seemed as well-suited for Reeves as The Matrix...and he didn't even look good doing it. [He does clean up and flash the famous smile near the end!]

The kids steal the show here- and the audience I sat with fell for them as hard as their coach did! Lots of sniffling and clapping in the house. My son loved the movie, too, the moral themes are well wrapped up in the story and not sappy.

Some rough language, disturbing scenes of housing project life and the gambling/bookie world, some sexual references, one death. However, I would grab the kids and go if over first grade. Good opportunity to talk to the kids about winning/losing, drugs, violence and education. Best see it with your boys film since the Mighty Titans scored a touchdown. You may want to go again...