#29 Movie - Moneyball

What is the perfect movie for a quiet Saturday night? We chose Moneyball.  It turned out to be a fine choice - calm, high quality, engaging and interesting.  And not a lot of baseball.

Moneyball is based on a true story.  The story of a former ball player, Billy Beane, who never quite lived up to his potential and ends up as the General Manager of a top level baseball team.   Billy is struggling with the economics of the game - his team, the Oakland Athletics, has around $40 million to spend compared to the over $100 million of the big teams such as the New York Yankees.  With so much less money, Billy can't attract the top-flight talent and the team hasn't been able to win a championship.  With 3 of their best players recruited by other teams for the following season, the team loses the elimination series and misses out again.  Setting up for the following year, Billy discovers an underling for the opposing team (played by Jonah Hill) who seems to have a lot of influence.  He's not even a baseball player or expert, he's an economics graduate with a talent for statistical analysis and predictions.  Billy and Peter team up to try a new method of putting together a team within their budget and we get to follow the results.

This movie really doesn't have a lot to do with baseball.  It's about a number of things in my opinion.  About a man trying to leave a legacy behind.  About the struggle of trying to change a system from within.  About how we value people.  And having the courage to do what you believe is right.  Sounds corny right?  But somehow they manage to make it very un-corny.  I think the credit for this can largely be placed at the feet of one Brad Pitt.  He has matured, and it suits him.  He plays this character perfectly and you really want him to achieve his goal.  Jonah Hill provides great support by barely acting, just being there and not trying to be funny at all.  And there's absolutely no gross-out.

Everything about this movie is quality.  The acting is good (even with a lot of non-acting baseball people in the scouting and playing scenes), the script and dialogue better, the ending unexpected.  There is quite a bit of humour laced in and it's smart stuff.  Although there is a lot of statistics, it's not boring even though it was totally over my head.  There are some great insights into the real game, I had no idea that there are so MANY games played in a season.  No wonder these guys don't last very long!

Don't dismiss Moneyball as a sports film or a cliched sports film.  It is so not a sports film in the traditional sense.  It's a gentle drama with a touch of humour and a couple of sporting moments, which is about sticking it to the man and changing the game for good.