Eight Men Out (1988)

A dramatization of the Black Sox scandal when the underpaid Chicago White Sox accepted bribes to deliberately lose the 1919 World Series.

Director:

John Sayles

Writers:

Eliot Asinof (book), John Sayles (screenplay)

Stars:

John Cusack, Clifton James, Michael Lerner

2 nominations.

Cast

Cast overview, first billed only:
John Cusack	...	George 'Buck' Weaver
Clifton James	...	Charles 'Commie' Comiskey
Michael Lerner	...	Arnold Rothstein
Christopher Lloyd	...	'Sleepy' Bill Burns
John Mahoney	...	William 'Kid' Gleason
Charlie Sheen	...	Oscar 'Hap' Felsch
David Strathairn	...	Eddie Cicotte
D.B. Sweeney	...	Joseph 'Shoeless Joe' Jackson
Michael Rooker	...	Arnold 'Chick' Gandil
Don Harvey	...	Charles 'Swede' Risberg
James Read	...	Claude 'Lefty' Williams
Perry Lang	...	Fred McMullin
Gordon Clapp	...	Ray Schalk
Jace Alexander	...	Dickie Kerr
Bill Irwin	...	Eddie Collins

Storyline

The great Chicago White Sox team of 1919 is the saddest team to ever win a pennant. The team is bitter at their penny pincher owner, Charles Comiskey, and at their own teammates. Gamblers take advantage of this opportunity to offer some players money to throw the series. (Most of the players didn't get as much as promised.) But Buck Weaver and the great Shoeless Joe Jackson turn back at the last minute and try to play their best. The Sox actually almost come back from a 3-1 deficit. Two years later, the truth breaks out and the Sox are sued on multiple counts. They are found innocent by the jury but baseball commissioner Landis has other plans. The eight players are suspended for life, and Buck Weaver, for the rest of his life, tries to clear his name.

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Plot Keywords:

world series | scandal | chicago white sox | gambler | baseball | 

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Taglines:

No player who throws ball games will ever play professional baseball again.

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Genres:

Drama | History | Sport

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Certificate:

PG

Details

Country:

USA

Language:

English

Release Date:

2 September 1988 (USA)

Also Known As:

Les coulisses de l'exploit

Filming Locations:

Bush Stadium - 1501 W. 16th Street, Indianapolis, Indiana, USA

Box Office

Budget:

$6,000,000 (estimated)

Gross:

$5,680,515 (USA)

Company Credits

Production Co:

Orion Pictures Corporation

Technical Specs

Runtime:

119 min

Sound Mix:

Mono

Color:

Color

Aspect Ratio:

1.85 : 1

Did You Know?

Trivia

According to Michael Rooker, he had a loud argument with the casting director because he was upset that John Sayles was not present at the audition. The casting director felt that he had the right attitude to play Chick Gandil. The producers did not want to cast Rooker because he was an unknown. Sayles sent the producers a clip of Henry: Portrait of a Serial Killer and they were convinced.

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Goofs

In the scene before the first game in Cincinnati, Buck Weaver and Kid Gleason are talking at home plate in the empty ballpark. Buck (John Cusack) is swinging a Louisville Slugger. While the bat is probably an older one, it clearly has the "Powerized" label on it. Louisville Sluggers did not have this label until 1931, 12 years after the 1919 World Series.

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Quotes

Hap Felsch: I may be dumb, fellas, but I ain't stupid.

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Connections

Referenced in Numb3rs: 7 Men Out (2009)

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Soundtracks

"After You've Gone"
Music by Turner Layton words by Henry Creamer
1923

User Reviews

Dear God, I love this movie!

John Sayles is always, always honest with his audiences, never resorting to cheap tricks or unwarranted sentiment; and this period drama about the "Black Sox" scandal of 1919 may be his finest hour. Incredibly handsome and lavish-looking for a low-budget indie, it's a meticulous re-creation of the first huge scandal in American professional sports, and the beginning of the loss of innocence in pro baseball (and American popular culture by extension). If that makes it sound a bit dry, let it be said that the characterizations are vivid, the characters multilayered, the costumes gorgeous, and the staging of the baseball games unusually convincing. (Ever notice how movie stars can't really fake pro-athlete moves? Watch John Cusack charge an outfield fly, or Charlie Sheen slide into third--they had me convinced.) In a uniformly excellent cast, David Strathairn's morally tortured star pitcher is especially impressive, as is John Mahoney's manager, alternately loving and despising his players, his eroding trust etched on his expressive face. And what a wonderful touch having Studs Terkel play a cynical sportswriter: He's the essence of Chicago style.

Some of the facts of the story are necessarily simplified or omitted to keep the movie under two hours, but there's not a moment of dishonesty or "Field of Dreams"-type goo. By the time the kid is looking Joe Jackson in the eye and pleading, "Say it ain't so," you'll probably be sniffling.

A high-water mark in the career of a great, versatile, underappreciated moviemaker.