The Natural (1984)

An unknown comes seemingly out of nowhere to become a legendary player with almost divine talent.

Director:

Barry Levinson

Writers:

Bernard Malamud (novel), Roger Towne (screenplay)

Stars:

Robert Redford, Robert Duvall, Glenn Close

Nominated for 4 Oscars. Another 3 wins & 4 nominations.

Cast

Cast overview, first billed only:
Robert Redford	...	Roy Hobbs
Robert Duvall	...	Max Mercy
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	...	Bump Bailey

Storyline

An unknown middle-aged batter named Roy Hobbs with a mysterious past appears out of nowhere to take a losing 1930s baseball team to the top of the league in this magical sports fantasy. With the aid of a bat cut from a lightning struck tree, Hobbs lives the fame he should have had earlier when, as a rising pitcher, he is inexplicably shot by a young woman.

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Plot Keywords:

baseball | 1930s | motivational | baseball bat | athlete | 

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Taglines:

Boyhood dreams, a bat made from a tree struck by lightning and most importantly, a never-ending passion for the game.

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Genres:

Drama | Sport

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Certificate:

PG

Details

Country:

USA

Language:

English

Release Date:

11 May 1984 (USA)

Also Known As:

Le meilleur

Filming Locations:

All-High Stadium - 50 Mercer Avenue, Buffalo, New York, USA

Box Office

Budget:

$28,000,000 (estimated)

Opening Weekend USA:

$5,088,381, 13 May 1984, Wide Release

Gross USA:

$47,951,979

Company Credits

Production Co:

TriStar Pictures,Delphi II Productions

Technical Specs

Runtime:

138 min 144 min (Director's Cut)

Sound Mix:

Dolby Stereo

Color:

Color

Aspect Ratio:

1.85 : 1

Did You Know?

Trivia

While the movie owes a lot to Malamud's book, the film takes many liberties with it. Characters are changed, combined, and created. Most of the best lines in the movie come from the book, but are often spoken by different characters. Roy is a much more complex character, who is less black and white. Many fans of the movie consider it the rare film that is better than the book, upon which it is based.

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Goofs

When Pop benches Bump Bailey and sends Roy up to bat for the first time (at around 38 minutes), Bump is walking up the steps of the dugout to the field. When Pop stops him, Bump is clearly holding a bat, since he raises it to his left shoulder as shown from behind. After the quick cut to the front view of the dugout, when Pop is still talking to him, Bump's bat has disappeared from his hand.

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Quotes

The Judge: I thought I could rely on your honor, Hobbs?
Roy Hobbs: You're about to.

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Connections

Referenced in Better Call Saul: Coushatta (2018)

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Soundtracks

Memo
(uncredited)
Composed and Conducted by Randy Newman

User Reviews

My favorite baseball movie. Truly magical.

A wonderful, magical fairy tale, and morality play. This is the type of movie that as a new father, I cannot wait until my son is old enough to watch this with me.

I know much has been made about Redford being too old to play Roy Hobbs. But much of the story asks you to believe in incredible things, so to me, this is a minor issue.

Everything about this movie is first rate. The cast which includes Redford, Glenn Close, Kim Basinger, Wilford Brimley and a pair of terrific performances turned in by Robert Duval and Darren McGavin.

It is easy to see that all of the actors trust the material and believe in their characters.

Barry Levinson tells the story in a straight forward style, he doesn't try to build any false suspense or surprise twists. When you watch this movie you know exactly what is going to happen long before it does, but you don't care, because it unfolds intelligently and without pretense.

My two favorite components of this movie are the cinematography by Caleb Deschanel and the beautiful, moving score composed by Randy Newman. I first enjoyed Mr. Deschanel's work on "Being There", and felt Mr. Newman's score for "Ragtime" was the best score of 1981.

"The Natural" is so much more than a baseball movie. It is a story about faith, good and evil, right and wrong, fathers and sons. It is about all that is good in baseball and in life.

10 out of 10