Directed by:
Bennett MillerCinematography:
Wally PfisterComposer:
Mychael DannaCast:
Brad Pitt, Jonah Hill, Robin Wright, Philip Seymour Hoffman, Chris Pratt, Tammy Blanchard, Jack McGee, Brent Jennings, Nick Searcy, Glenn Morshower (more)VOD (4)
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Columbia Pictures’ Moneyball is based on the true story of Billy Beane (Brad Pitt) – once a would-be baseball superstar who, stung by the failure to live up to expectations on the field, turned his fiercely competitive nature to management. Heading into the 2002 season, Billy faces a dismal situation: his small-market Oakland A’s have lost their star players (again) to big market clubs (and their enormous salaries) and he is left to rebuild his team and compete with a third of their payroll. Driven to win, Billy takes on the system by challenging the fundamental tenets of the game. He looks outside of baseball, to the dismissed theories of Bill James, and hires Peter Brand (Jonah Hill), a brainy, number-crunching, Yale-educated economist. Together they take on conventional wisdom with a willingness to reexamine everything and armed with computer driven statistical analysis long ignored by the baseball establishment. They reach imagination-defying conclusions and go after players overlooked and dismissed by the rest of baseball for being too odd, too old, too injured or too much trouble, but who all have key skills that are universally undervalued. As Billy and Peter forge forward, their new methods and roster of misfits rile the old guard, the media, the fans, and their own field manager (Philip Seymour Hoffman), who refuses to cooperate. Ultimately this experiment will lead not only to a change in the way the game is played, but to an outcome that would leave Billy with a new understanding that transcends the game and delivers him to a new place. (Columbia Pictures US)
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Reviews (14)
The Social Network meets baseball. Without knowing the name of the (co-) screenwriter in advance, I read Sorkin's work in it. It is once again irreconcilable, reckless, verbose (towards the subject), at times coldly distant, yet full of respect for the "solitaire" who will change the world (of baseball). Enjoyment of the film will increase exponentially with the viewer's awareness of the game as such. But even if you know as much about baseball as I do, there are still a lot of lively-written and well-acted characters whose relationships and communication entice. The film didn't seem all that rational to me (I didn't understand it in detail), but emotionally it just works (at times, surprisingly, and I don't know why, the adult infantile relationship between Billy and his daughter evoked Coppola’s Nowhere). Moreover, apart from a few cliche slow-motion parts, I have to appreciate how spartan the whole thing is. No ultimate feel-good. Just "daddy, you’re such a loser"... A remarkable testimony about how things can be changed and (again) a film that is about a rebellion against those who say that there is no other way. Coincidence? You decide. :-)
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Very smart and cleverly directed, without unnecessary arrogance and artificially heightened emotions. A bit reminiscent of Any Given Sunday, but far less controversial. It must be said that Moneyball also relies on its actors, especially on Brad Pitt (he’s ageing like fine wine) and the young Jonah Hill (excellent potential). I lacks drive, but it's not that they forgot about it, it simply wasn't part of the plan. An unconventional sports film.
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Brilliant. I enjoy the hell out of these sports biopic dramas, whether it's basketball (Hustle), tennis (King Richard and Borg/Mcenroe, skiing (Eddie the Eagle), figure skating (I Tonya), car racing (Le Mans 66 and Rush). Mow I'm adding baseball to the collection thanks to Moneyball. I'm also one of those who will probably never understand the game, but that doesn't matter here, the sport itself doesn't matter that much, as it is about the behind the scenes of managers and player trading, which I surprisingly enjoyed – selling people in a different way. The whole idea of putting together a team of players that no one trusts just based on computer stats is awesome. Brad Pitt is excellent as usual, Jonah Hill is also fine, and they carry the film. The well-written dialogue, a few unexpected twists, the great direction and a thrilling finale make this a nice piece of filmmaking as well as an entertaining sports movie. Really great. 8/10.
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Statistics are boring, but carry valuable information and in the form of a baseball version of The Social Network, it isn’t boring at all. This is as much about baseball as Fincher is about Facebook; in other words, not at all. Despite this, this category is still ruled by The Damned United which is basically the same in a more inventive form of directing and, thanks to the setting, is also a little closer in cultural terms for a European.
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A year after the world applauded Sorkin's screenplay for The Social Network, another story full of rapid-fire dialogues, technical terms, and a suppression of obvious emotions to a minimum came. Although comparing Facebook to baseball is difficult, this calculated approach and, in the case of the author, this quick bet on certainty already undermines Moneyball from the very beginning. And even though it looks almost effortless in its technically precise environment and occasional family scenes can work, I didn't get enough of it. I understand the pursuit of exceptionalism and the desire for a forgotten dream, but the film remains halfway between a love confession for sports statistics and a demonstration that being a general manager is no joke. Precise 70%, especially for one of Brad Pitt's career performances.
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