The Natural

1984 "He lived for a dream that wouldn't die."
7.4| 2h17m| PG| en| More Info
Released: 11 May 1984 Released
Producted By: TriStar Pictures
Country: United States of America
Budget: 0
Revenue: 0
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Synopsis

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.

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Reviews

Hellen I like the storyline of this show,it attract me so much
GamerTab That was an excellent one.
Fairaher The film makes a home in your brain and the only cure is to see it again.
Fulke Great example of an old-fashioned, pure-at-heart escapist event movie that doesn't pretend to be anything that it's not and has boat loads of fun being its own ludicrous self.
Mr-Fusion I've been on kind of a baseball kick lately, and obviously, "The Natural" is going to come up. And it's a good movie, boasting some veteran talent both behind and in front of the camera. The funny thing is that it's not really about baseball, same as boxing is just a storytelling vehicle for "Raging Bull" and "Million Dollar Baby". This is really an allegory of good and evil, of honorable men and the forces that would smother them; the symbolism's painted all over the walls in this place.When I read Malamud's book a few years ago, I was blown away by the ending, one that really underlines the novel's bitterness; and that finish has no place in this film. Even still, while you know who to root for and who to despise, there are still aspects that really need to be fleshed out; Robert Duvall's character, in particular.But I'm not out to poke holes. This movie is memorable not just for the acting or Randy Newman's main theme, but for its fondness for the period. You watch this for the sun-kissed cinematography and those crucial moments when fate (t last) steps in to level the playing field.Pacing issues aside, it's a movie everyone needs to see at least once.7/10
Lars Lendale The Natural might have one of the best scores of all time. That soundtrack is epic. It really carries the entire movie and these long homeruns. But there are several negatives:1 ) The movie does not follow the book - consequently a 50 year old Redford plays a 19 and then a 35 year old Hobbs. Doesn't make any sense.2 ) This movie really isn't about baseball, and isn't a good fantasy adaptation. It lacks dramatic dimension -not enough suspense - nothing at stakes.3 ) Hobbs should be on a mission to redeem himself, not cruise with knock out hits from the get go. Hobbs' passion for baseball is not sufficiently illustrated, that's the problem. Therefore, including subplots is a negative because it derives from the point: Hobbs forgot the meaning of baseball in his life.I can't say anything wrong about the acting, it's very good. But the epic fantasy that we get in Field of Dreams is missing in the Natural. It's so unfortunate because the book is so good, and there aren't that many baseball movies. But, overall, it leaves me on a positive note.
secondtake The Natural (1984)What an outsized reputation this sentimental, sloppy movie has! Even the famous scene with Glenn Close standing up in the stands in the sun is smaller than you'd expect. In fact, if you take this movie as a straight ahead story of a glorious (if fictional) baseball past, it's simplistic and overly sentimental to the point of unwatchable.But it's not straight ahead. It's a fable. It does silly things knowing that they would work in an illustrated children's book, so why not make it a sepia-toned over-the-top feel-good Hollywood bash? Indeed.So when Robert Redford (who does not, by the way, have the biceps for power hitting) smashes a pitch so hard he rips the skin off the ball, it's not for real. Or it's better than real. And so forth with lightning arriving in time for his last big hit, or having his rival crash through a wall and die (yes die!) just when he needs a chance to take position in right field. Treating this as a fable about a man with talent and a dream, and with some kind of sloppy honor to his past (you'll see), makes it very watchable. It's doesn't quite make it "good" however, so be prepared to like the film only on its own simple terms. It's fun if you don't think too hard. This movie has great credentials, including Barry Levinson directing and Robert Duvall in a secondary role. Honestly, it's just not my kind of film—check out "The Pride of the Yankees" for a really good baseball film—but I can see how it would settle nicely on a lot of folks, including young people with dreams of being the best.
Ross622 Barry Levinson's The Natural is by far one of the best baseball movies of all time (second to Pride of the Yankees (1942)) not only because the story is so extraordinary but it also feels like you are an actual character which is in fact how great this movie really is. The movie stars Robert Redford as Roy Hobbs a man who loved baseball all his life and played when he was a kid until high-school and tries to play for the Chicago Cubs at the age of 22 but before that he meets a journalist named Max Mercy (played by Robert Duvall) and a man who is called "The Whammer" (played by Joe Don Baker) and practices pitching with them. After he is done with pitching he meets a woman named Harriet Bird (played by Barbara Hershey) who at first seem like friends but after a few days she almost kills Hobbs in her apartment with one gunshot but luckily Hobbs survives and has to wait until he is 38 years old and doesn't get signed on to the Chicago Cubs but instead gets signed on to the New York Knights where he meets two managers one who's name is Pop Fisher (played by Wilford Brimley) who isn't sure at first that Hobbs would do well at his age, and another man named Red Blow (played by Richard Farnsworth) who believes that Hobbs would succeed. The screenplay to this movie is just awe-inspiring, because not only does it tell a story of a great player it also tells an evil back-story because Hobbs is being betrayed and he knows it by three people, the Judge (played by Robert Prosky), Gus Sands (played by Darren McGavin), and a girl that Hobbs was flirting with for a short time named Memo (played by Kim Basinger).The actual best supporting performance in the film didn't only come from Brimley and Farnsworth but the most inspired performance came from Glenn Close as Iris Gaines who was Roy's true love and made Roy a true natural at baseball.Though I didn't read the novel I felt as if I did while watching the movie, which I felt like I was an actual audience member at one of Hobbs' baseball games which to me pretty much explains why i think that all movie lovers should see this wonderful movie that will stay with you for a long time.