Bull Durham (1988)
August 4, 2015 8:17 AM - Subscribe
A fan who has an affair with one minor-league baseball player each season meets an up-and-coming pitcher and the experienced catcher assigned to him.
Come for: the Thomas Gray. (Or William Cullen Bryant, I forget which.)
Stay for: Tim Robbins' hair.
Come for: the Thomas Gray. (Or William Cullen Bryant, I forget which.)
Stay for: Tim Robbins' hair.
I presume it wasn't intentional on phunniemee's part, but I find it fascinating that three of these Great Baseball Movies have good roles for older women (well, "Hollywood-old") -- Sarandon was 42 when this came out; Rene Russo was 35 when Major League (her film debut) came out (and Margaret Whitton was 39), and Geena Davis was 36 when A League of Their Own came out.
posted by Etrigan at 9:02 AM on August 4, 2015 [4 favorites]
posted by Etrigan at 9:02 AM on August 4, 2015 [4 favorites]
I presume it wasn't intentional on phunniemee's part
I'm posting baseball movies in order of my favorite baseball movies. These are my top 5. I'd like to think, even if it was only subconscious, that I'd be naturally inclined to pick movies that aren't completely horrible to women.
(Just to finish out the list, Robin Wright was 45, Karen Allen was 42.)
posted by phunniemee at 9:24 AM on August 4, 2015 [3 favorites]
I'm posting baseball movies in order of my favorite baseball movies. These are my top 5. I'd like to think, even if it was only subconscious, that I'd be naturally inclined to pick movies that aren't completely horrible to women.
(Just to finish out the list, Robin Wright was 45, Karen Allen was 42.)
posted by phunniemee at 9:24 AM on August 4, 2015 [3 favorites]
I'd like to think, even if it was only subconscious, that I'd be naturally inclined to pick movies that aren't completely horrible to women.
In the case of baseball movies, I think (without performing a deep dive) that it's less that they're horrible to women and more than they're just not represented at all, except in very limited wife (Wright) or mother (Allen) roles. And even then, it's nice to see Wright as an age-appropriate Brad Pitt ex-wife (only four years younger) and Allen as actually a little old to be the parent of a teenager in the 1960s, when they could easily have cast a decade younger in any of these cases and no one would have batted an eye.* **
And it goes on! In Field of Dreams, Amy Madigan is Kevin Costner's wife, and she's five years older than him. And of course, the whole point of The Bad News Bears was that Tatum O'Neal could play just as hard as the boys.
This is weird. Why is it that baseball movies are so much better about this than everything else?
* -- So to speak.
** -- At least, no one in Hollywood.
posted by Etrigan at 9:47 AM on August 4, 2015 [1 favorite]
In the case of baseball movies, I think (without performing a deep dive) that it's less that they're horrible to women and more than they're just not represented at all, except in very limited wife (Wright) or mother (Allen) roles. And even then, it's nice to see Wright as an age-appropriate Brad Pitt ex-wife (only four years younger) and Allen as actually a little old to be the parent of a teenager in the 1960s, when they could easily have cast a decade younger in any of these cases and no one would have batted an eye.* **
And it goes on! In Field of Dreams, Amy Madigan is Kevin Costner's wife, and she's five years older than him. And of course, the whole point of The Bad News Bears was that Tatum O'Neal could play just as hard as the boys.
This is weird. Why is it that baseball movies are so much better about this than everything else?
* -- So to speak.
** -- At least, no one in Hollywood.
posted by Etrigan at 9:47 AM on August 4, 2015 [1 favorite]
The rose goes in the front, big guy.
posted by Chrysostom at 9:53 AM on August 4, 2015 [2 favorites]
posted by Chrysostom at 9:53 AM on August 4, 2015 [2 favorites]
Both Kim Basinger and Ellen Barkin passed on the role of Annie Savoy, and nearly every leading man in Hollywood was offered Crash Davis, and Charlie Sheen was first choice for Nuke.
"Candlesticks always make a nice gift. Or find out where they’re registered and perhaps a nice place setting."
I worked for a company that bid on the DVD extras package,
posted by Ideefixe at 10:51 PM on August 4, 2015 [1 favorite]
"Candlesticks always make a nice gift. Or find out where they’re registered and perhaps a nice place setting."
I worked for a company that bid on the DVD extras package,
posted by Ideefixe at 10:51 PM on August 4, 2015 [1 favorite]
This is one of the most quotable movies I've ever seen (and I've seen it quite a few times).
"Another new league record" and "It's a miracle" is still in our family lexicon and just about every time I look at the sports section, I'm reminded of Crash's advice on interviews.
posted by mogget at 1:55 PM on August 5, 2015 [1 favorite]
"Another new league record" and "It's a miracle" is still in our family lexicon and just about every time I look at the sports section, I'm reminded of Crash's advice on interviews.
posted by mogget at 1:55 PM on August 5, 2015 [1 favorite]
Lollygaggers!
posted by wabbittwax at 4:50 PM on August 5, 2015 [4 favorites]
posted by wabbittwax at 4:50 PM on August 5, 2015 [4 favorites]
Of course everybody knows Crash Davis' speech about what he believes ("well I believe in soul, the cock, the pussy..."), ending in Sarandon's iconic "oh my". But for me the moment that really sells it and may be the finest moment of Kevin Costner's career is the fiendish giggle he lets out after he walks out the door and Annie calls after him. So perfect
posted by wabbittwax at 4:56 PM on August 5, 2015 [2 favorites]
posted by wabbittwax at 4:56 PM on August 5, 2015 [2 favorites]
You are not logged in, either login or create an account to post comments
posted by LionIndex at 8:51 AM on August 4, 2015