The Natural

"You read my mind."
  "That takes all of three seconds."

Roy Hobbs (Redford) is a talented baseball player and receives the call to try-out for the Chicago Cubs at the age of 19.  On the way to the try out, he strikes out "The Whammer" (Joe Don Baker) the best hitter in the major leagues, and draws the attention of Harriet Bird (Hershey).  The next day, Bird shoots him in the stomach and then commits suicide, destroying his dreams of a career in baseball.

Sixteen years later, Hobbs is 35 and finally gets his shot at the major leagues.  He is signed to the New York Knights, despite the protestations of Pop Fisher (Brimley) the team manager.  The Knights are in last place, but Hobbs and his hitting starts to change the team.  His career is followed closely by reporter Max Mercy (Duvall) and the teams other owner, The Judge (Prosky).  Hobbs also attracts the attention of gambler Gus Sands (McGavin) and Memo Paris (Basinger).  The team needs to win the pendant or Pop loses his job.  Can Hobbs lead the team to victory, while reconnecting with his first love Iris (Close)?


In 1952 Bernard Malamud published the novel The Natural, which served as the inspiration for this film.  The screenplay, written by Roger Towne and Phil Dusenberry, keeps the characters from the novel but changes some details and the ending.

A friend suggested this film, and I loved it.  It starts a little slow, but captures your attention as the story progresses.  It is a good sports film and is now considered to be a classic.  The story also tabs into the desire to become a legend.  Robert Redford is a strong lead, and is aided by a strong supporting cast.  Robert Duvall and Darren McGavin are very good at portraying shady characters, and put that to good use here.  Glenn Close is great, and Kim Basinger's Memo is enticing enough to warrant her screen time (even if her acting is now great).

Fans of the book were not happy with the changes to the script, but the film was nominated for 4 Academy Awards: Best Support Actress (Glenn Close), Best Cinematography (Caleb Deschanel), Best Art Direction (Mel Bourne, Angelo P. Graham, Bruce Weintraub), and Best Original Score (Randy Newman).

Definitely worth checking out.

The Natural (1984) 137 minutes
Director: Barry Levinson
Starring: Robert Redford as Roy Hobbs
Robert Duvall as Max Mercy
Glenn Close as Iris Gaines
Kim Basinger as Memo Paris
Wilford Brimley as Pop Fisher
Barbara Hershey as Harriet Bird
Robert Prosky as The Judge
Richard Farnsworth as Red Blow
Darren McGavin as Gus Sands