review by Len Fearnside Patron
Moneyball 2011
Watched Feb 17, 2012
Len Fearnside’s review:
Boy, pretty disappointing and surprisingly boring movie, particularly after seeing last year's Social Network which moved along at a great pace. The first 15-20 minutes of this in-particular were very boring and as far as I'm concerned it never really recovered. When it did feel as if there was a bit of momentum building, with some interesting player analysis or trade work, the film would grin to a halt again with one of those painful flashbacks or a scene with his weiner kid. Brad Pitt was good as he always is, but he was far, far better in Tree of Life and as for Jonah Hill, who I generally really like, well he was ok I guess, but I think the role could have been done better by someone else, or maybe there was just not enough there to have an interesting character. Pretty forgettable film.
This was a movie I had no interest in, so I had no problem turning it on midway through on TV last night. It's probably not worth a real review without watching it all, so I'll piggyback on yours :)
I picked up in the dugout scene with Brad Pitt(he is playing himself, right?) telling Art Howe to bench Pena.
This is quite an overrated movie, no? Like you mentioned, there are a few decent scenes, the trading for example, and I missed the analysis but I can take an educated guess. Some edits of passing time, Jonah Hill educating the half-hesitant Brad Pitt, both of them cranking out one liners?
What else did I miss? Rincoln, yes, I'm sure they spent a few minutes on him, "omg i wish we could get him." Probably something similar with Hatteburg. The movie probably starts with Pitt going through a low patch with the team and his family. Butting heads with players/coaches. Oh, and plenty of those terrible Pitt driving in his car scenes....
As a movie it was really average. I guess considering what the average moviegoer sees, I suppose I can see why people liked it, and it seems that also means good reviews?
The only emotion I saw in the film was during the streak, and that credit goes to the real footage. Everything else was very cookie cutter and plain.
We disagree on this one, but I can't say anything intelligent about why. Whatever it was that I liked about the Social Network (and I did not love that film), Moneyball had it in spades I thought. There was something so completely understated about it. I was complete putty in that film's hands. I have no clue what it is about it but I loved it. I think it did to me what Social Network seems to have done to everyone else.
As far as I'm concerned, this is the same movie as The Social Network, another one I have no interest in. Both uninteresting, real life subject, Aaron Sorkin ham. I don't think his writing style has changed since A Few Good Men.
I know The Social Network is quite popular with critics, but I'm not the biggest Fincher fan so it doesn't appeal to me on that level either.
I liked Social Network more than Moneyball, but not by that much. I found the story to be a bit more interesting in Social Network and the dialogue worked better there. I think the pace of that film worked a lot better too. Not massive fan of either one though.
This movie just felt dull aside from those few parts I mentioned and the flashback stuff just killed it for me. I didn't HATE the movie, I just found it boring and this is from a guy that plays fantasy Baseball.
Loved The Social Network, it's my favorite film of 2010. I also really liked Moneyball, I'm not a big baseball fan but enjoyed peeking inside the world of running a team. I thought it was a smart fun script that was well paced. I do however see how it would not work for everyone. I also thought Pitt and Hill were very good, along with the rest of the cast.
(I gave Moneyball 4/5 and The Social Network 5/5 FWIW)
Brent: Do you have a special attachment to Sorkin? The only other thing I have seen from him was Charlie Wilson's War and I thought that was awful, but I could see getting wrapped up in this material if you like his style. For whatever reason it just does not really work for me overall, though I do like bits and pieces of what he does.
. :) (I'm stalking someone else) I guess you could consider me as a fan of his, although I haven't loved everything he has done. I actually liked Charlie Wilson's War but didn't love it. PSH was great in it, and Hanks to a lesser extent.
You haven't seen The American President or a Few Good Men? American President was good, with the exception of making the Republican purely despicable and making the democrat President a saint. A few Good Few men is a fantastic movie, and the script is a big reason why.
Malice is also underrated and has some great dialogue especially Alec Baldwin God speech. Sportsnight is also a fun series, great cast and unfortunately short lived. Never got into the West Wing. Studio 60 had some moments but was uneven, never seemed to know exactly what it wanted to be.
I can see why some wouldn't dig his style, but it works for me. I did think his Oscar win for the Social Network was very well deserved.
(it cut off the first par of my post! Here is what it cut off)
I'm not stalking him if that is what you are asking. :) (I'm stalking someone else)
Haha, well then. I have never seen A Few Good Men, though I intend to at some point. Malice and American President sound and look sort of familiar, but I can't recall if I've ever actually seen them. Who knows, maybe I will fall in love with the guy once I finally watch A Few Good Men. I've actually been intrigued by Sports Night for quite a while, but never had the impetus to actually go ahead and watch the it.
Love A Few Good Men, very high rewatchability!
Malice is much less unknown and is more of a standard thriller but is an enjoyable movie.
I really liked Sportsnight, Id recommend giving it a chance, at least one episode. You'll know right away if you like it or not.
I wonder how A Few Good Men holds up for someone who hasn't seen it yet. I think it's more of a guilty pleasure and a nostalgic movie rather than a great one. A bit over the top at times, probably melodramatic, not sure how much I'd like it if I hadn't seen it many times already
I'd disagree with that, I recently saw it again and it's a terrific movie, still holds up. Sure the famous "You can't handle the truth" scene has been parodied many times, but the movie and scene still hold up IMO.