Striking Out the Odds
Moneyball, directed by Bennett Miller defies all negative stereotypes not only about sports movies but also about baseball itself. Much like The Blindside and Miracle it shows its audience what happens on the field but its main attention grabber is showing everything that happens off it, or as many people refer to as behind the scenes. Unlike movies such as Hoosiers or the Rocky movies, Moneyball isn’t 100% about the sport. Baseball, often thought of as slow paced and boring to watch, is portrayed in a new light. By giving the viewer an in depth look at the moves that happen behind the scenes and how they contribute to the product on the field they engage the viewer. Making anyone with a spot in their heart for the underdog root for this team in the Oakland Athletics made up of undervalued, washed-up, misfit players that no other team was willing to give a chance.
Billy Beane, played by Brad Pitt, gives us a great display of the hard work, excitement, and passion involved with being the General Manager of a professional sports team, which many people believe to be a boring behind the desk job. Brad Pitt alongside Jonah Hill, playing Peter Brand, give us an unlikely duo of complete opposites. With Hill playing the smart numbers guy graduated from Yale with a major in economics and Pitt as the former player trying to turn his unsuccessful playing career around as a GM. These two turn a business relationship into a bonding friendship that’s hard not want to see succeed. Much like his roles in Fight Club, The Big Short, and the Ocean’s series, Pitt does a great job of playing a strong willed, confident character with an ego but also shows his romantic side towards the sport of baseball that he also shows in one of his most recent films Allied.
Being based on a true story about something so popular in sports it’s hard to get the viewer to stay engaged since they likely know the ending. But by showing the story through the perspective that not many sports fans don’t care to think about, Miller does exactly that. With the perfect mix of on field action and off the field moments of this historic season, Miller has the viewer engaged at all times wanting to know what happens next. Most sports fans would consider any season a failure if a championship is not won, however, Miller does a great job of displaying this Oakland Athletics season as one of the most satisfying failures in history.
