A great ensemble cast and so much atmosphere that it feels like the 10th man on the field.
Though this is a true ensemble film, with the focus spread out over the whole cast, a number of characters emerge as being sympathetic figures. Chief among them is Weaver (Cusack), who first agreed to the fix but then changes his mind and doesn't take a penny. His treatment is the same as the ones who took money, and it's clear that Asinof and Sayles don't agree with that--or else why have him be the one who's shown interacting with kids? Coach "Kid" Gleason (John Mahoney, "Frasier") also comes across as one who guesses a fix might be in, but sympathizes with the players and hopes to turn things around with a few well-chosen words. Pitcher Eddie Cicotte (Strathairn) also gets the spotlight as he's the one Comiskey has wronged the most. Surprisingly, there's not all that much done with the most famous player of the bunch, "Shoeless" Joe, who's depicted here as so inarticulate and illiterate that all he can do is make an X on a document.
By the end of the film, you have your own sense of who's a winner and who's a loser. I'm not sure that all of the subtle theses that the film advances are true--for one thing, Sayles goes with an immediate suspension for the players, when in fact they got to play some the next season before the final verdict was handed down--but there's enough here to make for an interestingly textured film that works for non-fans as well as baseball nuts.
Video:
"Eight Men Out" is presented in 1.85:1 aspect ratio, and the film has a golden look to it, tinted to give it a kind of bronzed and antiqued look. With so many new outfits (even on the kids) I'm not sure that a color wash accomplishes the whole thing, but by the time you add old advertising, buildings, cars, and a soundtrack by Mason Daring that reinforces the period, you end up with a pretty convincing atmosphere. There's a graininess throughout, but it's subtle enough to not pose much of an annoyance.
Audio:
The featured audio is a Dolby Digital 5.1 surround, but if you want to further enhance the period feel you can also listen to Sayles' film in English, Spanish, or French Mono, which I actually preferred. Subtitles are in English (CC) and Spanish.
Extras:
As I said, if I already had this film in my collection, I don't know if I'd upgrade. Then again, for $14.98 SRP, we're not exactly looking at a huge investment. Sayles' commentary shows the passion he had for the project and gives some insight into how he approached the film and what he took from the book. It's an above-average track. The two-part "retrospective" documentary is also worth watching, though it covers all the standard "making-of" bases. White Sox fans may enjoy a feature on the 2005 team that broke the World Series Draught (and whatever curse might have been associated with the 1919 scandal), but I have to say that my favorite of the bunch was the one that has author Asinof talking about the scandal and giving us the "straight dope" about what went down, as far as his research led him to believe.
Bottom Line:
I wouldn't call "Eight Men Out" one of the best baseball films ever made, but it's a solid-enough line-drive to be a hit with most movie (and baseball) fans. It's saturated with the period, and it advances a few theories that convincingly answer that little boy's question for Jackson, which, beneath that plea for a denial, really wanted to know one thing: why?
By the end of the film, you have your own sense of who's a winner and who's a loser. I'm not sure that all of the subtle theses that the film advances are true--for one thing, Sayles goes with an immediate suspension for the players, when in fact they got to play some the next season before the final verdict was handed down--but there's enough here to make for an interestingly textured film that works for non-fans as well as baseball nuts.
Video:
"Eight Men Out" is presented in 1.85:1 aspect ratio, and the film has a golden look to it, tinted to give it a kind of bronzed and antiqued look. With so many new outfits (even on the kids) I'm not sure that a color wash accomplishes the whole thing, but by the time you add old advertising, buildings, cars, and a soundtrack by Mason Daring that reinforces the period, you end up with a pretty convincing atmosphere. There's a graininess throughout, but it's subtle enough to not pose much of an annoyance.
Audio:
The featured audio is a Dolby Digital 5.1 surround, but if you want to further enhance the period feel you can also listen to Sayles' film in English, Spanish, or French Mono, which I actually preferred. Subtitles are in English (CC) and Spanish.
Extras:
As I said, if I already had this film in my collection, I don't know if I'd upgrade. Then again, for $14.98 SRP, we're not exactly looking at a huge investment. Sayles' commentary shows the passion he had for the project and gives some insight into how he approached the film and what he took from the book. It's an above-average track. The two-part "retrospective" documentary is also worth watching, though it covers all the standard "making-of" bases. White Sox fans may enjoy a feature on the 2005 team that broke the World Series Draught (and whatever curse might have been associated with the 1919 scandal), but I have to say that my favorite of the bunch was the one that has author Asinof talking about the scandal and giving us the "straight dope" about what went down, as far as his research led him to believe.
Bottom Line:
I wouldn't call "Eight Men Out" one of the best baseball films ever made, but it's a solid-enough line-drive to be a hit with most movie (and baseball) fans. It's saturated with the period, and it advances a few theories that convincingly answer that little boy's question for Jackson, which, beneath that plea for a denial, really wanted to know one thing: why?
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[release]23455[/release]