The Natural Critique by Isaac Adlowitz
Adapted from Bernard Malamud’s novel, The Natural provides the audience with a film whose story explores the bumpy road of pursuing dreams, and dealing with the unexpected circumstances that get in the way of pursuing them. The Natural is very enjoyable yet it has many aspects that make it feel over the top, unrealistic, and overly Hollywoodized. The movie also only allows the viewer to get to know one character.
That character is played by Robert Redford who plays an ambitious, and quiet, middle-aged baseball player named Roy Hobbs. Hobbs comes from seemingly nowhere and becomes a star who leads his team, the fictional New York Knights, into contention for the pennant. To say that Hobbs has gone through a lot to get where he is would be an understatement.
Early on in the movie a 19 year old Roy Hobbs is given an opportunity to try out for the Chicago Cubs. He leaves his hometown for what appears to be the first time, and boards a train to the Windy City. Before Roy boards the train he is an ambitious, shy, son of Midwestern farmer, who is also still madly in love with his childhood sweetheart Iris.
While on the train Hobbs meets “The Whammer” who is looks to be a Babe Ruth-esque player in the movie. In the middle of the trip the train stops at a nearby a carnival. At the carnival one of the people from the Cubs makes a wager with Robert Duvall’s character, sportswriter Max Mercy, that Hobbs can strike out The Whammer on three pitches. The bet is on, and sure enough Hobbs strikes The Whammer out on three consecutive pitches. And so begins the saga of Roy Hobbs.
The rest of the trip to Chicago, Roy finds a newfound confidence that helps him but also leads to complications. The movie then jumps ahead 16 years into the future where Roy, who is 35 years old has just signed to become the new rightfielder of the New York Knights. At first glance the Knights don’t look like professionals while they’re playing. They make terrible mistakes that even most high schoolers would not make. Here is when the movie starts to feel unrealistic and over the top.
Roy has an incredible season, and as soon as he starts playing the team starts playing better along with him. His success is seen as the direct cause of the success of the Knights, making Roy Hobbs into a superstar and household name throughout the the world of baseball.
Roy is interesting because you feel like you know his character yet he always manages to surprise you with something he says. Whenever someone asks him why he pursued his career as a Major Leaguer so late in his life, he retorts with a concise and witty response. For example he claims to have “gotten lost” when asked that question the first time. This also leads the audience to see how Roy doesn’t seem to trust very many people. He remains a closed book in the eyes of most of the characters until he is reunited with his childhood sweetheart Iris, who is played by Glenn Close, and only talks to her because he knows her from earlier in his life.
The movie keeps spiraling out of control with facets that can feel unrealistic to almost anyone. One major facet is that Roy’s character becomes looked to as an almost god like figure because of how unbelievable some of his feats are. In his first at bat for the Knights, Roy literally hits the cover off of the ball, in his last at bat he hits the ball so far that it shatters the stadium lights leading to sparks encompassing the field. These are also demonstrated from the eye level medium angle slow motion camera shots , and heroic sounding music playing whenever Roy triumphs. These aspects are fun. However, they paint a picture that Roy’s only flaws as a person are that he did not have the baseball career he hoped to have, and that his life was unexpectedly sidetracked. Both of these flaws make it difficult to feel empathy for him.
Although many aspects of the movie feel overly fictional and Hollywoodized, the movie has a satisfying ending. The movie feels as though it tries too hard to make Roy appear to be an underdog even after he has reached his far-fetched peak as a player. The Natural is enjoyable in an underdog movie sense, but disappointing in a baseball movie sense.
That character is played by Robert Redford who plays an ambitious, and quiet, middle-aged baseball player named Roy Hobbs. Hobbs comes from seemingly nowhere and becomes a star who leads his team, the fictional New York Knights, into contention for the pennant. To say that Hobbs has gone through a lot to get where he is would be an understatement.
Early on in the movie a 19 year old Roy Hobbs is given an opportunity to try out for the Chicago Cubs. He leaves his hometown for what appears to be the first time, and boards a train to the Windy City. Before Roy boards the train he is an ambitious, shy, son of Midwestern farmer, who is also still madly in love with his childhood sweetheart Iris.
While on the train Hobbs meets “The Whammer” who is looks to be a Babe Ruth-esque player in the movie. In the middle of the trip the train stops at a nearby a carnival. At the carnival one of the people from the Cubs makes a wager with Robert Duvall’s character, sportswriter Max Mercy, that Hobbs can strike out The Whammer on three pitches. The bet is on, and sure enough Hobbs strikes The Whammer out on three consecutive pitches. And so begins the saga of Roy Hobbs.
The rest of the trip to Chicago, Roy finds a newfound confidence that helps him but also leads to complications. The movie then jumps ahead 16 years into the future where Roy, who is 35 years old has just signed to become the new rightfielder of the New York Knights. At first glance the Knights don’t look like professionals while they’re playing. They make terrible mistakes that even most high schoolers would not make. Here is when the movie starts to feel unrealistic and over the top.
Roy has an incredible season, and as soon as he starts playing the team starts playing better along with him. His success is seen as the direct cause of the success of the Knights, making Roy Hobbs into a superstar and household name throughout the the world of baseball.
Roy is interesting because you feel like you know his character yet he always manages to surprise you with something he says. Whenever someone asks him why he pursued his career as a Major Leaguer so late in his life, he retorts with a concise and witty response. For example he claims to have “gotten lost” when asked that question the first time. This also leads the audience to see how Roy doesn’t seem to trust very many people. He remains a closed book in the eyes of most of the characters until he is reunited with his childhood sweetheart Iris, who is played by Glenn Close, and only talks to her because he knows her from earlier in his life.
The movie keeps spiraling out of control with facets that can feel unrealistic to almost anyone. One major facet is that Roy’s character becomes looked to as an almost god like figure because of how unbelievable some of his feats are. In his first at bat for the Knights, Roy literally hits the cover off of the ball, in his last at bat he hits the ball so far that it shatters the stadium lights leading to sparks encompassing the field. These are also demonstrated from the eye level medium angle slow motion camera shots , and heroic sounding music playing whenever Roy triumphs. These aspects are fun. However, they paint a picture that Roy’s only flaws as a person are that he did not have the baseball career he hoped to have, and that his life was unexpectedly sidetracked. Both of these flaws make it difficult to feel empathy for him.
Although many aspects of the movie feel overly fictional and Hollywoodized, the movie has a satisfying ending. The movie feels as though it tries too hard to make Roy appear to be an underdog even after he has reached his far-fetched peak as a player. The Natural is enjoyable in an underdog movie sense, but disappointing in a baseball movie sense.