Just Like Watching Baseball With a Story

Rating: 9/10 (27 January 2012)

I am a baseball fan (Go Yankees!) and I found this film very interesting. It balances good humor, intelligence, and suspense almost perfectly. Its a perfectly smart movie that keeps you watching until the very end.
What really impressed me was the baseball game sequences. The lighting, the intensity, and the suspense made it more entertaining than a normal game you would watch on the sports channel at home. Even if the A's aren't your favorite team, you still feel a desperation for them; you want them to come out of their slump and succeed.
Brad Pitt and Jonah Hill made a great sort-of duo. Brad Pitt's character was charming and sarcastic, and Jonah Hill's character was quietly funny and surprisingly intelligent. I enjoyed their conversations very much.
Most of the movie, I thought, was like watching a very close baseball game at home. You sit on the edge of your seat, and hope that everything can work out for this team, and that they can score a couple of runs before the game is over. You can also enjoy a few well-placed laughs in between. It's a pleasantly intelligent movie, with good characters, a good portrayal of a true story, a baseball-game-like suspense, and if it loses to Hugo in the Oscars, I will be very upset.