Pain And Pleasure Rather Than Sports

Rating: 9/10 (13 November 2016)

Robert Redford stars in this sports drama about baseball player Roy Hobbs' success and suffering in his batting career entitled The Natural.This film directed by Barry Levison that tells the decades of experiences that Hobbs have had with in the baseball field co- stars Robert Duvall,Glenn Close,Kim Basinger,Wilford Brimley and Barbara Hershey.
Roy Hobbs has big dreams of becoming a baseball superstar.It has shown that as early as 14,he's got a natural talent for hitting the bat.This impressed a lot of scouts who have seen him play.Sportswriter Max Mercy comes into his aid to his career when he was 19 and ready to play for the big time.When he meets a mysterious woman named Harriet Birdw,who shoots him and killed herself in the process.Later,we get to see Hobbs at age 35 and an old rookie with the New York Knights.When the star player "Bump" Bailey angered the coach which made him replace with Roy Hobbs instead to hit for him.During the game and overcoming his physical pain and heavy odds against him and the Knights,many were shocked when Hobbs hit the ball hard to help them win the game.This led him to becoming a league sensation in the end and to fulfill his baseball dreams.Later,he goes through a playing slump.But when he finally gets to know that he has a 16-year old son,he becomes rejuvenated in life and starts to play well again in the field.
No question that the movie is high on sentiment and tries to paint the Roy Hobbs character as an American icon.Also,it wasn't more about the game of baseball being a sports movie but rather more about Hobbs' ability to never give up and to rise from every failure that he encounters in his pursuit of his biggest dream of his life.Being an 80's film,many would enjoy this it at the time it was released considering it is high on melodrama and it has baseball centered in the story which is America's favorite pastime and pleasure.The themes of enormous pain and abundant pleasure will also please them especially when tackling Hobbs at different points of his life.