Perfect title, once you've seen the movie

Rating: 7/10 (20 December 2012)

The film is classic recent decade Clint Eastwood; since 1997, Eastwood has been playing cantankerous over-the-hill characters in each and every movie, all of them. So, it boggles my mind when viewers, especially after reading the storyline of this movie, expect to see anything but what he can deliver, and deliver with the precision of a Swiss watch. It snows in winter, there are heat waves in the summer, sports games haven't changed much in decades and neither has Clint. Of course, there is that thing he did at the republican convention this past September, but that has nothing to do with the price of tea in China either. He's 82; how many of us can still deliver solid work by that age. Bravo Clint.
The movie has a good cast of pros, even Justin Timberlake got off with a more than decent performance. I'm too bias to speak at length about Amy Adams; some of my previous reviews have probably made it clear I like her. She has an important role in this movie and I was not disappointed by her. I had some difficulty buying in on the premise that an accomplished attorney (her role), poised for partnership in a big firm, would practically drop one of her biggest cases to go on the road with her dad; but thankfully, the script covers that apparent gaping flaw with a most plausible reason, one that more than explains the direction the story takes from that point. As in all of the movies in which Clint has picked to act, the characters developments play the most important part. The story follows a well orchestrated direction, designed to bring an impact ending, which of course it does; you can always expect a big finish and you'd have reason to complain if there wasn't one.
It struck me that the baseball back-story was coming from a completely different direction than that of the 2011 hit Moneyball; it nonetheless works and works well, thanks to Matthew Lillard's performance. If he has a part in a movie, rest assured, you're going to hate the character; I wish he was given a part going the other way, just once, to see if he could do as well. The switch would certainly play the element of surprise; but producers aren't always ready to take that sort of risk. Loved John Goodman; how can you not. Now here's an actor who has played a variety of roles, and you can't hate him even when his character is despicable (In The Electric Mist). This movie, like Clint's two previous ones, moved me; thankfully, I was prepared. Don't expect another Million Dollar Baby; be realistic and enjoy.