You may know this is one of the "Trinity" of my favorite movies. I won't make any grandiose claims about its place among the great baseball movies, because, frankly, I probably haven't seen them all. What I can tell you is that baseball is more than just a game for many of us, and "Field Of Dreams" is our movie.
The father-son thing is huge. This dynamic makes the movie go. I read the book it's based on, and I don't recall it there, but it's the only reason this crazy ghost-story involving baseball works. Regret, forgiveness, family, and healing. I wonder if anyone can identify with that?
It goes way beyond the climactic scene; I noted that the protagonist, Ray, was born in 1952, the same year as my father. The last full year of my dad's life was 1988, the year this movie was released. Later that fall, the Dodgers would win the World Series, and my dad would see it. Just like Ray, his team was the Dodgers.
I still can't root against the Dodgers. Not even last year, when they stood in the way of the World Series for my Cardinals. I actually shed a tear when we knew we'd have to go through the Dodgers. I said out loud, "Hey Dad, either way, we win!"
I don't even know if he ever saw the movie. I'd like to think he'd love it. In any case, nearly everything that moves me on a human level is in that movie in one way or another. Every time some critic says they slather on the sentiment a little thick, I want to punch him. You don't know what you're being flippant about, buddy.
"Hey...Dad? You wanna have a catch?"
The father-son thing is huge. This dynamic makes the movie go. I read the book it's based on, and I don't recall it there, but it's the only reason this crazy ghost-story involving baseball works. Regret, forgiveness, family, and healing. I wonder if anyone can identify with that?
It goes way beyond the climactic scene; I noted that the protagonist, Ray, was born in 1952, the same year as my father. The last full year of my dad's life was 1988, the year this movie was released. Later that fall, the Dodgers would win the World Series, and my dad would see it. Just like Ray, his team was the Dodgers.
I still can't root against the Dodgers. Not even last year, when they stood in the way of the World Series for my Cardinals. I actually shed a tear when we knew we'd have to go through the Dodgers. I said out loud, "Hey Dad, either way, we win!"
I don't even know if he ever saw the movie. I'd like to think he'd love it. In any case, nearly everything that moves me on a human level is in that movie in one way or another. Every time some critic says they slather on the sentiment a little thick, I want to punch him. You don't know what you're being flippant about, buddy.
"Hey...Dad? You wanna have a catch?"
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