Moneyball

Let me just get this out of the way before we get too far into this post. I don't like baseball. I understand the rules and I can appreciate the athleticism and talent it takes to play it, but I think it's slow and boring. What can I say, I'm Canadian, hockey's in my blood. Anyways, that being said, I always love a good sports movie, whether it's a sport I enjoy or not. The thing that really elevates 'Moneyball' for me is that it focuses on something that I enjoy, numbers. I'm not a big math fan per se, but I do love me some stats, I'm kind of a nerd for them, which really made this movie perfect for me.
The movie is an adaptation of the book 'Moneyball: The art of winning an unfair game', and I think the phrase after the title says it all. Even someone like me, who knows very little about the teams in the MLB knows that the Yankees have a ridiculous bankroll which makes it possible for them to buy pretty much any player they want, while other teams are forced to watch their best players go where the money is. This sets the stage for 'Moneyball', after losing to the Yankees in the 2001 postseason, the Oakland Athletics lose their three biggest names to free agency and teams with more money. This leaves GM Billy Beane [Brad Pitt] in a bit of a lurch; With a salary of approximately $41 million it's hard to compete with teams like the Yankees with their bankroll of $125 million. He can't get any more money from the owners, so he can't get any other big names to come to Oakland, simply because he can't afford them.
One of the most interesting scenes comes watching Beane and his scouts try to pick players for the upcoming year. They talk about 'pretty swings', 'nice strides' and 'good faces'. I didn't realise the game was so much about looks, and while I suppose these people are trying to bring fans to the stadium, wouldn't a winning team do that better than a good looking one? Beane continues to try and build a competitive team in Cleveland, and while he doesn't get the player he wants he does meet Peter Brand [Jonah Hill] a Yale economics undergrad with big ideas on how to assemble a better team, a statistical approach known as sabremetrics. When Beane returns to Oakland ready to wholeheartedly embrace sabremetrics his scouts are actively hostile to the approach that dismisses their years of experience and intuition and focuses almost solely on the players on base percentage. Despite pissing off his head scout, the rest of the scouting team AND the team manager Beane gets the team he wants, but can they win?
At first the team's poor play seems to be proving all the doubters, in and outside the team, right. But Beane is convinced that they aren't winning because team manager, Art Howe [played by the always superb, Philip Seymour Hoffman] refuses the play the team the way he built it, which included playing a former catcher, Scott Hatteberg [the adorable Chris Pratt] at first base. In a bold move he trades the team's best player to force Howe to do things his way. However as the season progresses so does the team's play, in the end having all the critics to eat their words when the A's go on to an MLB record winning 20 games in a row and make it to the post-season, albeit to lose again in the first round.
Despite falling short in the post season many other teams have gone on to take Beane's sabretrics-based approach at building their teams.
Okay, now I know that I've already rambled on for far too long, but just a couple extra little notes. Brad Pitt was superb as Billy Beane. The man doesn't make a lot of movies these days, [how can he with that passel of kids he has?] but it's obvious that when he does choose a role, he chooses one he care about. I also have to say how impressed I was by Jonah Hill. He's made his name being a funny guy, but here he proves that he isn't a one trick pony, and pulls off this dramatic role really well. Last but not least, Chris Pratt, you may not know him, and that's too bad. He's done mostly TV in the past few years, including currently being the adorable goofball Andy on 'Parks and Recreation' [<- this show is awesome, you should watch it]. His portrayal of Scott Hatteberg is wonderful; he brings a sweet uncertainty to his character that really makes you want to see him succeed.
Alright!! That's an awful lot about a movie about a sport I don't like, but it was darn good flick. Getting back into the swing of blogging is a little tricky, but stick with me and I promise to try and be more concise from now on. ;)