The Rookie
2002
Every evening, Jim Morris (Dennis Quaid) is out practicing pitching. His minor league career ended with a shoulder injury twelve years ago. Now, Jim coaches a struggling high school team. When he tries to motivate them, they challenge him--if they reach the play offs, he must try out for the majors. The team starts to win, and .. Read more
| Starring | Dennis Quaid, Rachel Griffiths, Jay Hernandez, Beth Grant |
|---|---|
| Director | John Lee Hancock |
| Genres | Drama |
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The Rookie
Every evening, Jim Morris (Dennis Quaid) is out practicing pitching. His minor league career ended with a shoulder injury twelve years ago. Now, Jim coaches a struggling high school team. When he tries to motivate them, they challenge him--if they reach the play offs, he must try out for the majors. The team starts to win, and makes the play offs. Not realizing how strong his arm has become, Jim is apprehensive as he sets off for the try outs with his son and baby daughter. The coaches recognize him, but think he has brought a young prospect. Late in the day, as he's changing a diaper, Jim is called. When he throws his first pitch, he surprises the coaches--and himself.
Director John Lee Hancock, director of photography John Schwartzman, and composer Carter Burwell have made a glowing movie based on the true story of Jim Morris, investing it with a touch of myth. Dennis Quaid is convincing as the pitcher. His scenes with Brian Cox, playing his father, bristle with unresolved anger. The great Australian actress Rachel Griffiths shows her extraordinary chameleon-like ability--as Jim's tough-minded wife, she captures perfectly a woman who has to deal with life's practicalities and with her husband's dreams.
| Starring | Dennis Quaid, Rachel Griffiths, Jay Hernandez, Beth Grant, Brian Cox |
|---|---|
| Director | John Lee Hancock |
| Studio | WALT DISNEY HOME VIDEO |
| Run time | DVD: 2 hrs 3 mins Blu-ray: 2 hrs 3 mins |
| Certificate | |
| Genres | Drama |
| Language | DVD: English Blu-ray: English |
| Dubbed | Portuguese, Spanish |
| Hearing-impaired | English |
| Subtitles | DVD: Danish, English, Finnish, Icelandic, Norwegian, Portuguese, Spanish, Swedish |
| Released | DVD: 14 Apr 2003 Blu-ray: 10 Mar 2008 Production year: 2002 |
| Format | DVD |
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Critics' reviews (2)
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For Americans, baseball is still a field of dreams. For the British, interest in the sport has been clobbered half to death by too many unmemorable baseball movies. This entry in the genre is a true story that is, sadly, hampered by some signposted plot developments and undernourished characters. However, it does contain a poignant performance by the all too rarely seen Dennis Quaid as Jimmy Morris, a former pro-ball player who pledges to try out again for the major leagues if the school team he coaches makes the play-offs. The versatile Rachel Griffiths offers stoic support in the clichéd role of his supportive wife who's concerned that the old injury will return to wreck his renewed dream. However, at over two hours, this movie is a bit too long and has too many dull stretches for what aspires to be a feel-good family film. With a sharper script and direction, instead of just echoing elements of Field of Dreams, this could have raised its game and matched it.
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Deft, sentimental tale of winners that seems too good to be true, though it is apparently based on fact.
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Most helpful member's review
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5 out of 5 people found this review helpful
Heart-Warming Real Life Story
Dennis Quaid plays a baseball teacher at a school whose dreams of becoming a baseball star are well and truly gone. However at the start of the season his team challenge him that if they win the League that year then he has to try out for the Major League once again... A true story which will warm even the coldest of hearts. Easy watching and recommended. You don't need to be a fan of baseball either. ( Its a stupid game of rounders if you ask me!!!)
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Most recent members' review
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2 out of 2 people found this review helpful
Good family film...
It is a good, faithful re-telling of a genuinely heart-warming story, unfortunately at two hours it seems half an hour too long. With more sensitive editing it could and should have been a very good film.
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News and features
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Smith set to play Katrina hero
- 21 May 2009
Will Smith is to play a real-life Hurricane Katrina hero in new film to be written and directed by someone named HANCOCK. The Hancock star will help take The Rookie screenwriter John Lee Hancock's new film about ex-Marine John Keller to the big screen. Keller helped rescue more than 200 of his New Orleans, Louisiana neighbours when they were left stranded by the devastation of Katrina in 2005. Read more
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- Rookie, The - BLU-RAY Version
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Based on a true story of Jim Morris, a thirty-five year high school baseball coach, who retired from baseball because of a shoulder injury, who is persuaded to try out for a major league organisation.... -
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- The Rookie
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Every evening, Jim Morris (Dennis Quaid) is out practicing pitching. His minor league career ended with a shoulder injury twelve years ago. Now, Jim coaches a struggling high school team. When he ... -