Review of Eight Men Out (1988) by Louis K — 26 May 2007

I actually found this movie kind of depressing, but it was definitely worth seeing for what it reveals about the corruption of the time period. It is good to know that these players were not anomalies in an otherwise clean world. They are definitely products of their environment.

The reason why I have not watched this movie more than a couple of times is because I always feel moved to sympathize with the players, almost to root for them, and yet I know the story ends badly for the players.

In my opinion this is a good movie which also plays with our emotions just enough to be unsettling while not quite crossing the line. It comes darn close, though. It doesn't actually alter history that I'm aware of, but in one scene the easiest inference for the viewer to make does not quite square with the facts. The same can also be said about the overall treatment of Joe Jackson's involvement or lack thereof.

The problem, if there is one, with this movie, is that it is tempting to turn these 8 men into innocent victims. It is not necessarily bad for a movie to lean in that direction, but it means we are responsible for the conclusions we draw, even when we are led to them. Even the movie, assuming it is historically accurate, does not mitigate the fact that even Buck Weaver and Joe Jackson, if they did nothing else, still knew about the fix and did or said nothing about it. That alone makes them guilty. Weaver claims he never got paid. Jackson didn't make such a claim - in the movie at least - but they both seemed to be expecting some form of payment.

These 8 men were responsible for their own actions, and however corruptly Baseball handled the affair, no matter how unfairly justice was doled out, the fact is they were held responsible and were given a just punishment. They each lied or at least harbored the lie perpetrated on millions of baseball fans, namely that the game being played between the white lines was truly a competition between two teams when it really wasn't.

Having said all that, I commend Sayles because his movie doesn't deny this reality. He expresses his feelings through the script, and you can sense where his sympathies lie, but he still allows the viewer to form their own conclusion.