Review of Field of Dreams (1989) by Jason T — 19 Oct 2010

Flights of imagination are rare in films these days. Maybe we've forgotten how to simply enjoy ourselves without being shocked or beaten to death with realism and obvious messages. Or maybe films are just too concerned with making money than touching more than the hypothalamus. If you like gritty and realistic, this film isn't for you. Yes, it's about baseball, but only as a religion for the most part: The way it was meant to be. It's also about the delicate fabric of family and connections to people that we have through the love of something - in this case, baseball. It's about regaining something we've lost - dreams that we've had, and it does that really well. Believe me, the older you get the more of this sentiment you have. If you're a realist, you'll be frustrated by the utter lack of explanation in the film, or maybe overwhelmed by the sentiment. The point is, that none of that matters, and maybe it's not the right time for you to watch the film. I don't mean that in an arrogant way, I mean that everyone approaches love of something or someone in their own time, and in their own way.

However, if you let this gentle string of fantasies in, I think you'll appreciate the value of a shared dream. Those with religious leanings will make the messages their own, and that's okay. For the more secular of us, it's still about what we've gained and what we've lost, and what makes us who we are. It goes one step further with 'who we meet shapes who we are' because some of the people Roy meets aren't supposed to be there at all.

The movie could tip into the ridiculous, but it doesn't. It doesn't need to be, and it doesn't need profanity or violence to get its message across. Some parts are so grounded and realistic, you feel at home, and the performances are nuanced to make it so. The acting is very finely done, on the tightrope of reality and fantasy, yet it's well written and directed, and you get carried along effortlessly. The movie is just like the magic waters described so perfectly by James Earl Jones (in a great role for him, and with a great speech about baseball) He and Burt Lancaster play important supporting roles to Kevin Costner and Amy Madigan, whose farm is the center of controversy after Costner builds a baseball diamond on crop-yielding acreage. There's also some great performances by Ray Liotta and others.

It's a film that's whimsical and meaningful, too. I think everybody experiences it in a different way, because we're all different. It's a rare film that lets us have our own private thoughts on what it means to just them. That's why I liked this film - a lot.

Recommended.