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The Natural

The Natural

Drama · 1984

An unknown middle-aged batter named Roy Hobbs with a mysterious past appears out of nowhere to take a losing 1930s baseball team to the top of the league.

Movie details

The Natural

“He lived for a dream that wouldn't die.”

1984 Drama 2h 17m

Critical arithmetic

One number, for now.

TMDB

6.9 / 10

Community rating

An unknown middle-aged batter named Roy Hobbs with a mysterious past appears out of nowhere to take a losing 1930s baseball team to the top of the league.

CriticWise case file

What this film says about your taste.

Not a recommendation score. A measure of how closely the film’s taste signals resemble yours.

The archetype split

Who fights over The Natural?

The split comes from the same five-axis model used by the test, not audience ratings or review sentiment.

Taste neighbourhood

Nearby on the taste map.

TMDB supplies the candidates. CriticWise reorders them by craft, strangeness, prestige, emotion, and pace.

Million Dollar Arm

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Drama · 2013

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Eight Men Out

Eight Men Out

Drama · 1988

Buck Weaver and Hap Felsch are young idealistic players on the Chicago White Sox, a pennant-winning team owned by Charles Comiskey - a penny-pinching, hands-on manager who underpays his players and treats them with disdain. And when gamblers and hustlers discover that Comiskey's demoralized players are ripe for a money-making scheme, one by one the team members agree to throw the World Series. But when the White Sox are defeated, a couple of sports writers smell a fix and a national scandal explodes, ripping the cover off America's favorite pastime.

Blue Chips

Blue Chips

Drama · 1994

Pete Bell, a college basketball coach is under a lot of pressure. His team isn't winning and he cannot attract new players. The stars of the future are secretly being paid by boosters. This practice is forbidden in the college game, but Pete is desperate and has pressures from all around.

The Hill

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Cry of the City

Cry of the City

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Petty crook and cop-killer Martin Rome, in bad shape from wounds in the hospital prison ward, still refuses to help slimy lawyer Niles clear his client by confessing to another crime. Police Lt. Candella must check Niles' allegation; a friend of the Rome family, he walks a tightrope between sentiment and cynicism. When Martin fears Candella will implicate his girlfriend Teena, he'll do anything to protect her. How many others will he drag down to disaster with him?

The Big Combo

The Big Combo

Drama · 1955

Police Lt. Leonard Diamond vies to bring a clever, well connected, and sadistic gangster to justice all the while obsessing over the gangster's girlfriend.

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Names above the title

The people responsible.

Directed by

Barry Levinson

Written by

Roger Towne · Phil Dusenberry

Robert Redford

Robert Redford

Roy Hobbs

Robert Duvall

Robert Duvall

Max Mercy

Glenn Close

Glenn Close

Iris Gaines

Kim Basinger

Kim Basinger

Memo Paris

Wilford Brimley

Wilford Brimley

Pop Fisher

Barbara Hershey

Barbara Hershey

Harriet Bird

Robert Prosky

Robert Prosky

The Judge

Court is in session

Put The Natural on trial.

Two incompatible taste archetypes. One film. Read the arguments, then issue a completely binding cultural ruling.

The defence The Prestige Tourist

“Ambition earns the room.”

The film reaches for consequence and scale, accepting the risk of seriousness instead of shrinking from it.

The prosecution The Popcorn Loyalist

“Importance has entered the chat.”

The production keeps announcing its significance, as though awards-season posture were proof of insight.