I know people will say that I went in with a bias to not like this movie since Clint Eastwood is now a notorious and bull-headed Republican. Well, I’m sorry but those people are just plain wrong. I love most Clint Eastwood movies, and went into this hoping it would be just as good as all of his recent movies. [FYI, I don’t go into ANY movie hoping I’ll waste two hours of my life.] Sadly, it isn’t. Although I can’t say it’s awful, it’s definitely more in the C ballpark than anything Clint’s done in quite a while.
What Works: Not a whole heck of a lot, but the movie has a pleasant, comfortable rhythm that goes down smooth enough. Some people will be bored by that, but others will say it’s the type of movie Hollywood just doesn’t make enough of anymore. [And, as someone who’s more than a little tired of all the tentpole films, they’re largely right.] Of course, if Hollywood is going to continue to make ANY movies without vampires or aliens, then the movies have to work a lot better than this one does. But I will say that Amy Adams proves there’s almost no part she can’t shine in.
What Doesn’t Work: I like baseball movies more than I actually like baseball, so I was able to have a fairly good time with this film about an aging baseball scout but there’s no question that Moneyball is a vastly superior baseball film for anyone, whether they love the game or don’t know even the basic rules. And this isn’t really an “Eastwood movie” because it’s the first movie in quite a while he hasn’t written or directed. He’s just acting in it and that’s why the style feels so off for the whole thing. It turns out that movies are a lot better off when Eastwood has some influence behind the camera instead of just squinting aimlessly into the air like a bad parody version of his former self.
What I Would Have Done Differently: For a movie called “Trouble with the Curve” it sure wouldn’t hurt to have some. ANY kind of plot development the audience couldn’t have seen coming from a mile away would have certainly helped raise the movie’s pulse. As is, the whole thing just feels uninspired and lazy, technically competent but like something where everyone got the weekend off during shooting.
Like the review. Honestly refreshing.