Baseball is more than a game, and the best sports movies lean into that hard truth.
“Eight Men Out.” “Bang the Drum Slowly.” “Field of Dreams.” They all had more to say than who struck out with the bases loaded.
“You Gotta Believe” reminds us what matters beyond balls and strikes. The fact-based drama tugs at the heartstrings, mostly due to the collective on-screen talent.
The big-hearted film struggles to find a rhythm. It’s “Bad News Bears”-lite one minute, a sobering look at living every moment the next.
Luke Wilson stars as Bobby, a Little League coach who lives and breathes baseball. His sons do, too, even if young Bobby (Michael Cash) can’t hit a lick. Nor can most of his teammates.
Their Fort Worth, Texas squad gets a second chance when a businessman (“The Sandlot” alum Patrick Renna, a nice touch) gives the team a lifeline of sorts.
They can compete in the Little League World Series, even though they’ll probably get trounced.
Coach Bobby experiences a medical episode before the team can even get in playoff shape. A few short scenes later we learn he has terminal cancer. He hands the team off to fellow coach and best pal Jon (Greg Kinnear) who dedicates their Little League run to him.
Can this ragtag bunch honor their dying coach and prove their doubters wrong? Well, it’s based on a remarkable true story, so do some of the math.
“You Gotta Believe” understands baseball is a tough sell to Gen Z. The game’s glacial pace is no match for TikTok attention spans, and some scenes take liberties to make the sport more appealing.
Bad move. It clashes with the rest of the film, and it does the game’s small pleasures few favors. There’s pageantry to baseball – the knee-buckling curveballs and diving plays that make the sport memorable.
Take it or leave it.
Director Ty Roberts uses fast edits and silly graphics to pump up select sequences.
But not all of them.
Kinnear’s coach can’t relax, but when his friend is diagnosed with a terminal illness he reasseses his lifestyle. That’s good, as is Kinnear whenever he’s in front of the camera.
Robert Ratliff’s late father inspired his Little League team to an incredible achievement: reaching the Little League World Series in 2002. This remarkable story has now been transformed into the compelling film “You Gotta Believe.”https://t.co/gQDv5yAvEV
— Fort Worth Magazine (@FWTXmag) August 14, 2024
The youthful cast is a collective asset, seeming both age-appropriate in their reactions and refreshingly feisty.
The respective spouses (Sarah Gadon, Molly Parker) do some of the heavy lifting, including a complicated scene that starts with an act of compassion but ends badly.
Superior baseball films, including the original “Bad News Bears,” hover over “You Gotta Believe’s” sports sequences. And a few moments ring false, from the curious reactions to the coach’s illness to a collective shrug over on-field violence.
Those narrative hiccups fade when Wilson is front and center. His performance is earnest and true, a father trying to squeeze as many life lessons in as possible. The film doesn’t lean into his frail state, but Wilson makes it clear his character is fighting for every last breath.
Parents often teach by doing. That’s the most poignant part of “You Gotta Believe,” watching a dad realize he can’t squander a second with his children.
HiT or Miss: “You Gotta Believe” has its heart in the right place, and the film’s talented leads help paper over some unfortunate flaws.
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