Moneyball, starring Brad Pitt and Jonah Hill is a sports film that is more about the struggle of "rich -vs- poor" than it is about the actual game itself. Pitt plays the lead character, Billy Beane who as the Oakland A's General Manager changed the way the game is played forever back in the 2002 season. After having his best free agent players swooned with big money by the Yankee organization, Beane is forced to re- build his team by using mathematical statistics introduced to him by Paul Brand (Jonah Hill.)
The film emphasizes on Beane's struggle with the sport with occasional flashbacks to his past experience as a player in the big leagues in the 1980s. The narration of the film seems to dictate that his past history with the sport is one of the driving forces on how he manages the Oakland A's. The relationship with his ex-wife and daughter also play a key factor in his decision making process.
Pitt's performance is solid and charismatic and on track with his streak of solid work throughout the last few years (Inglourious Basterds,The Tree of Life.) Jonah Hill has stepped out from behind his usual comedy character role to prove that he has what it takes to be a serious actor. Other co-starring roles are on key throughout the film; Phillip Seymour Hoffman as Team Manager Art Howe being one of them.
One does not need to be a sports fanatic to enjoy this film. Moneyball is a film based on a baseball team, but it goes beyond being a film about a baseball team and more about one man's vision and determination to change the system of how the game is played.
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