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List Price: $14.99 | | Label: Walt Disney Video
Salesrank: 12762
Released: August 27, 2002 |
| Our Price: $6.76 |
| Used Price: $0.32 |
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MPAA Rating: G (General Audience)
Media: DVD |
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Editorial Review:
From the studio that brought you REMEMBER THE TITANS comes an inspirational film based on a true story. Jim Morris (Dennis Quaid), father, teacher, and high school coach, thought his dream was over. He'd had his shot playing baseball, blew out his shoulder, and retired without ever making it to the big leagues. Then, in 1999, Coach Morris made a fateful bet with his perpetually losing team. If they won the district championship, Morris -- who threw a 98 mph fastball -- would try out for the majors. The team went from worst to first, and Jim, living up to his end of the bargain, threw caution to the wind and was on the road to becoming the oldest rookie in the major leagues. This heartfelt, uplifting story about not giving up on your dreams will have everyone cheering.
Description of The Rookie (Full Screen Edition):
Jim Morris, the real-life hero of The Rookie, has an inspirational story all but guaranteed to put a smile on anyone's face. Happily, this G-rated Disney drama, based on Morris's published memoir of the same title, is suitable for an all-ages audience. Blessed with an awesome fastball, Morris nursed dreams of pitching for Major League Baseball during his 20s; injuries and bad luck, however, forced him to give up hope and become a teacher and coach. Years later, pressed by students and colleagues to try out for "the Show" one more time, Morris discovered he still had a powerful arm, and he was signed by the Tampa Bay Devil Rays. The Rookie is at its best throughout this first chapter in Morris's midlife adventure, though the rest of the film finds fresh angles on more familiar baseball-movie conventions. Dennis Quaid is soulful and charismatic as Morris, perfect in his depiction of a man both thankful and startled that destiny has given one of the good guys his due. Appropriate for ages 4 and up. --Tom Keogh
The Rookie (Full Screen Edition) Reviews:
Movie that makes a grown man cry 
2009-12-14 - Strongly recommend this movie. Dennis Quaid is awesome. Also, Brian Cox has a great role as the main character's father.
Rookie makes its pitch for best baseball movie ever...
2009-08-12 - Director John Lee Hancock masterminds a movie based on a true story of an over-30 baseball player who makes a comeback and finds himself with another shot at the major leagues. Dennis Quaid plays Jim Morris, who actually played for the Tampa Bay Rays as a relief pitcher.I've seen "The Rookie" so many times that I feel like I was behind the plate,catching a Morris fastball. "Field of Dreams","The Natural",and for that matter Kevin Costner's portrayal of Billy Chapel in "For the Love of the Game", all have an underlying theme along with "The Rookie" and that is the relationship between father and son.In "The Rookie" that relationship is strained and if the ending doesn't get to you...nothing will.
Really Good Movie!
2009-06-26 - This movie was excellent. Great story, great cast. I am a huge sports nut and I could watch this any number of times and not get tired of it. Great job by Quaid and the rest of the cast. The DVD got here fast, undamaged, and as advertised.
A Great Baseball Movie For All
2009-06-25 - There is something special about "true" sports stoires to me, and I enjoy the stories where a player reaches a dream. such as Invincible.
The Rookie fits the mold, as it follows Jim Morris, a pitcher who never made it all the way to play ball, but fell short. But he got one more chance and was able to make it to the big league. (In fact I remember rooting for him on the comeback trail when the story developed.)
Dennis Quaid is great as Morris, and you cannothelp but root for him. The movie is very well done, not being overly melodramatic or too "rah-rah" as the story develops to the point where Morris plays on a field of dreams.
This movie does not seem to get mentioned as often as other baseball movies that instantly come to mind, such as Bull Durham or A Field Of Dreams, but it is a very good one and deserves a place in any collection of baseball movies.
Don't be afraid to chase your dreams
2009-06-11 - There have been hundreds of movies made about baseball: some forgetable duds, many decent films, and a few all time classics that define how baseball is a reflection of America. The film `The Rookie' is in this latter category. It is the true life (although heavily dramatized, I'm sure) story of Jim Morris, a high school teacher and baseball coach in Texas who attended a tryout for the Tampa Bay Devil Rays at the urging of his players and eventually made it to the majors for the first time in his mid-30s, an unprecedented event. The thing that makes this movie great is that it is about more than just baseball, it is about dreams. Many people dream about doing great things, but it takes courage and determination to actually get up and do it and overcome the fear of failure. Jimmy Morris always dreamed about playing baseball and spent some time in the minors as a young man, getting hurt and never making it to the major leagues. His desire to play baseball never left him though, and even after he got married, started a family, and settled down to a regular job, he never forgot his dream. Unlike most people, he got a second chance to try to do what he loved and he made the most of his opportunity. Throw in a beautiful, spunky wife (played by Rachel Griffiths) and a complex, unhappy relationship with his father, and you have a great story. There are so many great scenes in this movie that are so well done and so memorable. Jim making it to the big leagues is great, of course (I imagine that virtually anyone would be in a daze the first time they sit in a big league dugout). The best scene of the movie is the one where Jim tosses a ball past a traffic radar to see how fast he is throwing and the reading gives a speed in the high seventies (mph), and as Jim walks away to pick up the ball, the reading changes to a velocity in the high 90s. All time classic! People will be watching this 100 years from now. Is this movie cheesy and over-melodramatic at times? You bet. A great family movie? Absolutely! It would be great if every American, once in their life, could feel like Jim Morris when he comes out of the bullpen for the first time. Most of us may never get that chance, but it is great watching Jim do it!
