I remember that I didn't want to see this movie at the theater (or as a rental for that matter) because of the marketing of the movie and what I thought would be a dumb story. However, I was pleasantly surprised. For what it was worth, it was a pretty good movie. Yeah, the story-line was not believable and it was cheesy at times, but the basis behind the story was pretty solid, it had some pretty good lines, and it was pretty entertaining the whole way through. Word of warning, though - Don't let Randy Johnson scare you. That guy had to have fallen out of the ugly tree and hit every single branch on the way down, THEN bounced and hit every single branch on the way up. Plus he's called the 'Big Unit'; scary! 6.5 out of 10.
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bkoganbing17 February 2019Young Luke Edwards is one lucky kid. His grandfather Jason Robards is the owner of the Minnesota Twins and he and grandpa are close. At the age of 12 Edwards is a walking encyclopedia of baseball. It's a trio with mother Ashley Crow at the third end of that equilateral triangle.
The scenes between Robards and Edwards are really special and sad that Robards part calls for him to die. But that's part of the basis of the plot. Robards dies and leaves the team to his grandson. I don't know about you, but I would love to have been Colonel Jacob Ruppert's son and have him the leave the New York Yankees of 1939 to me.
But being the juvenile baseball maven he is Edwards soon enough questions whether he's got a good manager in irascible Dennis Farina. The pubescent owner fires Farina and takes over the management of the team itself.
As one of his friends says the Twins are in the American League with the designated hitter rule so half of managing is taken out of your hands. Not so as the lad soon finds out. Complicating things is the fact that one of the players Timothy Busfield is dating his mother.
For me Robards character is based on the former owner of the Twins Cal Griffith who in the tradition of his uncle and adopted father Clark Griffith ran the Twins and formerly the old Washington Senators as a mom and pop operation. After free agency came into being Griffith tried to hang on, but couldn't and he sold the Twins to Carl Pohlad in 1984.
What gives it away is Robards character saying how as a lad he missed the opportunity to see Walter Johnson pitch. It establishes the team with its former home and identity.
Little Big League is a really great both baseball and family film that kids of all ages can appreciate. -
psplayer31116 October 2003I saw this movie lots of times and one of things that made me really like it was how well baseball was accurately portrayed in this movie. I think alot of movies try to make sports seem as real and accurate as they can but it's a pretty tough job because they're making a hollywood movie with actors. And you can tell that it's acting because the pitches or plays can all look fake and the overall play can look pretty weak. But this movie did a really good job of making the game look realistic. Obviously, the appearances of guys like Mickey Tettleton, Rafael Palmeiro, Griffey, Johnson, O'Niell, Alex Fernandez and others really helped. But the stadiums all looked great and accurate and how they would look in real life. Mainly, the game just looked real in the film, which is something that I havent seen in a lot of baseball movies. I think it's definitely one of the best baseball films out there in terms of accuracy and appearance and the story line really did of a good job of how major league life can go. Things can be going your way at minute, but a few months or weeks later, things can all change and your team can go downhill. I think the movie did a good job of showing a major league baseball team, the Twins, and the ups and downs of a season. Good job
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Andreas_N9 November 2005Well, I just love those American movies centering around baseball. Here a kid's dream comes true. Billy Heywood manages the Minnesota Twins! How cool is that, guys? Luke Edwards handles this new challenge in a slick and cool-headed manner, which is maybe a bit unrealistic and overdone. But hey, that is not the point. The point is that this movie is entertaining and funny, with some nicely staged baseball sequences. I like the way Luke addresses the guys in the fitting room, talking about the spirit of the game and that these guys just ought to have fun with what they do - playing ball. There are many similar movies out there, and many lack substance, but this one is definitely worth a try.
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SnoopyStyle4 June 2016Billy Heywood (Luke Edwards) lives with his single mother Jenny (Ashley Crow). His unassuming grandfather Thomas (Jason Robards) owns the Minnesota Twins. After his death, he bequeaths the Twins to Billy. Lou Collins (Timothy Busfield) is the star player. George O'Farrell (Dennis Farina) is the bombastic manager. Arthur Goslin (Kevin Dunn) is the GM and Mac Macnally (John Ashton) is the pitching coach. The team is a mess. O'Farrell opposes signing Ricky Henderson and Billy fires him. Billy decides to coach the team himself.
This is a solid kids movie. It is a dream come true for any young baseball lover. Billy is wise beyond his years and smarter than the adults. There are lessons to be learned, hard decisions to make, and the overarching joy of baseball. It also helps to have real MLB teams and the real parks. -
richard-178720 February 2014There are a few clever scenes in this movie, but mostly, it's play by the numbers. I don't know if it would appeal to a 12 year old, but it could have appealed to a guy of any age who dreams of what he could do if only he were allowed to manage a baseball team.
But it would have been far more effective in that way if, instead of having the players played by actors who developed the usual collection of quirky characters, the producer had managed to convince the real players of a real losing team to appear in this movie. Then it truly would have been fantasy baseball at its finest, and more realistic.
Not a bad movie, but not a memorable one. -
g-bodyl7 November 2008Little Big League is a great film. I enjoy most baseball films because I am a big baseball fan, not necessarily the Minnesota Twins. I only saw this movie just to get entertained. After the movie started, the owner of the Twins passes away from natural causes. He gives his team to his grandson, Billy. After Billy fired the manager, he becomes the manager of the team on their quest to win the pennant. As a baseball fan, I do find it pretty hard to see a kid managing the team, but this is purely entertainment. I was happy to see major league stars such as Randy Johnson, Ivan Rodriguez, Paul O'Neill(especially), and Rafael Palmeiro. As a die-hard Yankees fan, I am glad to see great views of Yankee Stadium. At least I will see this film when I want to see the old Yankee Stadium because they are tearing it down soon. In entertainment areas such as acting, everything is simple and smooth. A good baseball film! I rate this movie 8/10.
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view_and_review22 June 2008Only kids would like this movie or find it funny, because only a kid would be entertained by the idea of a kid being in charge of adults. This movie was terrible from many angles.
Acting: Bad. Can't say much more than just bad. Luke Edwards was terrible. He has the range of Keanu Reeves, he never showed any emotion other than indifference.
Humor: It absolutely was NOT funny. I was begging for a chuckle even.
Story: It would be fitting to use a baseball analogy here: Swing and a miss.
As a baseball fan, I can't imagine the game being insulted by having a kid manage a professional team. I wouldn't care if the kid was an all out baseball savant (as this kid was), managing a team is still managing people and personalities which takes more than just statistical knowledge to do.
Grown men will not take to being managed or led by a child, especially macho, testosterone driven athletes. I thought the players reaction to the news of their new manager was far more tempered than it would really be. Those ball players would have been far more objectionable, not to mention the commissioner of baseball.
This kid never came across as a bold an audacious boy, but that's exactly what it would require for a boy to put himself in charge of a baseball team. I wasn't interested in seeing how the story would play out. I'm sure they eventually warmed up to him, the team started winning, the mom dated the ball player and everyone lived happily ever after. If this were a better movie I would watch it to the predictable end, but this was just a huge Kansas City Royals flop. -
jeffplus318 July 2001Between 1993-1995, many baseball movies such as Little Big League, The Sandlot, and Rookie of the Year came out, but I think that Little Big League was the most clever of them all. There were plenty of funny scenes that adults, rather than children, could relate to. It was well done and well acted. I enjoyed this movie and I have owned it since it came out.
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myronlearn10 April 2022'Little Big League' starts off with an interesting premise, but for the next two hours, devolves into boring and meaningless fanfare. They should create a new movie rating code for cinema like this: DWYT- Don't Waste Your Time.
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clstone4 December 2001I really think this movie was done exceptionally well. The humor wasn't just the standard nose-picking, mud-throwing, loud-farting jokes that are so standard in kids movies. This movie was actually well written! I laughed the whole way through it, it's really too bad it gets put in the same class with movies like Rookie of the Year and The Big Green. It's so much more sophisticated (strange word to use to describe a kids movie...I know) as far as the writing style and humor goes than any of those other movies were. I really think that adults may enjoy this movie more than kids, because kids may not get all the jokes. It's disappointing that it will never be seen by so many because of the type of movie that it is and the way it was marketed.
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ccthemovieman-114 May 2006I thought this was a perfectly nice family film and almost canned it after the first 15 minutes, but I was glad I didn't because it turned to be a good movie.
The first 15 minutes including two GDs by Dennis Farina and some uncalled-for vulgarity by Jason Robards, but everything settled down after those two exited the film soon after and it wound up being a "cute" baseball movie and very impressive in its realism.
The last comment about "realism" was the most impressive aspect of the film to me. I had grown up seeing every baseball movie and never seeing any actors who knew what they were doing until Kevin Costner came along with his "Field Of Dreams" (and later with "For Love Of The Game"). So I appreciate the more modern-era of movie-making where at least we see actors who can throw and hit. This movie is about as close to seeing real baseball as you're going to get: very realistic diamond action.
The story was outlandish - an 11-year-old managing a Major League baseball team, but the baseball was so good and a good mix of comedy and drama made it turn out to be a satisfying film to watch. There are some nice shots of Fenway Park and Yankee Stadium in here, too.
Luke Edwards, as the kid, was just fine and a kid you could root for, not a wise- guy. He was aided by adults John Ashton and Timothy Busfeld. This is a nicer role for Ashton ("Midnight Run") and Busfeld, couldn't have played a more likable ballplayer. He was great to watch.
This a good film for adults, not just kids, and especially if you enjoy baseball. -
StevePulaski26 September 2014If the story of Andrew Scheinman's Little Big League were ever to come true, and an eleven-year-old boy through some circumstance managed to inherit a baseball team and the stadium they play in, the results would likely look similar to this film. That's certainly saying something, given the fact that Little Big League is a PG- rated film set in the 1990's, and one would ostensibly assume it would be full of mediocre comedic value and redundant gags about an eleven-year-old, well, inheriting a baseball team and their stadium.
Through miraculously gifted and careful writing by Gregory K. Pincus, and sensitive but firm direction by Scheinman, Little Big League surprises with its level of competence and maturity about this cockamamie idea. It takes itself about as seriously as its eleven-year-old protagonist takes the game of baseball, and not in the way where groans are induced, and doesn't settle for cheap humor that is forgotten as soon as the credits roll. It takes a fantasy and sketches it in reality, providing a "what if?" tale almost believable enough to encourage young kids and fill them with optimism about them owning their favorite sports team.
The film concerns Billy Heywood (Luke Edwards), who lives with his single-mother Jenny (Ashley Crow) and possesses an infinity and vast understanding of baseball. The love for the game is pushed along in an encouraging manner by Thomas Heywood (Jason Robards), Billy's grandfather who owns the Minnesota Twins team and their ballpark. When his grandfather dies, Billy views a filmed will that turns the team and ballpark over to him, despite his young age and lack of business experience. Billy replies to this by saying in a heartbreaking tone, "I'd rather have my grandfather."
It isn't long before Billy becomes the center of attention, at school, in public, and in the neighborhood, as the youngest team owner in the history of sports. Billy must manage to bring the average Minnesota Twins up to commendable playoff level, connecting with Twins players Lou Collins (Timothy Busfield) and Jerry Johnson (Duane Davis), his personal idol, while also learning more about the game than he thought he could by viewing it up close. The downside to all of this is, inevitably, as the owner, Billy must make tough managerial decisions, and through that makes the mistakes that even the adult owners do. However, in a motivational speech that avoids the trappings of sentimentality, talks about how even when the chips are down that a player shouldn't lose their direction. "Who cares?," he replies when the ideas of striking out or making an error are suggested, and all is forgiven if the love of the game can still be embraced by its players. After all, "baseball was made for kids; it's the grownups who screwed it up," Billy states at one point in the film.
Little Big League was released in the summer of 1994, about a year after another baseball film for kids hit the scene, Rookie of the Year. The latter received a great deal of recognition and financial success, while Little Big League found itself more-or-less eclipsed by an overblown genre and a more serious story, failing to resonate with an audience until years after its release. This is an understandable shame, as while both Little Big League and Rookie of the Year bear narratives that occasionally intersect or merge in my mind, the latter is far more littered with crude humor and mawkishness that fails to impress on the thematic level of its successor.
There may not be a lot in Little Big League for a lot of adults, who miss the numbers crunching and the business look at baseball, but there is a serene little spark of magic that shines through the film and its ideas about a kid taking a boatload of responsibility all at once and handling it to the best of his abilities. It's a quietly positive film, but a boldly realistic one all the more, which makes it a commendable exercise in a tired genre.
Starring: Luke Edwards, Ashley Crow,, Timothy Busfield, John Ashton, and Kevin Dunn. Directed by: Andrew Scheinman. -
matt_back57 January 2011Little Big League was one of my favorite movies as a kid. Growing up in Minnesota I thought it was the coolest thing that there was a movie about our Twins, and a good movie at that. Being a baseball player is every kids' dream, and owning one would be the next best thing. This movie, unlike some sports films, accurately shows the game of baseball and what it is like on and off the field. The acting is fairly good and the characters and story line are not one dimensional and boring like some kid's movies. It is humorous but can be very serious at times. Watching it makes me feel young again and reminds me of my love for baseball. Little Big League is a movie that both kids and adults can enjoy.
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zkonedog12 March 2017At face value, "Little Big League" is nothing more than a kiddie story. The plot (teen inherits baseball team from grandfather and becomes manager) is wacky, the characters are stereotypes ("for the team" vs. "out for money"), and the ending is almost exactly what you would expect.
Yet, putting those "serious critiques" aside, this is, as a baseball fan, one of my favorite films of all-time! The reason? It is able to capture the kind of humor that baseball fans will seize upon as their own. Whether it be on-field tricks, clubhouse shenanigans, or the real-life "adventures" that players experience when not between the two white lines, all those areas are spot-on in their portrayal of the lighter side of America's pastime.
The way I perceive this movie is as a nice little compliment to the Kevin Costner baseball persona. Whereas Costner (in films like "Field of Dreams" and "For The Love Of The Game") re- creates the almost religious-like passion for the game of baseball that many fans have, this film does a similar deed...but from the comedic perspective. For nearly every character that steps in front of the camera, you could (at some point in history) find a real-life major league counterpart.
Thus, if you are a fan of baseball (especially the Minnesota Twins!) and are able to put your cynicism aside for about an hour and a half, this film will completely charm you with its hilarious antics and great baseball message (even if it is dripping in schmaltz). -
jimvandemoter-502365 May 2021This will be a sacrilege too many people, but I am not a fan of baseball. That said I do like a good sports movie and this is a pretty good one. This is probably Luke Edwards best film and the rest of the cast were also really good. Yes there are better sports movies and there are better baseball movies but this is worth a look. I didn't expect to like it but I did.
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We got this movie on videotape for the kids, but it just blew me away. Here we are in 2009, and Lou Pinella, Randy Johnson and Ken Griffey Jr. -- all of whom are in this movie -- are still part of the game. That's just luck, but the dialog in this film is outstanding. It is far more than a kids' movie. Sure, there are scenes where a so-called ''adult'' film would have relied on profanity (Jerry Johnson letting his 12-year-old manager know that he didn't like being cut, no matter how much the kid liked his baseball card) but the message is clear.
When the kid asks pitcher Mike McGreevy how much a free agent who can't throw strikes is worth, or when he puts down his hot-headed reliever by asking if he thinks the team doesn't have anybody else who can get people out, it's priceless. Or how's this from his bench coach, about Johnson's slump: "Kid, don't you think there's a problem when you get that excited over a seeing-eye single?" or (from the angry reliever): "I've been looking over some film, and you were right about my mechanics, so I ... guess you're not a rat boy.''
Despite what might seem like an absurd premise, I have never seen a more realistic baseball movie, and I am a member of SABR and a baseball fan of more than 50 years. The Twins are still wearing the uniforms in this film, and until today (10/11/09) were still playing in the same stadium.
It pays homage to the franchise's history by calling the team's GM "Goslin'' -- a Hall of Famer from the Twins' days as the Senators.
Get this movie. Even the music is good. You will not regret it. -
imdbman-84 August 2007In 1994, Little Big League went pretty unnoticed by most film goers and critics. What some characterized as a cheap ripoff of Rookie of the Year, was nothing of the sort. Time has given us the distance and wisdom to take a second look at this little gem. And with that vision we can see a modern day American tragedy. A pure classic in all terms of the word.
Little Big League tells to story of 12 year-old Billy Haywood and his adventure of managing the Minnesota Twins baseball club. The prepubescent Billy has a rocky start at the beginning of the film, struggling to earn his players' respect and trust. But the turbulent times steady themselves and Billy leads the team to a winning record and a chance at the AL Wild Card. Intertwined into the ball season is the love story between 1st baseman Lou Collins and Billy's mom Jenny.
Partway through, Billy grows encumbered with the pressures of managing a major league baseball team and his growing oedipal jealousies. Things spill over onto the ball field and results in Billy benching star Lou.
Not to worry because Billy finds his way again. Right where it was the whole time. A magical scene shows him joining in a neighborhood stick ball game and reconnecting with the reasons he became a major league manager in the first place. Things are set right soon after when Billy reinstates Lou and gives his mom a big hug. With a renewed Billy at the helm, the team finds their stride just in time to finish the season tied for the Wild Card. The only thing standing in their way is a playoff game with Ken Griffey Jr's Seattle Mariners.
Personally, I was on the edge of my seat through the whole playoff game scene. The battle goes back and forth into extra innings. Finally, the film climaxes with a duel between Randy Johnson (himself) and a last ditch at bat by Lou.
Just when we think Lou Collins shot to deep left will clear the fence and we'll see the team we've grown to love run out onto the field as winners and Little Big League will give us what we want most, Ken Griffey Jr. jumps up to rob us all. For every story of champions, is the another story. The story of the losers. Essentially, that is what Little Big League is; a story of loss. A tragedy.
But like Shakespeare's Hamlet and Arthur Miller's Willy Loman, LBL drags us kicking and screaming to the awful truth. We cannot all win the 1994 AL Wild Card. Someone has to be Billy Haywood. Somebody has to walk back to the clubhouse with their head down. But just when Billy thinks the last light is about to go out, he is informed that the fans are still there. They are still...cheering. And just when we think the emotional roller coaster ride of LBL has gone over it's last hill, it climbs to a momentous conclusion. They are still cheering.
It's an essential part of the human drama. And LBL lets us know. It's O.K. We can still cheer for the loser. For what is more noble then knowing that we left it all on the field. The infield dirt has been mixed with blood and sweat, and it has not been forgotten. Bravo, Little Big League, bravo. -
Coxer999 June 1999Touching, if improbable film about a young boy who inherits a major league baseball team after his grandfather passes away. Robards makes a nice turn as the grandfather. The film is pleasant enough for families and for true fans of the game.
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firepants2 December 2005If you're a baseball fan, this is a must see. Billy Heywood is a 12 year old baseball nut that inherits the Minnesota Twins when his grandfather dies. After firing the manager, Billy appoints himself as the new bench boss of the Twins. Sounds completely implausible,0 I know. I avoiding watching this for years because of the train wreck known as Rookie of the Year. They have nothing in common.
The writing in this movie is superb. Not only does the script manage to capture what it was like to be a 12 year old, but there was clearly an intelligent baseball fan responsible for much of the movie's dialogue. It's so nice to watch a baseball movie that assumes I might actually understand baseball strategy and appreciate the game's history.
However, what truly sets this movie apart are the baseball scenes. Clearly, the extras are (or were) professional baseball players. Even those with speaking parts can all play (or fake it well enough). There's also numerous cameos from a slew of major league baseball players (circa 1994).
Terrific supporting performances by Jonathan Silverman, Jason Robards, Timonth Busfield and the two kids who play Billy's best friends. The actor who plays Billy (Luke Edwards) could have been a bit more polished, but maybe that added to the charm. Well worth your time. -
I have probably seen this movie 10 times and I still enjoy it as much as the first time.I laughed and smiled all the way through.It was a great family movie.The trick they played on Ken Griffey Jr was priceless.For anyone who hasn`t seen this movie I highly recommend it.
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JayG24 October 1998Maybe it's because I picked this up at rental during the great
season of '98, but I loved this movie. I loved the way the
high-concept premise was played out emotionally in the lives of
the main character, Billy Heywood, and his various relationships. I enjoyed the baseball scenes which captured the
sport's enduring mythic quality among the quiet majority of
American boys. (Girls too?) The pacing seemed a bit off, though,
and if you hate touchy-feely moments consider yourself -
leftbanker-120 March 2020Baseball movies are better than those for any other sport. Period. End of argument. Perhaps I will go into more detail to explain exactly why this is, but not in this review. Of course, this was thoroughly predictable, but there were enough surprises and highlights to make it thoroughly enjoyable, sort if like a baseball game.
It was cool to see the old Mariners. I moved there in 1998 and I was a Marlins fan before that.
If you are looking for something that is funny and sweet, you could do a lot worse than Little Big League. I wish that I had seen it when I was ten instead of 61, but better late. -
skelly-2625 August 2006Luke Edwards is incredible as Billy Heywood. I cannot believe how many people don't know about this movie. It has a bit of everything and has some big laughs as well as a very touching and a story the general audience can relate to. You don't have to be into baseball to like the movie! Bowers is hilarious as the relief pitcher and the road trip sequence in the hotel is also unreal. I loved the riddle in the movie too, "A cowboy rides into town on Friday, leaves three days later on Friday, how did he do it?" If you haven't seen this movie do so. If you love baseball this is an absolute must...(you can stop reading now the rest is filler to get to 10 lines) It's also cool how the first basemen is from Field of Dreams, a good movie but not half as good as this one. Rookie of the year was alright, and the Sandlot is another classic of our time. We have not had a really great baseball movie in a long time...