The Sandlot (1993) review

(7/10)

Through all of its nostalgia and derivations, it's still a classic.

PLOT:In the 1960's, Scotty Smalls (Tom Guiry) has just moved to a new state during the last two weeks of school. He doesn't really like to get out and doesn't know how to play ball. One day, he follows a few kids to a place called the sandlot, where they play baseball in an endless cycle. If it had not been for Benny Rodriguez (Mike Vitar), the best player in the group,  befriending Scott, the guys from the sandlot would have laughed him off of the field for good. Through Benny's teachings, Scotty learns how to play ball. Things are going great this summer for Scotty until he snitches his stepdad's signed Babe Ruth ball and uses it in a game; he hits it over the fence and now he and his friends must go through everything to get it back from the Beast, a large, ferocious dog on the other side of the fence. It's a pretty good plot executed very well.



ACTING:This is one of those movies where child acting becomes a problem. Most of the child actors in here are either barely decent or laughable except for a few. The child shiners in here are Mike Vitar as Benny Rodriguez, Chauncey Leopardi as Squints, and Marty York as Yeah-Yeah. Among the adults, the shiners were James Earl Jons as Mr. Mertle, Denis Leary as Bill, and David Mickey Evans as the narrator (who's also the director).

SCORE:The score is made up of some brave action themes and lots of oldies. It's a good soundtrack.

 

OTHER CONTENT:Though the child acting is pretty bad, this movie does have its highlights. It's fun, nostalgic, and an instant classic. The flaws, though,are that it can get kind of cheesy at some points and it goes comes off as overly derivative. It's nothing too new. I don't find it overly nostalgic, as the critics say; I find it like a memory on a hot summer's day: blissful and happy.

OVERALL,a good movie with a well executed plot, decent acting, good soundtrack, nostalgia, and fun, but it can get cheesy and overly derivative.