It was great to be an American back in the 80s
The world was changing in 1989. The USSR had started to come apart, the Berlin Wall had been destroyed, and it was great to be an American. To top this off, Field of Dreams enters the scene. Kevin Costner had made it big. First he starred in the incredible thriller No Way Out and charmed us with his no-nonsense catcher Crash in Bull Durham. He hit his peak soon after with Field of Dreams. This man had it all, much like America.
Not familiar with Costner’s successful movies? Let me give you a quick detailed summary of the story.
Ray Kinsella is a hippy turned farmer in Iowa. He and his wife are barely making it, but are making it. Kinsella, who thinks he’s destined to be more than just a farmer, begins to hear strange things as he wanders his cornfield. A voice tells him that if he builds it, they will come. Not one to hear voices, and certainly not crazy, he gets a bit more detail and decides to build a baseball field where his corn is planted. When he builds the field, he waits and finds out that players from the early 1900s begin to play baseball on the field. Confused by the turn of events, Ray must continue an ever changing journey to find different pieces to this very puzzling turn of events. The good news is that more ghosts begin to show up to play baseball. The bad news is that because of the lack of corn he must find a way to pay his mortgage. Ghosts don’t pay mortgages.
Now, looking back at this film I can see it stood for the end of the American dream. While certainly there has been more than bunch of successful people since then, it still indicates the end of the Reagan years. Those years were some of the greatest and most patriotic of my lifetime (I’m 33 years of age). This movie fit that mold, but since the first gulf war the country hasn’t come together in unity. It hasn’t rekindled that American spirit, thus leaving this film a bit out in the cold (especially for the young generation). With that said, let’s discuss this story.
The film tells two stories, it tells one of the American dream and the urge to remember the past. The American dream lives within Ray Kinsella’s character. It thrives by way of getting Ray to take chances and maybe go against every bit of reasoning he has. The chance his character takes is giving up his way of life to make room for a life that he use to know. He builds a baseball field over his family’s lifeblood. He literally is cutting down his crop to make room for America and its way of life. It’s a bold move and one that many Americans during that time period needed to make. Change is good and this proves it. Change makes a man successful and it sometimes feeds a family for life. In 1989 there was a lot change, so it fits the story’s mold perfectly. By all intents and purposes, the change that Ray had to make was a mystery, but he went with it. Not to be successful, but to make sure it benefited the greater good. This one change affected many people in different ways (and I don’t want to go into detail to how), but it helped out people Kinsella couldn’t have imagined.
The other part of the story is how Ray’s efforts helped to respect and preserve the past. Not only was he able to make the baseball field for the players who never got to finish their careers on a high-note (such as Shoeless Joe Jackson), but also he built the field to rekindle the past of everyone who came to visit it. This helped people to remember the greatness of the country, the forgiving portion of it and reminded them that this game (baseball) brought them together to share joy.
Is there a downer to this epic film? Just the age. You won’t get the same feeling from this new generation of movie goers as you did from the generation that experienced the 80s. This movie is clearly for the 80s, even more so since the great baseball steroid scandal. It’s a shame, really, because this is one of Costner’s finest performances.
With that said, if you haven’t seen the film, you’ll love the dialogue. That’s what really made this movie work and is most remembered. ESPN did a few parodies on this and rightfully so. It respected it just as much as the film respects itself.
You’ll be crying when you see how good it looks…. although there is no crying in baseball
For those of you who saw this film in the 80s, you’ll be taken back a bit by how gorgeous it looks on Blu-ray. Mostly shot with bright lights and beautiful Iowa scenery, you won’t find much to hurt your eyes. While it certainly doesn’t benefit from an audio upgrade, it will leave you speechless on visuals.
As for special features, here’s what you’re getting:
– Deleted scenes with intro form Phil Alden Robinson
– From Father to Son: Passing Along the Pastime
– Roundtable with Kevin Costner, Bret Saberhagen, George Brett and Johnny Bench
– The Diamon in the Husks
– Galena, IL Pinch Hits for Chisholm, MN
– Field of Dreams: A Scarpbook
– Bravo Special: From Page to Screen
– Feature Commentary with director Phil Alden Robinson and DoP John Lindley
– BD-Live
Certainly stacked in the features and the roundtable featurette is badass. You’ll find plenty here to go with the theme of the movie. You’ll love the commentary.