When you pair household names like Luke Wilson and Greg Kinnear, knowing that the end result is an inspiring youth baseball movie shouldn’t come as too much of a shock. The all-American faces of these two veteran movie stars scream “beloved pastime.” Fine, maybe you won’t see Field of Dreams star Kevin Costner grace the screen here but said inclusion wouldn’t be a surprise in this kind of project either.
That’s not to say Wilson and Kinnear don’t hold the screen well in the dueling lead roles in their latest feature film, especially given that You Gotta Believe (grammatical typo included) is based on an incredibly inspiring true baseball story that was ultimately chronicled on ESPN. Directed by Ty Roberts and written by Lane Garrison, there’s not much to say here other than that America’s (arguably) greatest sport makes for another by-the-numbers but moderately entertaining family flick.
Prepare to Be Inspired by You Gotta Believe
Wilson, who last starred in Horizon: An American Saga – Chapter 1, plays loving dad and committed youth baseball coach Bobby Ratliff who, after a scary collapse in his Fort Worth, Texas backyard, discovers he’s been dealt a life-threatening ailment. Lifelong friend Jon Kelly (Kinnear) helps take the reins as coach of Ratliff’s team, which includes Bobby’s son Robert (the excellent Michael Cash, a star in the making) and a colorful band of misfits who, like any kids’ movie in the vein of The Mighty Ducks et al., seem to be shouting at each other on and off the field at any chance they get. They hate that they’re not the best in the league, that their real coach is no longer able to lead them going forward — but the ailing Robert doesn’t let his disease keep him too far from the field, still attending practices and games despite his tragically low energy.
Off the field and at home, it’s classic movie inspiration galore, with director Roberts perhaps leaning into all-American-ness a little too heavily at times — but hey, that’s showbiz, baby. Bobby’s loving but thick-skinned wife Patti (Ferrari star Sarah Gadon) keeps her kids in decent enough spirits despite her tragic knowledge of Bobby’s terminal condition. Meanwhile, Jon’s wife Kelly (a standout Molly Parker) also keeps the community alive with positive energy by creating regalia and special merch in honor of Bobby.
At first, Patti resists her family’s special treatment, pushing back against catchphrases like “Bobby’s final game” as the league progresses toward its epic conclusion. When You Gotta Believe embraces the more hard-hitting family tropes tied to cancer and the emotional toll it takes on those around it, the film perhaps succeeds most without losing sight of its mostly kid-friendly audience.
A Full-Circle Sandlot Moment
And in terms of what else is working here — if you’re still making kids’ baseball content in 2024, why not revisit what worked 30 years ago? That means bringing on The Sandlot star Patrick Renna to play a fun little supporting role in You Gotta Believe, a sort of rec-league official named Kliff who’s constantly butting heads with Kinnear’s Jon as the coach navigates heading a squad without his partner-in-crime by his side. Renna brings some dry, more adult-appreciated comic relief to the story to supplement Kinnear’s B-story as a struggling attorney who hates his job working under a nepo baby, who drives Jon virtually insane day in and day out. It’s enough to make coach Jon realize that his true purpose at the moment is not tucked away in his sorry office but instead out in the field with the boys to go for baseball gold in honor of pal Bobby.
Renna may be all grown up here, but the current young stars playing the ball players hold their own for the most part. They’re led by young Robert (Cash), who struggles to balance his team’s woes on the field with those at home, watching his dad’s health slowly but surely deteriorate. As is the case with any Cinderella sports saga, it’s a rocky road to the finish line, but You Gotta Believe packs enough inspirational punch to motivate budding athletes everywhere while enlightening folks about a miraculous true story that, hard to believe, shook the sports world more than 20 years ago.
Wilson and Kinnear work well off each other, as expected, which helps compensate for the overtly clichéd tropes that inevitably plague a kid-friendly feature like this. But you don’t necessarily have to be a baseball fanatic to soak in the inspirational glory of this tragic but uplifting tale from the early 2000s. From Well Go USA, You Gotta Believe is now playing in theaters nationwide.
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