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The Perfect Game
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Wikipedia article
'The Perfect Game' is a 2009 American drama film directed by William Dear, based on the 2008 book of the same name written by W. William Winokur. The film is based on the events leading to the 1957 Little League World Series, which was won by the first team from outside the United States, the Industrial Little League of Monterrey, Mexico, who defeated the heavily favored U.S. team. Mexican pitcher ngel Macas threw the first, and so far only, perfect game in championship game history.
Plot
Csar Faz (Clifton Collins Jr.), moves to Monterrey, Mexico, after he is let go by the St. Louis Cardinals from his job as a clubhouse attendant. There he meets local children being led by Padre Esteban (Cheech Marin), enjoying baseball; he takes pitcher ngel Macas (Jake T. Austin), under his wing and brags about his own pitching skills and how he used to coach the Cardinals. ngel convinces Csar to help recruit and coach Monterrey's first-ever Little League team. With Csar's skills and Padre Esteban's support, the boys hone themselves into a competitive team worthy of international competition. At the final game of the World Series of Little League, Monterrey defeated the team of West La Mesa, California, 40. Enrique Surez (Jansen Panettiere), hit a grand slam home run, and ngel Macas pitched a perfect game, a feat that has not since been repeated in Little League World Series history.
When the team arrives in the United States, they are met with racism, a language barrier, and visa troubles. Though the underdogs, the team scores a series of victories that endear them to the media, and new fans. They befriend a sports reporter, Frankie (Emilie de Ravin), and the groundskeeper, Cool Papa Bell (Louis Gossett Jr.), who then assist the boys in reaching the final game.
Cast
Background
The film is based on a true story about a group of boys from Monterrey, Mexico, who became the first non-U.S. team to win the Little League World Series in 1957. Their team was Industriales de Monterrey, nicknamed "Los pequeos gigantes" (The little giants). Before traveling to the United States, the Little League team of the Industriales de Monterrey Baseball Club, played two seasons on the local 4 team Little League circuit before qualifying, as the second Little League team coming from outside of the United States and Canada; they participated in the southern area regional tournaments, which qualified them for the Little League World Series, held every August in South Williamsport, Pennsylvania.
The Industriales won all qualifying tournaments, to many rather unexpectedly, and advanced to the Little League World Series as the first Mexican team. There, they made it to the finals and defeated the highly favored team from La Mesa, California by a score of 40. The pitcher from Monterrey, Angel Macas, threw the first and only perfect game in championship history.
The Industriales de Monterrey little league team was so dominant that year, that they were able to repeat their success in the following year in the 1958 Little League World Series.
The film scenes in Monterrey, which is the leading industrial center, one of the largest Mexican cities for over 100 years and a major center for science and research in Mexico, depicted the city as a two-burro village where the children played ball in the dirt choked streets with pigs and chickens serving as bases. The border between Mexico and Texas was portrayed as an out-in-the-middle-of-nowhere border crossing along a dirt road, instead of a bridge border-crossing over the Rio Grande. The digital work to recreate the separate looks for the United States and Monterrey in 1957 was done by Post Logic Studios.
Reception
The film has received mixed reviews. Patrick Goldstein of the 'Los Angeles Times' said he felt that "the film did a nice job of telling the story of the surprise upset when a youth ball team from Monterrey, Mexico, won the 1957 Little League World Series." He also commented that, "although the story seems like a fable, it reflected true events." He further expressed concern over Lionsgate's suspending the original release date. Ben Apatoff of MLB.com felt that the film was a strong family movie that appeals to baseball history buffs or any person who could relate to a child in love with the game. Roger Ebert wrote: "You sort of know how these underdog sports movies turn out. Doesn't matter. 'The Perfect Game' so expertly uses the charisma and personalities of the actors, especially the young ones, that it's thrilling anyway."Ebert, Robert. suntimes.com, "[http://rogerebert.suntimes.com/apps/pbcs.dll/article?AID=/20100414/REVIEWS/100419988/1023 The Perfect Game]". Accessed 26 April 2010.
A. O. Scott of 'At the Movies' said, "[From] the second minute of the movie I knew every single thing that was going to happen and there was not a single surprise." Michael Phillips of the 'Chicago Tribune' wrote, "The movie feels fraudulent, whether it's sticking to the historical record or going its own way with the customary composites and revisions and fabrications." The film ranking website Rotten Tomatoes reports that 57% of critics have given 'The Perfect Game' positive reviews, based upon a sample of 44.
Release
The film screened at the 2009 Guadalajara International Film Festival,
with Eva Longoria invited to the preview.
Louis Gossett Jr. was also in attendance for the premiere.
The film was originally to be released in theaters on August 8, 2008, but it was bumped from that date,
which Lionsgate said was due to marketing monies another party pledged but did not deliver.
References
Further reading
* Morrison, Jim, [http://www.smithsonianmag.com/history-archaeology/90018867.html "Little League World Series Only Perfect Game"], 'Smithsonian' magazine, April 6, 2010
* [https://web.archive.org/web/20100329144739/http://www.littleleague.org/media/newsarchive/2008stories/LeMesa1957anniversary.htm "Golden Anniversary of Little Leagues "Perfect Game" Celebrated"], Little League Communications Division, Williamsport, Pennsylvania, October 7, 2008
* Sanchez, Jesse, [http://mlb.mlb.com/news/article.jsp?ymd=20040107&content_id=626058&vkey=news_mlb&fext=.jsp&c_id=null "History of baseball in Mexico"], 'Major League Baseball' (mlb.com), January 7, 2004
* [https://web.archive.org/web/20071022195509/http://www.time.com/time/magazine/article/0,9171,809850,00.html "Sport: Ambidextrous Angel"], 'Time' magazine, Monday, Sep. 02, 1957
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