The Rookie

Name: The Rookie
Released: 2002-3-29
Cast: Dennis Quaid, Rachel Griffiths, Jay Hernandez, Brian Cox

The Rookie

G
2h 8m
2002

84%

PRICING SUBJECT TO CHANGE. Confirm current pricing with applicable retailer. All transactions subject to applicable license terms and conditions.

High school coach Jim Morris (Dennis Quaid) thought his dream was over. He'd had his shot playing baseball, blew out his shoulder, and retired without ever reaching the big leagues. Then, in 1999, he made a bet with his perpetually losing team: If they won the district championship, Morris -- who threw a 98 mph fastball -- would try out for the majors. The team went from worst to first, and Jim was soon on the road to becoming the oldest rookie in the major leagues!

Director:

John Hancock

Producer:

Gordon Gray, Mark Ciardi, Mark Johnson

Writer:

Mike Rich

Cast:

Dennis Quaid, Rachel Griffiths, Jay Hernandez, Brian Cox

Rotten Tomatoes® Score

TOMATOMETER®

84%

Critics Consensus: A heart-warming sports flick, The Rookie greatly benefits from understated direction and the emotional honesty Dennis Quaid brings to the role of Jim Morris.

Reviews

TheIndependentCritic.com

Richard Propes

Welcome back to the cinematic big leagues, Dennis Quaid, we've missed you!

Fathers and sons and baseball. There's no combination like it. The Rookie -- it's a swing -- it's a hit -- it's going, going, gone!!! A grand slam home run.

At two-plus hours, The Rookie is a good 20 minutes too long, but for father-son teams waiting eagerly for the umpire's "Play ball!", it's an uplifting season opener.

Morris ultimately lasted two partial seasons in the majors, and the film's rendering of his minor-league struggle is so enjoyable you want to see more of that and less of the everyday life preceding it.

Though Hancock traffics in a lot of bogus small-town sentiment, The Rookie exhibits a refreshingly honest understanding of baseball as a job, with long road trips away from home and a workmanlike routine.

August 15, 2017

FULL REVIEW