That, my friends, is one of my favorite lines from one of the best summer movies of all time, The Natural.  This is Pop Fisher’s (Wilford Brimley) go-to phrase for difficult situations.  When I was young, and still living at home, we had this movie on VHS.  My brothers and I watched it so many times that we actually wore out the tape and had to buy another copy.  So, you could say that I’m kind of fond of it.

Roy Hobbs (Robert Redford) is an old man, by rookie baseball standards, who comes back to the game after a sixteen year hiatus brought on by unfortunate youthful naivete.  With the exception of Red (Richard Farnsworth), he’s treated like a second class citizen until he proves his worth to manager Pop and the rest of the team, while also becoming a father figure to the bat-boy Bobby.

I love the promise of this story.  It deals with the complexities of love, failure, losing, and winning in a way that doesn’t seem to sell the characters short or make them less real.  I love that a man can achieve a dream at thirty-five (this resonates even more now for personal reasons), and inspire others to be their best selves, while remaining fully human. 

The film is easy on the eyes as well.  The contrast of light and dark, great set decoration, and fabulous vintage clothing, to mention a few.  It also has fantastic cinematography. The opening shot and final home run almost make me want to pick up a bat and light up the sky with the possibilities of baseball.

Now’s the perfect time for it.  I think it’s meant to be watched on a warm summer afternoon, while sipping a glass of lemonade, before heading to the park to shag some flies, never forgetting that “losing is a disease.”

You might not know this about me, but I love movies.  When I started this whole blog endeavor, I knew that I would write about them, but what troubled me was deciding which one to write about first.  Some might say, how about your favorite?  Ooh la la! The word favorite is very tricky because it is so exclusive.  Here’s an example:

What is your favorite food?

Well, what time of day is it?  Are we talking breakfast? Lunch? Snack? Dinner?  Dessert?  What is the weather like?  Am I feeling melancholy?  Happy?  Mellow?  I mean gosh, there are so many variables to contend with.  Yikes!

So here we are, after doing some serious calcualting, I arrived at Drugstore Cowboy, what I believe to be Matt Dillon’s finest work.   The other actors aren’t too shabby either.  I think this is Heather Graham’s first.  And if you’re a Sex and the City fan, you’ll recognize Gentry right away.

To say that my mind is blown every time I view this film is putting it mildly.  There are so many reasons to love it. 

First off, the characters, and their very calculated means of staying high and breaking the law, are very real.  Yet, I can’t help but root for them, especially Bob Hughes (an aside – this is always my bowling name).  He’s a dope fiend, thief, not-so-nice person, but I like him more and more as the film progresses.  Perhaps it is his honesty.  This guy knows precisely who he is and what he’s doing.  

Second, the cinematography, coupled with the lovely landscapes of the Pacific Northwest, is amazingly beautiful.  I love the cows and hats dreamily floating through the moisture laden sky. 

Third, this movie is filled with wonderful one-liners:  “What’s a transom Bob?”  “Lord, it’s my dope fiend thief of a son and his crazy little nymphomaniac wife.”  “Jesus, Bob, you never told us anything about not mentioning dogs.”

Fourth, the soundtrack is mighty fine: “The Israelite,” “For All We Know,” “Psychotic Reaction,”  and many more.

Then there’s the story, it always comes back to the story.  For me, it is a wonderful coming of age tale.  Bob finally learns what is important in life and is willing to pay a very high price for it.  So very, very good.