Film
Movie theaters, reviews and showtimes in Chicago, plus articles, trailers and more
- Home
- Box Office
- Listings
- Trailers
- Features
Bookmark this page- Edition:
The Rookie (2002)
Director: John Lee Hancock
Movie review
From Time Out Film Guide
If they gave an Oscar for Best Performance in a Mediocre Movie, Dennis Quaid should already be clearing his mantelpiece. A lesser actor might have been daunted by the clichés he faces as the small town high school baseball coach whose team of plucky no-hopers persuades him to try out for the Major Leagues years after injury halted a promising pitching career. Resisting the temptation to coast through on autopilot, Quaid never lets go of the fact it's actually a true story, wringing a whole spectrum of disillusionment and determination, insecurity and the elation of renewed self-belief from this saga of a guy who thought he'd missed his chance to shine in life. First-time director Hancock at least provides his leading man with a setting where he can show his worth. He takes it slow and homespun, leaving plenty of room for Carter Burwell's honeyed score, while trying hard not to notice every single minute is predictable. Satisfyingly so: with skilled supporting performances from Griffiths (ever-supportive wife) and Cox (stern old soldier dad) pulling together in service of the bigger picture. Easy to sneer at all this, but the movie's good enough to come over sincere, rather than empty and manipulative.Author: TJ
Cast & crew
Director: John Lee Hancock
Producer: Gordon Gray, Mark Ciardi, Mark Johnson
Cast: Dennis Quaid, Rachel Griffiths, Jay Hernandez, Beth Grant, Angus T Jones, Brian Cox, Rick Gonzalez, Chad Lindberg, Angelo Spizzirri, Royce D Applegate full cast
Duration: 128 mins
Features
Gray's anatomy
James Gray wants to push buttons—again.
The next big thing?
Gigantic Releasing tries to rethink indie distribution…without movie theaters.
Red Diva: Lyubov Orlova, First Lady of Soviet Cinema
So you think you can dance, comrade?
Puppet master
Coraline director Henry Selick takes stop-motion animation into 3-D.
Socratic method
Laurent Cantet's approach on the set matches the message of his film.
Wander woman
Kelly Reichardt's Wendy and Lucy puts a Bush-era spin on the road movie.
Oscars
Read our interviews with the nominees, our reviews of the nominated films and more.
What do you think?
Post your review now