In 1919, the game of baseball was much different than it is today. John Sayles' wonderful chronicling of the 1919 Black Sox scandal captures how different it was. Players were stars, but they didn't get the astronomical salaries of modern players. They didn't live in a bubble of celebrity, owning homes among their fans. One thing that was the same was the players had a limited window for their careers, so the needed to earn enough to support their families after baseball was over. There were not sportscaster jobs waiting as a back-up. Combine these factors with a notorious greedy owner, and you have the conditions for gamblers to get the players to take a dive.
Sayles, who based the film on Eliot Asinof's novel, lays out the conditions for why the legendary White Sox players took money to throw the World Series with attention to detail and pathos. The team was being hailed as one of the best ever. The team owner Charles "Commie" Comiskey (Clifton James, SILVER STREAK) never gave them the respect they deserved, nickel and diming them whenever he could. Family man pitcher Eddie Cicotte (David Strathairn, GOODNIGHT, AND GOOD LUCK.) was in line to receive a $10,000 bonus for winning 30 games, so Comiskey benched him for the last two weeks of the season. With cheapskate moves like that, one isn't surprised by the animosity of players like Arnold "Chick" Gandil (Michael Rooker, HENRY: PORTRAIT OF A SERIAL KILLER) when embracing the gamblers' offer.
But some of the players were not on the take. George "Buck" Weaver (John Cusack, SAY ANYTHING…) was present when the conspiracy was discussed, but he refused to take any money. He tells Chick, you play your game and I'll play mine and we'll see how things turn out. Cusack's character serves as the heart of the story. He's the honest player caught up with the bad apples and thrown out nonetheless. He still loves the game and has a hard time telling the truth to the young fans who look up to him. Likewise, there is Shoeless Joe Jackson (D.B. Sweeney, THE CUTTING EDGE), one of the great players of all time. He wasn't a bright man, and the film argues that he took the money only because he didn't know any better. He went out on that field and played like it was any other game.
Weaved within the story of the players is the story of the gamblers. The scheme took more than one gambler to make it happen. Some like former ball player "Sleepy" Bill Burns (Christopher Lloyd, BACK TO THE FUTURE) are low level hoods, while Arnold Rothstein (Michael Lerner, BARTON FINK) is a big timer who gets the players paid. In one brilliant scene, Rothstein tells former boxer turned mid-level bookie Abe Attell (Michael Mantell, THANK YOU FOR SMOKING) that sports will always leave a man a has-been, while he will remain a respected money man till the day he dies. The scene really puts the fleeting nature of fame into perspective.
Sayles is brilliant at crafting a film filled with characters that populated a unique world. In this film he actually plays sportswriter Ring Lardner, and with famed Chicago-based writer Studs Terkel playing writer Hugh Fullerton, they serve as the watchful eye on the players as they blow plays that make the fix look obvious. Bill Irwin (RACHEL GETTING MARRIED) plays Eddie Collins, the only player on the team to go to college and the one smart enough to have a respectable salary worked out before he came to the team. Charlie Sheen (PLATOON) plays Oscar "Hap" Felsch, a cocky young player who boasts about being on the take once the gig is up. John Mahoney (SAY ANYTHING…) is William "Kid" Gleason, the White Sox coach who wants to kill his players for taking a dive.
The film establishes its character swiftly, while delving into the details of the crime and the period. Those familiar with the story will already know the outcome. It seems inevitable for Chicago in 1919, but Comiskey won't let those bums get away with it. Eight of the players were banned for life, even Weaver and Jackson. Sayles finds the right notes to end on. The lifetime ban was harsh. The scandal left a lot of people feeling disillusioned, no more so than the players whose careers and livelihoods were ruined. But for some, baseball wasn't ever a career, and for others, the career of baseball ruined the game.
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Rick DeMott
Animation World Network
Creator of Rick's Flicks Picks
