Moneyball

Only Aaron Sorkin could take a nonfiction book about the intricacies of Major League Baseball and statistics and turn it into a crowd pleasing paean starring Brad Pitt. Any chance he wants to take a look at my book? And, can I get George Clooney to play me in the movie (even though I better resemble Daniel Baldwin)?

Somewhat based on the true story (you have to wonder how true when one of the main players in this history refuses to let his name to be used), Brad Pitt stars as Billy Beane - a former baseball phenom who has gone on to become the general manager of the Oakland A's. Without the money big teams like the Yankees and the Red Sox have at their disposal, Beane has built a team that came within a game of beating the mighty, World Series winning, legendary Yankees in the playoffs (is it obvious I am from New York?). However, his top players have been lured away by big contracts in the offseason, so he has to rebuild with even less money.

Desperate and realizing the team can't compete the same, traditional way, Beane becomes interested in the theories of Peter Brand (Jonah Hill playing the fictional version of Paul DePodesta) - a knowledgeable, insightful, shy, stats geek who believes you have to look at players and their stats in a different way to assess their value and how they can help the team (known as sabermetrics). With a staff of old time scouts, and a manager, Art Howe (Philip Seymour Hoffman), who doesn't buy into all of this new fangled thinking, Beane and Brand have a great deal to prove, or they will lose their jobs.

Will the Oakland A's be able to compete and make the playoffs again?

Have Billy and Peter changed baseball forever?

Moneyball delivers on the proven without shocking us with any outlandish, out of left field ideas or scenes. It's good, solid, old fashioned, rousing filmmaking.

Director Bennett Miller wisely allows Pitt to dominate the movie with his irresistible charisma. He makes Beane into some sort of baseball svengali who has latched onto a philosophy and is ready to proselytize to every person he comes across until everyone is on his side. Pitt gives Beane a California cool demeanor, but allows the intensity and competitive nature of the guy to shine through at the right time. He's a combination of cocky and smooth that is likable.

Then, writers Aaron Sorkin and Steven Zaillian deliver the amazing, easygoing, yet highly entertaining and emotionally impactful dialogue each is known for. Yes, Moneyball undeniably feels like an Aaron Sorkin script with the fantastic exchanges between characters, an energy that drives the story forward without exerting itself, and moments that would be irritating in the hands of lesser talents.

Yes, the relationship between Beane and his daughter intentionally manipulates the audience, but only in short bursts. Sure, we know those down and out ballplayers no one else wants will become the underdogs who shock the world and make the audience cheer, but when is not as obvious as you might think.

It might be lopsided in favor of the new stat-driven Moneyball idea of how to run a team versus the traditional ways (and, let's not forget, no team has been able to dominate or even win a World Series in Major League Baseball without some combination of money, moneyball and traditional scouting), but I enjoy the chemistry between Hill and Pitt, even if Hill seems to be holding back too much. Moneyball is the kind of movie that will engross audience members even if they don't know the difference between Kevin Youklis and Derek Jeter.

Moneyball is rated PG-13 for some strong language