Moneyball

This movie, which we saw last weekend in a packed theater filled with all ages of adults, tells an unconventional baseball story well.  At first, I didn't think I could accept Brad Pitt as Billy Beane, the general manager of the Oakland A's, because I had pictured Billy so differently in the book.  But the actor really does inhabit this character well, and by the end of the movie, I'd forgotten about the differences between the real-life Billy Beane and Brad Pitt. One of the lines that Brad Pitt delivers well is that he "hates to lose, even more than he wants to win."  That's straight out of the book, and it reminded me of why I liked the book so much.  First, the book captures the power of an idea to change the game of baseball -- finding undervalued players and using them to build a winning team.  Second, the book features characters like Scott Hatteberg, who gets one shining moment to redeem a career.  The movie captures these elements of the book, and provides many comedic moments, as well.  The movie is entertaining and understated, and though it aims to find inspiration in the game, it doesn't oversell itself as an inspirational movie.