By Pete Hammond
WHAT IT’S ABOUT?Like hundreds of others in the mad-for-baseball Dominican Republic, Miguel Santos (aka Sugar) struggles to try to make it in the local major leagues, which would help pull his family out of poverty. His big break comes when U.S. scouts transfer the pitcher to a minor league team in Iowa giving him the opportunity to succeed in America. But when his game goes bad on the mound and an injury occurs, he must decide what he really wants to become.
WHO’S IN IT?
Writer/directors Anna Boden and Ryan Fleck (Half Nelson) spent months scouting teams in the Dominican Republic to find a ball player capable of acting the leading role, finally settling on Algenis Perez Soto, who had never been in front of a movie camera. He’s authentic and mesmerizing to watch as Sugar — his performance owing a great deal to his own similar background. He nails it and is completely convincing as a pitcher even though he wasn’t initially comfortable on the mound (his own position was really second base). Many of the other roles are also cast with amateur actors, adding to the realistic tone of the film.
WHAT’S GOOD?
Boden and Nelson clearly show the love they have for the game, but their film is really a striking document of the immigrant’s journey, reminiscent in many ways of Elia Kazan’s Oscar nominated America, America (1963). We usually only hear about the superstar players, but these filmmakers put the emphasis on the great majority that never make it past the minors.
WHAT’S BAD?
Many scenes are long and drawn out, but despite the fact that the film could have used some tighter editing (particularly in the baseball segments), there is still a nice rhythm established.
BEWARE ...
Due to its desire to be as authentic as possible, much of the film is not in English; so those who don’t like to read subtitles might be advised to steer clear.