Eight Men Out (1988)
85%RT Audience Score: 79%
Awards & Nominations: 2 nominations
Perhaps less than absorbing for non-baseball fans, but nevertheless underpinned by strong performances from the cast and John Sayles’ solid direction
Eight Men Out is a movie that will make you feel like you’re watching a real-life game of baseball, except with more drama and betrayal. The cast works together like a well-oiled machine, and the visuals are stunning. Sure, the courtroom scene at the end might drag on a bit, but it’s worth it to see the aftermath of the scandal. Even if you’re not a baseball fan, you’ll be hooked on this movie from start to finish. Plus, who doesn’t love a good glimpse into post-World War I life?
Production Company(ies)
Metro-Goldwyn-Mayer,
Distributor
Orion Pictures
Release Type
Theatrical
Filming Location(s)
Bush Stadium – 1501 W. 16th Street, Indianapolis, Indiana, USA
MPAA / Certificate
PG
Year of Release
1989
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Color:Color
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Sound mix:Mono
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Aspect ratio:1.85 : 1
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Runtime:1h 59m
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Language(s):English
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Country of origin:United States
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Release date:Release Date (Theaters): Sep 2, 1988 Original
Release Date (Streaming): May 8, 2001
Genre(s)
History/Drama
Keyword(s)
starring John Cusack, Clifton James, Michael Lerner, Christopher Lloyd, John Mahoney, Charlie Sheen, Sarah Pillsbury, Midge Sanford, directed by John Sayles, written by John Sayles, History, Drama, PG, box office performance, budget, reviewed by Desmond Ryan, Peter Travers, Sheila Benson, Gene Siskel, Dave Kehr, Jay Boyar, Robert Richardson, Hilary Mantel, Judy Watson, Ben Yagoda, Adrian Turner, Dennis Schwartz, baseball, Chicago White Sox, Cincinnati Reds, World Series, Charles Comiskey, professional gamblers, Black Sox Scandal, 1919, Arnold Rothstein, Kid Gleason, Hap Felsch, Bill Burns, Buck Weaver
Worldwide gross: $5,680,515
Worldwide gross (inflation-adjusted): $13,842,120
Worldwide gross ranking (inflation-adjusted): 1,854
Worldwide tickets sold (est.): 1,509,501
US/Canada gross: $5,680,515
US/Canada gross (inflation-adjusted): $13,842,120
US/Canada gross ranking (inflation-adjusted): 1,515
US/Canada opening weekend: $1,129,491
US/Canada opening weekend (inflation-adjusted): $2,752,312
US/Canada opening weekend ranking (inflation-adjusted): 1,170
Budget and Earnings Details
Production budget (est.): $6,000,000
Production budget (inflation-adjusted): $14,620,632
Production budget ranking: 1,527
Marketing and distribution budget (inflation-adjusted est.): $7,873,210
Box office net earnings to date (inflation-adjusted est.): -$8,651,722
ROI to date (est.): -38%
ROI ranking: 1,614
Clifton James – Charles ‘Commie’ Comiskey
Michael Lerner – Arnold Rothstein
Christopher Lloyd – Bill Burns
John Mahoney – Kid Gleason
Charlie Sheen – Hap Felsch
Director(s)
John Sayles
Writer(s)
NA
Producer(s)
Sarah Pillsbury, Midge Sanford
Film Festivals
Awards & Nominations
2 nominations
Academy Awards
All Critics (51) | Top Critics (14) | Fresh (44) | Rotten (7)
The tone of Eight Men Out is reminiscent of the droll irony of John Huston’s considerations of the vanity of human wishes and the corrupting power of money.
May 6, 2014 | Rating: 4/4
Desmond Ryan
Philadelphia Inquirer
TOP CRITIC
The light shed on this dark period of sports history makes Eight Men Out essential moviegoing. But what makes it heartbreaking is watching the toll taken on champions betraying their talent on a field of honor.
May 6, 2014
Peter Travers
People Magazine
TOP CRITIC
It’s a period re-created with a whoosh of energy and a redeeming vein of irony.
March 20, 2013
Sheila Benson
Los Angeles Times
TOP CRITIC
The ensemble performances are of such a uniformly high caliber that our interest in the story never wavers.
March 20, 2013 | Rating: 3/4
Gene Siskel
Chicago Tribune
TOP CRITIC
Eight Men Out never gathers much authority; the old themes have been hung on a rickety structure that constantly threatens to collapse.
March 20, 2013 | Rating: 2/4
Dave Kehr
Chicago Tribune
TOP CRITIC
In an ensemble movie like this one, an actor who grabs too much of the limelight can throw everything out of focus. The cast Sayles has assembled understands the value of teamwork.
March 20, 2013
Jay Boyar
Orlando Sentinel
TOP CRITIC
Robert Richardson, who’d go on to shoot nearly all of Quentin Tarantino’s movies, including “Once Upon a Time … in Hollywood,” crafts compelling visuals, and Sayles’ writing, as always, is major league.
April 2, 2020
Loren King
Newport This Week (RI)
Although Eight Men Out is a serious, sober effort… I found it neither clumsy nor doctrinaire.
August 31, 2018
Hilary Mantel
The Spectator
Aside from its moving study of greed, corruption and loss, the film provides a wonderful glimpse at life inthe post-World War I era.
August 23, 2016
Judy Watson
United Press International
Unfortunately, the movie’s didacticism returns in the lengthy and somewhat tedious courtroom ending dealing with the aftermath of the Series.
May 6, 2014
Ben Yagoda
Philadelphia Daily News
It’s a sad and compelling piece that is totally convincing and doesn’t require a knowledge of baseball.
May 6, 2014 | Rating: 3/5
Adrian Turner
Radio Times
Does a fine job in getting to the details of the baseball scandal.
April 19, 2013 | Rating: B
Dennis Schwartz
Dennis Schwartz Movie Reviews…
Plot
A semi-fictionalized account of the scandal surrounding the 1919 World Series, coined the Black Sox Scandal, is presented. The Chicago White Sox, considered the cream of the crop and one of the best major league teams ever, has just won the American League pennant, and are odds on favorites to win the World Series against the Reds. While team owner Charles A. Comiskey publicly crows about the superiority of the team he has assembled especially in their cohesion, he is unaware that arguably the cohesion in the players’ determination to win is matched only by their feeling of unappreciation by Comiskey, especially financially as he screws them over time and time again on promises made. Sensing an opportunity, professional gamblers begin to feel out who they believe may be sympathetic Chicago players to a game and/or series fixing scheme, especially lucrative seeing as the to the disparity between the two teams. There end up being eight players “in” to various degrees, from being the “all in” negotiators between the gamblers and the players, to those somewhat unaware of what is happening, to those just in the know but remain silent. Things quickly go off the rails as each individual and group is looking out solely for his own interest, from the disparate groups of players, to the gamblers, to the scheme financiers, to the team owners – Comiskey and others – as closely watching sports journalists can see that some of the Sox players are not playing as hard or as well as they can.
Trivia
Goofs / Tidbits
The ensemble performances in Eight Men Out are of such a uniformly high caliber that our interest in the story never wavers, according to Gene Siskel of the Chicago Tribune.
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