hitesh-p-shetty
You can give Million Dollar Arm a miss: I went to watch the movie expecting that the movie is the American Dream transpiring to the Indian Diaspora. Unfortunately the movie failed to live up even to my modest expectation. The movie shows India in a bad light and exaggerates poverty and bribery. Parts of the story are completely out of sync, for example, the movie never shows why the athlete Poco calls JBB again after they fall out in the beginning of the movie. It appears to be an after thought. India has much more to offer than chaos elephants and poverty. True India struggles with its issues but there should be sensitivity towards these. If the intent of the movie was to make baseball popular in India it has failed at this task miserably. It shoud've focused instead on Rinku Singh and Dinesh Patel's success as baseball pitchers.
SnoopyStyle
Womanizing JB Bernstein (Jon Hamm) and Aash (Aasif Mandvi) are small sport agents struggling against their former employer Procorp. After watching Aash's cricket game and Susan Boyle, JB comes up with an idea to get pitching arms from India for the LA Dodgers owner Chang. They convince Tom House (Bill Paxton) the highly improbable task to train the amateurs. Brenda (Lake Bell) is his winning medical student tenant. Vivek is his local manager. With eager Amit Rohan and sleepy scout Ray Poitevint (Alan Arkin), they run a $1 million reality contest.This is a fine underdog sports movie. I like the kids' stories. I wish they expanded more on their lives. Jon Hamm is a bit too intense and he needs a bit more humor. Lake Bell is terrific. The movie is also restricted by the real story. The boys could never go to the World Series. They also didn't crash and burn. They end up in a middling area where they get some success but not enough to be good climax material. The movie is also too long at over 2 hours but it has a good solid base of an underdog movie.
Desertman84
Million Dollar Arm is a biographical sports drama about baseball pitchers Rinku Singh and Dinesh Patel who were discovered by sports agent J.B. Bernstein after winning a reality show competition in India.It stars Jon Hamm together with Aasif Mandvi,Bill Paxton,Suraj Sharma,Madhur Mittal,Lake Bell and Alan Arkin.This Walt Disney Pictures produced film is directed by Craig Gillespie.JB Bernstein is a once-successful sports agent who now finds himself edged out by bigger, slicker competitors. He and his partner Aash will have to close their business down for good if JB doesn't come up with something fast. One night,he came up with an idea of going to India. Late one night, while watching cricket being played in India on TV, JB comes up with an idea so radical it just might work. Why not go to there and find the next baseball pitching sensation? Setting off for Mumbai with nothing but a gifted but cantankerous scout in tow, JB stages a televised, nationwide competition called "Million Dollar Arm" where 40,000 hopefuls compete before two 18- year-old finalists, Rinku and Dinesh, emerge as winners. JB brings them back to the United States to train with legendary pitching coach Tom House. The goal: get the boys signed to a major league team. Not only is the game itself difficult to master, but life in the U.S. with a committed bachelor makes things even more complicated-for all of them. While Rinku and Dinesh learn the finer points of baseball and American culture, they in turn teach JB the true meaning of teamwork and commitment. Ultimately, what began as a purely commercial venture becomes something more and leads JB to find the one thing he was never looking for at all-a family.This is definitely an inspirational sports Disney movie.It is charming to a fault and watchable as it provides inspiration to people to achieve the goals they have set in life.Also,the movie successfully manages to mix emotion and comedy to move the viewer.Overall,it definitely scores a home run as a baseball film.
vincentlynch-moonoi
I have mixed feelings about this film. I wanted to like it.First off, I didn't find Jon Hamm interesting at all as an actor. I have no desire to plunk down money at the box office or to buy a DVD to see him again.Second, most of the first 45 minutes of the film didn't make me have any desire to see India (and, I have lived in Southeast Asia, although not India). I contrast this to "The Best Exotic Marigold Hotel", which was far more enchanting in terms of showing off India (and not all for the better...but it had more warmth). The time spent filming in India was pretty much wasted.Third, Suraj Sharma was nothing short of brilliant in "The Life Of Pi". In comparison, this role is mickey mouse. What a waste of talent.Fourth, Aasif Mandvi was not at all appealing his his role.Lake Bell was mildly interesting. Bill Paxton and Alan Arkin were there, which isn't saying much.The story was mildly interesting...could have been far more interesting, particularly since it is only "based on" a real story.In short, when you add this to films such as "The Lone Ranger", it's clear that Disney has lost its magic.
AD
