Eight Men Out

¶ … Men Out (1988) is a complex and sad film about American baseball's most famous scandal -- the true story of match "throwing" by the Chicago White Sox in the World Series of 1919. It is complex because the film is not for the uninitiated, and an average viewer is likely to find the vast set of characters confusing. The sadness relates to the dilemma of a group of great baseball players who get trapped in a situation they could not climb out of.

The writer-director John Sayles has identified the villains and the victims in the movie reflecting his own ideological views (liberal leftist) but has remained faithful to the facts of the events. According to the film the under-paid and under-appreciated players are the victims while the manipulative team owner (Charles Comisky) who exploits 'the workers' is the major villain. In faithfully narrating the events, Sayles resists the temptation of absolving the players from all blame and shows that they were willing participants in the scam in collusion with gamblers.

The audience sympathy, however, remains firmly on the side of the players. The degree of commitment to throwing of the games varies from player to player. For example, first baseman Chick Gandil is the ringleader, while pitcher Eddie Ciccotte though uncertain goes along with the plan.

'Shoeless' Joe Jackson is clueless about what he is getting into and baseman Buck Weaver is vehemently opposed to the plan and unjustly suffers by getting banned along with his 'dishonest' teammates -- his only fault being that he did not 'snitch' on his mates.

Some of the strong points of the film are its successful reflection of the ambience and atmosphere of the period in which the film is set (Northeast & Midwest USA in 1900-20s), the fine acting performances (especially, David Straithairn as pitcher Eddie Cicotte, and John Cusack as baseman.