Based on a true story, Million Dollar Arm doesn’t place a foot wrong. It has comedy, drama et al. A moving story, it inspires as well as entertains the audience. The moral of the story is that dreams do come true when opportunity meets hard work.
Sports agent JB Bernstein (Jon Hamm) goes to India hunting for pitchers for Major League Baseball. He gets this idea while watching cricket on television. A reality show “Million Dollar Arm” is organized where wannabe pitchers from all over the country exhibit their talent, and the top two fly to LA and get a shot at Major League Baseball.
After spending time and crisscrossing India, JB finds two lads, Rinku Singh (Suraj Sharma) and Dinesh Patel (Madhur Mittal), whom he thinks can be groomed to play Major League Baseball. He takes them along with aspiring baseball coach Amit (Pitobash) to LA and introduces them to their pitching coach Tom House (Bill Paxton). Tom starts training them in earnest, but the road ahead isn’t going to be easy. Hailing from rural India, will Rinku and Dinesh be able to adjust to the American life, and make it big? Watch Million Dollar Arm to find out.
Jon Hamm plays JB Bernstein flawlessly. As the movie progresses, JB who thinks about baseball purely in terms of business realizes that fun is part of the game too. Lake Bell, the charming Brenda, JB’s tenant, plays her role admirably. There are several interesting dialogues between JB and Brenda to watch out for. Aasif Mandvi is funny in his supporting role as JB’s partner, Aash. Then there is Alan Arkin who as Ray is amusing, particularly while assisting JB in India.
Million Dollar Arm has quite a few hilarious moments in the first half. After the intermission, it picks up pace, with drama to spice things up. The viewer is kept engaged throughout the two-hour long duration of the movie.
On display is an outstanding performance from the entire cast, particularly Jon Hamm, Suraj Sharma, Madhur Mittal and Pitobash. This excellent piece of cinema is ably directed by Craig Gillespie. Those wanting to watch a first-rate inspirational movie should take some time out and go for Million Dollar Arm.
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