What do you like/not like about individual RDA movies

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JackGywer
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Re: What do you like/not like about individual RDA movies

Post by JackGywer »

Oh man, I can not do it that fast, not so much time at the moment :( :(
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NiLa
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Re: What do you like/not like about individual RDA movies

Post by NiLa »

JackGywer wrote: Wed May 02, 2018 6:09 pm Oh man, I can not do it that fast, not so much time at the moment :( :(
No pressure, JK. Take your time.

When you have one comment finished, just post it, we'll enjoy it any time.

Anja ;)
Walk in love, walk in service, and you will walk in honor.
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....by doing so our world will be better each day...
Anja ;)
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NiLa
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Re: What do you like/not like about individual RDA movies

Post by NiLa »

As there are no new comments on the movies, what do you think, should we move on to

"Past the Bleachers"?

Anja ;)

P.S. Every comment on the movies we have already discussed is of course still welcome :D
Walk in love, walk in service, and you will walk in honor.
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....by doing so our world will be better each day...
Anja ;)
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bftlovesRDA
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Re: What do you like/not like about individual RDA movies

Post by bftlovesRDA »

Yes, Anja, the next movie to discuss should be "Past the Bleachers".

This movie can be viewed in the video gallery / movies section of this website,

or it can be viewed on YouTube, in segments = starting with https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=dX8Q6ZGKjJA

What do you think about this movie?
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Re: What do you like/not like about individual RDA movies

Post by bftlovesRDA »

In my opinion, " Past the Bleachers " is another very good movie for RDA. It's not as intense as some of his other movies, but in it he is a good guy again which helps make this, IMHO, a very nice, sweet, and in some ways, deep, movie..... :D :D :D The following is a detailed description of the movie = apologize for the length of the comments in advance. Too many details I am sure. Others can provide a more concise synopsis..... :D :D

RDA plays the part of Bill Parish who lost his son (reminds us of Stargate in that way) and who is still grieving that loss. He and his wife, Hunter, are both still grieving. RDA starts the movie jogging in a tank top and shorts = not too shabby an outfit for him.....then we see him kissing his wife, and later he is at his job at a school or college and he is sporting glasses - something new for RDA fans to see (except for sunglasses of course). We learn that Bill's son Nathaniel died in the past year and the whole town knows what pain he and his wife have been in because of that loss. That's a poignant situation that RDA portrays very nicely = not too maudlin but with just the right touch of sadness.

Anyway, Hilton Burbery asks Bill about coaching a youth baseball team which Bill initially turns down. But later with the okay of his wife, he agrees to become the coach of this youth team.

While jogging, Bill is called over by a widower, Mr. Godfrey, who is living at a senior home and who has been told he can't have spicy food like Pizza any more. Instead, they brought him Tuna Casserole! ( :lol: :lol: ).....So he got some tobasco sauce and put it on the tuna casserole and it affected him badly.....but Mr. Godfrey says "I'm still a man"......so he is dealing with the trials of old age while Bill is dealing with the grief of his son's death. Mr. Godfrey asks Bill to bring him some pizza sometime....Bill says, "I'll see what I can do." Basically they hit it off right from the start which became important later on when Bill asked Mr. Godfrey (we learn later his first name is Ed) to be his assistant coach. And Ed says, "Yes!"

Back at Bill's home, he finds his wife Harper going through books in Nathaniel's room for a book sale. She says Nathaniel never had enough books and that if she ever gets pregnant again, she wants to buy tons of books for the new child. Bill agrees.....and then they discuss the painful fact that they never got pregnant again while Nathaniel was living. Why? Bill: " I guess we just felt complete." Next thing we see is Bill going out to a small building in his yard where he has a train set built...obviously something special for Nathaniel and him to do together. He runs the trains,,,,,and we can see the sense of loss in Bill's demeanor.....Harper asks what he and Nathaniel did out in the train building that was so secret = Bill, "We talked about guy stuff, secret guy stuff." Harper: You know every once in awhile it would have been nice to have been included in the secret guy stuff...." showing a small rift between Bill and Harper, some marriage tension.

Bill starts talking about a kid on his baseball team roster named Diamond. Harper doesn't know of him but will check with other teachers at the school (so evidently Harper is a teacher. Bill works at a college. So both are into education.)

At the ball field Bill sees this Diamond kid and finds out he can't talk, communicates by writing his messages down on a pad. Bill finds out the boy's first name is Lucky. Later we see Lucky hitting and throwing and catching and he does it very well = Bill says, "It's going to be a very good year" (for his team.) But during practice, his team has some funny moments, especially a girl member of the team who is having a hard time catching the ball. :D :D :D

The kids wonder where the snacks are that the coach always is supposed to bring to practice. One of team members, a girl, says they are babies for just wanting the snacks....aren't they here to play ball and to win some games? Little guy says, NO, I'm here for the snacks.,..... :D :D :D

The next scene is Bill and Mr. Godfrey, Ed, eating pizza at the Senior living place. Ed says Hilton was once a General Manager for the Red Sox, but that ended badly. Ed asks if his team is ready to play ball = to which Bill replies, "Not at all." Ed reminds Bill to enjoy every minute he has with this team or one day he may find himself sitting on a porch watching others live their lives....(more old age sadness). At this, Bill invites Ed to be his assistant coach. Ed: But I'm old. Bill: That shouldn't stop you from coaching baseball. Ed: YOU'RE ALL RIGHT, BILL PARISH.

Next we see Bill introducing Ed to the team - one of whom pipes up, "You look old." To which Ed replies: "Well, you look stupid." :lol: :lol: :lol:
Bill talks to his team about how they should be thinking about their next move if the ball comes to them. He asks what should you be doing then, and Melissa says = don't be doing cartwheels between pitches. Bill, Yes, I guess that about covers it! :lol: :lol: Then Bill sends his team out into the field when they should instead be batting first. Guffaw. Then, the game goes on with the first two batters on Bill's team (the Panthers) getting hit by a pitch and getting on base. Then, Lucky bats and hits a home run.....and after the game, Bill invites Lucky to his home to have dinner. Bill finds out Lucky's mom is dead. And his dad is mysterious.....Harper gets angry with Bill about him "grilling" Lucky saying he is probably just a lonely little boy...but Bill thinks he is hiding something.

There is more dialogue between Harper and Bill basically with Bill's pain about his son's death coming into play - with a poignant scene in which Bill "sees" Nathaniel playing a dice game at the kitchen table. Harper finds Bill and they hug. Good scene.

Back at the ball field, little Charlie is trying to pitch = but not very successfully....and then it turns out one of the other team members takes Lucky's glove. Later we find that Bill loans lucky Nathaniel's old glove.....getting closer to Lucky all the time.

IN another scene Bill is driving Ed to his home while Ed is saying to Bill, "You're a lousy driver." Evidently Bill is driving too slow for Ed who was used to his wife's fast driving...... Ed obviously misses his wife who died of a stroke. He tells Bill, "You know God inhabits the bitter and the sweet in life." (a major theme of the movie, IMHO). Ed's wife Ruby used to always say that. Bill: She sounds like a very special woman. Ed: That she was.

After a little interlude, we find Harper implying that she is pregnant = which is a cause for joy since they have evidently been trying for this for some time! Bill and Harper hug in bed......Hallelujah!

Next scene has Ed at the ball field seeming dazed and confused = not knowing where he is. Bill suggests he take him home= which he does.

Later back at the college, Bill finds out from Hilton that there has been a logging accident. He says one man was killed and another man ran away. The one who ran away is Lucky's father! Bill: Does Lucky know? Hilton: He is with the state police right now. They'll probably put Lucky in some state foster home. Too bad.

Then, to Bill, Hilton shifts the conversation saying, "You're hurting, Bill. Everybody can see it. Who knows, maybe this can help it get better.

Bill: Don't put me in this position....obviously getting what Hilton is implying that Bill should take Lucky into his home.

Hilton: The boy thinks the world of you. Bill: NO! But I'll stop by your place and see how he's doing. Hilton: That would mean the world to him.

HILTON = "Just remember that NOTHING IN THIS WORLD HAPPENS BY ACCIDENT." (Another theme of this movie). Hilton: "There's a reason for everything. You just have to look until you find it."

Bill goes to visit Lucky who is at Hilton's house watching a ballgame. Bill says he can't stay but maybe he can sit with Lucky and watch some of the game together, to which we see Lucky very pleased and passing the popcorn.

Back at their house, Bill is telling Harper about Hilton's "crazy" idea that they should take Lucky in. When Harper asks what did Bill say to that = and Bill said there were all kinds of reasons they can't do that = so he said, "NO". Harper asks why they didn't discuss it before he answered Hilton. Bill = do you think I should have said, "Yes"? Harper = no. So there is obvious conflict going on within and between Bill and his wife over whether or not to let Lucky into their lives.....a major issue of this movie.

Bill does some investigating about the logging accident = asking a policeman friend about it. His friend says the guy who was killed was ALONE. Also, the policeman did not know Lucky Diamond's father. Never heard of him.

The next scene is a very poignant one in which one of Bill's team members, Charlie, asks Bill, "Why did Nathaniel have to die?" Bill: Why do you ask that now, Charlie? Charlie replies He didn't know he just thought of it. Then, the other kids chimed in asking the same question. Bill: I can't tell you why but he got really sick and sometimes when people get really sick, they die. Charlie asked, "Even kids?". Bill: "Yes". Charlie = says he really missed Nathaniel because he was funny and he was cool. Bill: "I MISS HIM TOO!" (sad moment)

Harper happened to be in the stands watching all this. Then she asked where Mr. Godfrey was and Bill said he didn't know = just that Mr. Godfrey never showed up for practice that day.

Later Bill is trying to talk to Hilton but Hilton won't return his calls. Bill finds Hilton at a restaurant and won't take no for an answer as to whether or not Hilton will talk with him now. Bill asked Hilton why he lied to Bill about Lucky's father being with Jeff Grout when he died (in the logging accident).
More back and forth between Hilton and Bill about the details of that night of the logging accident and what happened to Lucky's father and to Lucky that night. Bill = Lucky's dad was not there when Jeff Grout was killed and Lucky was not waiting for his dad at the police station. Hilton = True, Lucky was with my wife. HIlton to Bill: You have every reason to doubt me but when Jeff Grout died, Lucky's old man disappeared and that's a fact. Bill: You want to explain to me why you hid that fact from the police? Hilton: "Because I hadn't figured out yet what to do with the boy!!!!!!"

Bill: "I don't believe you. Lucky's father was never there." Hilton:.......you're just going to have to trust that I know what I am doing because I do.

Next, Bill and his team are playing ball and Lucky is helping Dickie get a hit even though he and Bill think it was Dickie who stole Lucky's glove. There we find Melissa doing baseball chatter when she had earlier gotten distracted when at bat and Bill was doing baseball chatter to her.,...she had completely come around,...... :lol: :lol: :lol: Next, Lucky comes up and hits a homerun. As he is rounding the bases, Bill thinks he sees Nathaniel running the bases and hugs Lucky = realizing who he is after all.

Bill then goes to the Senior Center looking for Mr. Godfrey. He asks one of the female residents if she has seen Mr.Godfrey and she claims Mr. G. has died = that he died yesterday! Bill proceeds upstairs, disregarding her remarks, and continuing to look for Mr.Godfrey = and he finds him there. Mr. G explains that it was Tilda who told Bill he had died.,..that she loved to play that trick on visitors = she has a sick sense of humor but is a darn good kisser! :lol: :lol:

Mr. Godfrey explains that "they" are making him leave because he has been having more of those incidences like he had at the ballfield = blanking out = that he needs to be somewhere with more supervision. (More sighs about the aging process).....Bill asks when is he leaving = tomorrow. Bill: But we still have two games left. Can't they put this off? Mr. G: No This is best. You do the goodbye's to the team. Bill: OK. Mr.G: Bill it's good that you care for those kids but you take care of you.

Bill: I'm fine, just fine, I'm great......but then Bill says: I'm falling apart here!!!!! and I don't know what to do about it :!: :!: :!: Mr. Godfrey: Pain is everywhere, Bill. It surrounds us all. Pain hangs in the air waiting for us until one day it decides to stick. You can't avoid it...you can't shake it...you can only make your peace with it. (MAJOR THEME OF THE MOVIE)......How to deal with the pain of losing someone......Mr. G: Now why don't you go home to that wife of yours.

Bill says he doesn't even know Mr. G's first name = which is ED. Bill: Thanks, Ed, for everything. Ed: One of the regrets of my life is worrying too much. I took things too seriously. Ruby tried to tell me that. YOu think about me, Bill, every now and then - and FLOOR IT (talking about how Ruby would drive fast but Bill drove too slowly.......). Bill: I will.

Next scene is Bill's policeman friend (Jamie) asking Bill everything he can find out about Lucky's father. Bill = He's a logger, he drives a blue truck, and he doesn't take too much interest in his kid. Jamie found out that Lucky was born in Boston and his mother was a 15 year old runaway. And the blue truck belongs to Hilton.

Bill goes home to Harper with flowers for her. Lucky is there = has seen the train set. She says Lucky came up with a great idea for an improvement to the train set. Bill: I thought you wanted to tear down all that stuff out there. (MORE TENSION BETWEEN BILL and HIS WIFE).....dialogue about the train and telling Bill to come join us (her and Lucky in the train room).......but Bill wants to go see Hilton = today. Harper says she guesses that train room has always been too small for 3 people.....and more stressed out dialogue =( Bill and Harper are still two hurting people.)

Bill goes to see Hilton = asks about Lucky's father and about how Hilton fit into all this. Hilton explains first that he didn't know Lucky's mother Suzi except to say she was a child and did not know what she was getting into. But Lucky's father was a baseball player rookie of the year in 1982. He wrapped his car around a tree leaving a party at Hilton's house. At the funeral, Suzi Diamond came up to Hilton to say she was pregnant. Hilton got her a job in Boston. She never married again. She worked and poured everything she had into that boy. She died a year ago from cancer. Lucky stayed with various relatives, none of whom had room for him. Hilton: So I brought him here and I paid Jeff Grout to watch him for me. (Jeff Grout is the logger who was killed in the logging accident).....until I could find him a home. BILL: MEANING HARPER AND ME. Hilton: You lost a boy. Everyone in town could see the pain you were in. BILL: YOU SET US UP :!: :!: :!: Hilton: I told you nothing happens inthis world without a reason. Bill: so getting me to coach baseball with Lucky on my team was all part of a big ploy to manipulate Harper and me into adopting him?

Bill goes on = IRATE at Hilton: Just who do you think you are? You can't go around controlling people's lives like that!

Hilton: Bill, when Lucky's mother died, that boy was lost. I swore to him that I would find him a home. I felt I owed him that much.

Bill: No, you're playing God with people's lives. This is not the Red Sox = we're not players you can just trade around....

Hilton: If I had come to you four months ago and asked if you would take Lucky in, would you have done it? No, of course not. You needed time. you both needed time. Coaching those kids gave you that time.

Bill: YOU HAD NO RIGHT.

Hilton: Maybe not but I did it and I can't change it now. Redemption, Bill, we all want redemption, to get things right.....to restore some semblance of order. We both have a chance to do that now, don't we?

Bill: NO ANSWER.

Bill is back in his house, in bed, wide awake. He gets up and goes to the kitchen where he finds a card that Mr. Godfrey had given him. Bill opened it up. It was a picture of Ruby, Ed Godfrey's wife, with a balloon hat on her head. Bill remembers Ed's statement that "GOD INHABITDS THE BITTER AND SWEET IN LIFE". Ruby was always saying that.....Mr. Godfrey never knew what she meant until that day (of the hat)....(I guess).

Bill goes into Nathaniel's bedroom where Lucky is sleeping. Bill pick's up Nathaniel's glove that Lucky has been using.

Harper comes into Nathaniel's room = she and Bill snuggle.

The next day, Lucky is outside their home playing with their dog. ....implying that Bill and Harper did indeed take Lucky in.....filling in a deep hole in Bill and Harper's lives ......which would be made even more complete with the new baby on the way (something we don't hear any more about after wefind out Harper is pregnant).

All in all, a compassionate movie that has several twists and turns that make it entertaining. Also, there are several "deep" themes that run through the movie as well as much sorrow and pain that Bill and Harper and that Ed Godfrey and even that Hilton dealt with. I liked the movie very much but thought the ending was a little bit sudden.

Sorry for all the dialogue. One day I'll learn to be concise.
B
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Kti
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Re: What do you like/not like about individual RDA movies

Post by Kti »

Wow :o! Many thanks for your reflection, B.
Is there anywhere a version with subtitles. That's my problem with Legend also. Original subtitles at least.
Your elaboration is great, B. Very helpful for me :D.
(I really like him with glasses. I don't need subtitles therefor :lol:.)
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Juliette
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Re: What do you like/not like about individual RDA movies

Post by Juliette »

Past The Bleachers... oh man I love that movie

I don't know what to add after B's amazing and well detailed description

RDA's first movie with short hair, and I think the only occasion to see him wearing glasses, a suit and a tie at the same time :lol:

I just love everything about that movie. The story is really great, it has humor, especially Mr. Godfrey and his funny lines ^^
Mr. Godfrey is also the character who helps Bill go through all that he has to face in the movie. By sharing the funny stories of him and his wife, he brings some very deep thoughts which make Bill (and us) see life in a different way

RDA is so good with kids and here we have plenty of time to observe it :)
I like movies with sports team coaching because it always carries great messages, and even more when the team is made of kids.
The kids here are very funny too, with a special mention to little Charlie ;)

He also plays perfectly the deep pain felt by Bill that's still present from the loss of his son, it's very touching. The actress playing Harper does it very well too. And the cute kid playing Lucky is also very good!

Hilton uses a saying I really like: "Nothing in this world happens by accident. There's a reason for everything. You just have to look until you find it."
but IMO he uses it in a very bad way, it should never justify his actions and he fact that he manipulated Bill and Harper to bring them to take Lucky in.
Even if in the end everybody is happy and I think they really belong together, Bill indeed needed time to get to know him and it could have happened without all the lying from Hilton...

So, Great Movie that I absolutely love (I wish I had it in better quality) but I still watch it with great pleasure :)
And as usual, I wanna see what happened next! :D

Here are some pictures (from the website's gallery) for our viewing pleasure... ;)
Image

Image

Image Image
dang, we're not used to that but red suits him well! :P
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NiLa
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Re: What do you like/not like about individual RDA movies

Post by NiLa »

Thanks, B, for your wonderful and long comment. And never mind, your comment wasn't too long at all.

And now, YOU made me want to watch the movie again. :lol:

I watched the movie some time ago, but I really like it.

The main theme is loss and how people deal with it. Bill and Harper have to deal with the loss of their son Nathaniel and Ed has to deal with the loss of his Independence due to his high age.

Bill and Harper have lost their son and both struggle with it.
Although they try to get another baby they have great difficulties with each other because of Nathaniel's death.

Bill keeps seeing Nathaniel (at the school bus stop, at night in the kitchen, during Lucky's first home run). He tries to hold the connection by playing with the game railroad in the garden house.
When Harper, his wife, wants to donate some of Nathaniel books and suggests to turn Nathaniel's room into a guest room some time, he gets angry. Maybe he is thinking she betrays his memory by this.

Harper always felt as an outsider to Bill and Nathaniel. She argues as they went often into the garden house to the train and never invited her to join them. She wants to know what Bill and Nathaniel were talking about, and he only says "secret guys stuff". It hurts her that he excludes her, even now from his memories and his pain. She also thinks that the very close relationship of Bill and his son prevented them to get another baby. Now, that Nathaniel is dead, they try to get another baby.

Ed, a lonely widower, who lives in a retirement home, has to deal with the fact, that due to his high age he loses his independence. After his wife died, he has to live there; people tell him, that he isn't allowed to eat spicy meals. He rebells against it and when he calls out to Bill (who joggs by every morning) and complains about the way he is treated, they start to become friends. When Bill becomes coach of the baseball team he asks Ed to help him. So Ed feels needed again.
When his health starts to worsen he is forced to move to another retirement home.

Harper tells Bill that she is pregnant again. They are very happy about it.

While the playing season for the baseball team goes on, Bill and Harper get to know Lucky more and more and grow to like him. When an accident happens and Lucky's "father" disappears, they take him to their home over night.

When it becomes clear to Bill, that he and Harper have been tricked to adopt Lucky by Hilton he is angry at first. When he comes home that evening and finds Lucky sleeping in Nathaniel's bed, hugging the family dog, I think he and Harper decide to take him into their family. Bill goes into the kitchen and looks over to the table, where he used to see his dead son. He is not there. I think this is the point when he lets him go.

Of course he will never forget him and will miss him forever, but I think it ist the point when he makes peace with the things that have happened.

I liked the movie from the first time I have watched it.

Anja ;)
Walk in love, walk in service, and you will walk in honor.
MacGyver
....by doing so our world will be better each day...
Anja ;)
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Re: What do you like/not like about individual RDA movies

Post by bftlovesRDA »

Thank you, Kti, for your comments, and thank you Juliette and Anja, for your wonderful commentary and screenshots about "Past the Bleachers."

Guess it's now time to discuss a different RDA movie.

How about "Lost Treasure of Atlantis".

This is the one RDA movie I don't have so others will have to discuss it.

I didn't like this MacGyver movie as much as the other one, "Trail to Doomsday."

But others, please discuss.
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Re: What do you like/not like about individual RDA movies

Post by NiLa »

It's quite a while since I have watched the movie.

So give me some time to rewatch it, I will comment on it as soon as possible. :roll:

Anja ;)
Walk in love, walk in service, and you will walk in honor.
MacGyver
....by doing so our world will be better each day...
Anja ;)
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