Bobby Jones: Stroke of Genius (2004)

During the course of Bobby Jones: Stroke Of Genius, Malcolm McDowell who played an Atlanta sports columnist said that we would never see the like of Bobby Jones again, that money was going to ruin sports. This was during the Roaring Twenties which was what we call The Golden Age Of Sport where athletes played in just about each sport who set a standard for those who followed. Babe Ruth in baseball, Red Grange and Knute Rockne, in football, Jack Dempsey in boxing and even a thoroughbred race horse called Man O' War all became yard sticks we measured future athletes by. But all of these were professional athletes, those who made and in some cases lost a considerable amount of salary they were paid to compete.But Robert Tyre Jones of Atlanta, Georgia did it all as an amateur, in other words for love of the game of golf. Golf is unusual in that it allows amateur to compete with the professionals providing they eschew purses. While he competed Jones made not a dime. He kept himself firmly on the ground got a class education became a lawyer and earned money to support his family and indulge his hobby. Said hobby being the greatest golfer of his time, maybe of all time. His record of winning the Grand Slam of golf both the American and British professional opens and American and British Amateur championships is still not equaled.And then it was over. Not only did he set out to accomplish his goal, but quit both because he had and because he had a slow degenerative spinal disorder not really diagnosed until the late Forties. What would Malcolm McDowell's character say if he saw the salaries paid to athletes today? How would in fact Jim Cavaziel's Bobby Jones react to it now? Questions to ask yourself as you watch Stroke Of Genius and what Cavaziel does in playing a real role model for young athletes today. Cavaziel's Jones is not a Dudley Doo-Right by any means, but he's a man with a deep sense of honor and fair play and he's very real.Bobby Jones: Stroke Of Genius, a portrait of a fine man, a great athlete, and someone we could use today in all sports.

Not just a golf movie. You don't even need to like golf to enjoy this movie. The story and scenery are worth it. Jim Caviezel did an amazing job in bringing Bobby Jones to life. Although I didn't know anything about Jones, I know enough about golf to understand the importance of what he contributed to the sport. The parts were beautifully cast although Clair F is not my favorite actress (I didn't like her in Meet Joe Black), she did a fine representation of women of that era. I think Jim Caviezel is a very underrated actor and does a fine job in each part he has played. You don't see Jim, you just see the character, which to me should be the goal of a good actor. Definitely worth the money to rent and the time to watch, more than once.

Bobby Jones' life was amazing and this movie missed a great opportunity to tell all. This movie is very slow. The acting is good, but the direction is boring. There could've been more suspense when Jones went for the Grand Slam. The movie only covers Jones from age 6 to 28. It would've been cool if the movie showed how Jones revolutionized golf instruction and equipment production after his retirement at age 28, how Augusta National was formed, and how the Masters was started. Give me birth to death not 6 to 28. This movie should have been promoted better too. It grossed less than $3 million and costed $17. Sad. It should've been called "Bobby Jones: Grand Slam" so people wouldn't think the titled was ripped off. With Brad Pitt, Christian Bale and Martin Scorsese directing it (much like the Aviator), this would have been awesome.

Golfers will love this film about one of the greatest golfers of all time. I say one of the greatest because it is hard to say that any one golfer was the greatest given the changing conditions, the degree if competition, and the changes in equipment. While Jones undoubtedly was the best of his generation, arguments can be made that Ben Hogan and Jack Nicklaus were the greatest of their generations and that Tiger Woods is the greatest of the present generation.From a historical standpoint, this movie is very accurate and a great deal of attention was paid to every detail. As to authenticity of the sets and costumes this movie is the best I have seen in years. All too often movies take shortcuts which infringe on their authenticity. Even the uniforms worn by the Marines in this picture are authentic replicas of the uniforms worn by Marines in the early '30s down to the ribbons.The film does have some shortcomings though. Ihe acting is not that great and the story gets a little hammy at times but the reality still shows through. Much too much is made of the reporter from the Atlanta Journal who is used as a foil. While the Journal did follow Jones closely, it wasn't nearly as close as depicted in the film. But the story brings out the humanness of Jones quite well, better than does the usually told legends.