The Legend of Bagger Vance (2000)

In my many years of film watching I've never come across a that was quite underrated as this one. through and through this movie is one of my favorites. From the setting, to the plot, to the cast in this movie I could sit down and watch over and over. all though this movie may seem just like another feel good sports movie about golf, but it is so much more. A movie set in the depression era showing the struggles of all types of men/women dealing with family, financial, and even post world war traumas. This star studded cast of Matt Damon, Will Smith, and Charlize Theron in there prime, along with a great supporting cast, makes this movie enjoyable for any type of movie fan. Of all my favorite movies, a lot of which are more widely agreed upon as classics, this movie is the diamond in the rough (no pun intended). I can't tell you how many times I've tried to pass this movie along to friends cause I know everyone will love it. If I had a dollar for every person who I've asked if they have seen it and them never of even heard of it, id use that movie to buy advertisement across the country to try and spread awareness of how great this movie is. In the mean time this will have to do. hopefully you take my advice and watch. I also advise you to try and see the deeper, underlying meaning throughout the movie and not focus on the golf as the major story. 10/10. Enjoy.

**May include Spoilers** The Legend of Bagger Vance is told from the perspective of an elderly Hardy Greaves who has just had his sixth heart attack while playing golf. As he is lying there he is recalling his childhood and why he loves the game of golf. Before going off to the war, Rannulph Junuh was a very good golfer in Savannah, Georgia. Junuh lost all of his men in World War I, became very depressed and disappeared. When he finally returned to Savannah, Georgia it was the start of the Great Depression. He was an alcoholic and tried to keep to himself. Hardy Greaves really looked up to Junuh and volunteered him to play in a golf tournament that Adele Invergordon (Junuh's girlfriend before the war) had managed to set up with two of the world's best golfers, Bobby Jones and Walter Hagan. Adele had done this in an attempt to save the family golf resort. After some nagging from Adele and Hardy, Junuh starts practicing hitting golf balls when a strange man appears, Bagger Vance. He starts giving Junuh advice and becomes Junuh's caddy. Junuh reluctantly agrees to play in the tournament. Bagger Vance finally is able to help Junuh realize that his thoughts are affecting his game and he has to overcome them in order to do well in the tournament. By the last hole, Bagger Vance can see that Junuh has grown and matured and leaves the caddying to Hardy Greves, who he had been mentoring. Junuh, Jones and Hagan ended the game in a three way tie. The film ends with Hardy Greves getting up from his heart attack on the golf course and seeing an unaged Bagger Vance waving him over.The theme of this move could be 'the way we think affects our and actions'. Bagger Vance bring to Junuhs' attention that he needs to let go of the pain and sorrow inside of him in order to be able to focus on life. It is setting him back in both his gulf game and his relationships with people that he needs in life. As Junuh starts letting go of his troubles, he is able to start opening his heart once again to Adele and find happiness.The movie Nanny McPhee has a similar theme to The Legend of Bagger Vance. Nanny McPhee shows up when a father is struggling in life and has children that have a knack for destruction. She mysteriously shows up one day and slowly helps correct the madness. Her famous line is "When you need me but do not want me, then I must stay. When you want me, but no longer need me, then I have to go." The same thing happened in The Legend of Bagger Vance. Bagger Vance mysteriously shows up and help straighten out the problems going on in Junuh's mind and helps him become aware of the affects that his mind/memories are having on his life.Two techniques that are used in this file are camera angle and lighting. Camera angle is used in a lot of close ups in order to show the expression at that particular point in time. When it is more serious or intense it shows the actors close up. The most noticeable close up that is used is when Bagger Vance has Junuh watch the way that Jones putts. He has him see that he is the only person on the golf course and gets him to focus on the ball, his swing and where the hole is. Junuh becomes one with the game at that point. The lighting in the movie seems to portray the mood very well. During the dark time and memories in Junuh's life the film is darker or night time. The move that Junuah finds himself, the brighter the sun seems to shine, and when he has his fall backs it gets a little gloomier.Junuh went from being miserably depressed and drunk to finding inner peace through the help of Bagger Vance. Bagger Vance had a calm peaceful feel about his character that made the audience feel at ease with him and his choice of words. Letting go and not allowing our fears and frustration affect us, is when we will truly find happiness.

Yeah, I'll be honest this was a little dull even with everything going for it which included Robert Redford as director, a big budget and a great cast. It just failed to capture me on any level; with sport, magic, love or even inspiration, it was all just very long and very bland.The story is set in the 1920's following a golfer who returns from WW1 and attempts to recover his game and his life with help from a mystical caddy. It's definitely a very watchable movie, beautifully shot and with great performances.I really enjoyed Jack Lemmon (in his last movie role) and also the kid that played him as a young boy. Will Smith as 'Bagger' was good, everyone involved was. Charlize Theron; beautiful, nice accent. Matt Damon, well sure, good enough but I never really got that he was suffering from the war in any way, he was just subdued, wanted to be left alone and enjoyed a cocktail or two in the gambling den.And wow do they ever play a lot of golf. I mean I get that this is a "golf movie" but did we really need to see every swing from their 3 day marathon game? 11/24/14

The story is told by Hardy Greaves who growing up in Savannah, Georgia as a child idolized golfer Rannulph Junah (Matt Damon). Rannulph had married wealthy Adele Invergordon (Charlize Theron). However he returns from WWI broken and disappears. Adele moves on with her father's business to build a golf course in 1928. She finds Rannulph return to town but a year later, the great depression hit. The golf course is complete but the financial strain drive Adele's father to suicide. Adele struggles to keep the golf course open by organizing an exhibition between Bobby Jone (Joel Gretsch) and Walter Hagen (Bruce McGill) for a prize of $10k. In a town meeting, people demand for a local golfer but the drunken Captain Junah is reluctant to play. While trying to get back his swing late one night, Bagger Vance (Will Smith) asks for a job to caddy for the big game.It takes a bit of exposition to get started. Charlize Theron and Matt Damon starts off with an interesting period piece. Then Will Smith comes in and it slowly becomes obvious that this is some kind of Magical Negro that he's playing. This is apparently a fable where racism is not much mentioned nor noticed. It demands that the viewer forget any historical realism since this is a fable after all.The best thing about this is that Robert Redford has made a beautiful looking movie. It is however slow moving, and lacks the needed energy to keep up the pace for the whole 2 hours. My biggest problem is that the fable needs much more magic especially visually. Redford does a lot of speeding up the clouds and clouds rolling by and shots of nature and shots of sky and various other in-camera moves to denote magic. It needs something more. It needs something much more. It needs to put this movie definitively into the magical territories. This is not the simple period piece that Redford is creating. (small unimportant spoiler: even the last scene is too uncertain. Bagger Vance is waving old Hardy Greaves over. Redford really needs to spell out what's going on there.)The acting seems fine to me. Matt Damon and Charlize Theron have some nice scenes together. They have the best fun and I enjoy them the most. I'm not able to tell if the accents are accurate but I don't think it's so obvious that it would offend anybody other than southerners. Will Smith is playing someone unreal. He is almost otherworldly. If this isn't a fable, I'm tempted to say that he's playing it too fake. In the end, it's an uneven viewing experience.