"Penalty Kick" is adapted from the 2003 biography "Magic Ball-Wisdom to Win in Adversity" by the famous American financial journalist Michael Lewis. The protagonist of the biography, Billy Beane, is the general manager of the Oakland Athletics baseball team in California. Under his pioneering management method, the Oakland Athletics team, which is at a serious financial disadvantage, set a record in the 2002 season. The historical record of winning 20 consecutive games is a miracle. Like other professional sports events, the performance of professional baseball is almost entirely dependent on the quality of the players in the team, and the players are the liquid assets of which team pays the highest price. It is more to fight for strength and capital. The Oakland Athletics team used more than 40 million dollars to compete against teams with hundreds of millions of net worth (such as the New York Yankees), and they can win frequently. The mystery of this is naturally worth studying.
Billy Bean's magic weapon to win is the baseball statistical data analysis method "Sabermetrics" (Sabermetrics) advocated by his assistant manager Paul DePodesta (Paul DePodesta). Cybermetrics uses some statistical indicators to judge a player’s performance on the court, such as "pitcher defense rate" (ERA), "on-base plus slugging", etc., to determine the player’s defensive power and offensive power. Such subjective judgments are transformed into objective and measurable indicators. In the past, baseball scouts relied solely on experience to evaluate a player’s performance and predict his potential in the future professional baseball career; with Cybermetrics, a considerable part of these empirical discussions have been transformed into visible investment theories, relying on computers. It’s clear at a glance which player is good at which type of technology, and which player’s comprehensive value exceeds his transfer fee. To make a metaphor that may not be appropriate, this cybermetrics is like the yin and yang chart of stock analysis, changing the relationship between the market and individual stocks from metaphysics to science. Although it is not absolutely accurate, it is not absolutely accurate for investors. It is a reference tool worth relying on. Bean’s success has fundamentally changed the mode of operation of American professional baseball, and Cybermetrics has since officially stepped onto the stage of baseball history.
The movie "Penalty Kick" is based on Billy Bean's eye-digging assistant Pete Brand (though Brand is based on Depodesta, but a lot of fictional elements are incorporated in the characterization), it focuses on describing How did he carry out Cybermetrics under pressure, leading the Oakland Athletics team to a 20-game winning streak in 2002. But unlike ordinary sports movies, although "Penalty Kick" is based on competitions, the film always revolves around the two lines of Billy Bean's team management and family life, intertwining and complementing each other, and there are many memorable things. The climax scenes all take place outside the stadium, and the character biographical style is outstanding. This Bean is a very interesting character. On the one hand, he withstands the pressures, implements Cybermetrics with great courage, and does not drag the ball in the decision of player trading; on the other hand, he is superstitious that his presence on the court will help the team. Bringing bad luck and daring not to watch the live game, one person took a small radio outside the court and was anxious, wanted to listen but was afraid to listen. This bipolar character also affected his private life. The film did not write much about Billy Bean's failed marriage, but only focused on his relationship with his 12-year-old daughter, Cathy. On the one hand, Bean was very compassionate to Cathy, but on the other hand he was puzzled about how to be a good father. This tough guy who focused on baseball was extremely clumsy when he reached the tender spot. If Cathy hadn't been empathetic, his dad would really have failed.
I don’t know if it was influenced by the second director Soderbergh. Although no character interviews have been included, "Penalty Kick" uses a large number of documentary editing techniques and often uses technical elements such as cybermetrics or on-court strategies. The triple-lens cascading zoom advancement focuses on key data and visually emphasizes its importance. When talking about real people or events, clips of historical records will be cut to increase the sense of the scene. The narrative technique of this documentary runs through the entire film, and the style is sharp, calm, and unsensational. In describing the transfer transactions of professional baseball players, the lens is as cold as Bean, with fixed focus, medium and long-range cold light, and deliberately extended pauses. Players are exchanged like horses, and they just leave. The cruelty of the professional baseball game rules can be seen. But at the same time, Bean has repeatedly talked about the fascinating of baseball and the unforeseen turnaround or fall short of success on the court. The lens used mostly mid-to-close shots when portraying Bean’s passion for baseball, often showing close-ups of his face, especially trying to reveal his inner waves by enlarging his eyes. The footage of Bean and Cathy’s relationship emphasizes the focus of warm colors in the cool color system. Few appearances. Cathy’s clothes are mostly red, pink and purple, small florals and other brisk and warm colors, which neutralizes the overall Xiao of the film. The murderous air also keeps the visual pace in line with the plot, and the rhythm is full.
Another highlight of "Penalty Kick" is the editing of the sound. In the depiction of the 20th game, the background noise and drum music on the field are intertwined with Bean's memories of the time, and the two mirrors advance each other. The sound faded unexpectedly when the race progressed to the key point. Mute and slow motion pictures were used to mobilize emotions. But silence is not the only tool. When emotions are ups and downs, and when suspense accumulates, the almost inaudible background symphony strings will diffuse in, from weak to strong, step by step to dominate the tone of the picture, inadvertently leaking behind-the-scenes feelings, and strong contrast The dramatic atmosphere of the baseball game and the anxiety and excitement of the audience.
From a performance point of view, Brad Pitt, who played Billy Bean, performed well, but still couldn’t get away from his star shadow everywhere. His performance was far less exciting than supporting actor Jona Hill (Jona Hill): Movies The two most important climaxes would have faded a lot without Hill's contrast. Pete Brand, played by Hill, entered the player selection discussion room for the first time. The nerdy atmosphere and the excitement that can't be concealed under the surface caution are all understandable. His dullness has been throughout the movie, but the level is not single. In the scene of watching the video replay of the game in the manager's office, Brand's passion and courage officially bloomed, and it was impossible not to be admired. Jonah Hill played the character alive.
Among the nine works nominated for Oscar Best Picture this year, I think only "Penalty Kick" is a piece of real gold. It does not show off skills, is not sensational, nor is it opportunistic, and is heavy and sincere. It overturns the routine model of traditional sports-themed movies, and brings freshness and excitement to a boring subject with great risk. Its photographic style, lens cutting, and sound editing all give full play to the strengths of film technology, showing (rather than telling) the most fascinating passion in calm self-control. The camera does not speak, but the love expressed by the camera exceeds words. The song Cathy sang to Bean said, "You're such an idiot, Dad, you're an idiot"; the film "Penalize into Gold" lasted for seven years. The script director of Sanyi, the guys who can insist on investing in filming and finishing this work It can also be called a "stupid". But it is this kind of "stupid" who can do the amazing things that awkward everyone, and love so solid and pure, and love so righteously. They are real gold.
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