
When the owner of the Minnesota Twins dies suddenly, his will bequeaths the team to his grandson Billy, a devotee of baseball who, although only 12, has devoured voluminous lore, knows the team intimately, and has shown an uncanny sixth sense of what they need to improve. They hate their manager, so Billy quickly fires the SOB, winning their instant approval. However, this turns to dismay when he announces their new manager: Billy Heywood. How will Billy convince a gang of pr... (Full plot summary below)
Enjoy FREE movies and series with your Prime (USA) subscription or when you start a 30-day free trial!
Links compiled using automated software. Availability of offers subject to change / might be region specific / out of date.
When the owner of the Minnesota Twins dies suddenly, his will bequeaths the team to his grandson Billy, a devotee of baseball who, although only 12, has devoured voluminous lore, knows the team intimately, and has shown an uncanny sixth sense of what they need to improve. They hate their manager, so Billy quickly fires the SOB, winning their instant approval. However, this turns to dismay when he announces their new manager: Billy Heywood. How will Billy convince a gang of proud, tough men to stick around and take orders from a kid? On the other hand, what's to lose-- the team has nowhere to go but up.
Leave your thoughts about Little Big League.
| Chicago Sun-TimesRoger EbertLike Free Willy, The Secret Garden, Searching for Bobby Fischer and The Man in the Moon, this is a "family movie" that doesn't condescend. It takes its 12-year-old hero as seriously as he takes baseball, and nothing is "dumbed down" for the PG audience. |
| Entertainment WeeklyLois Alter MarkFilled with baseball lore, trivia, and cameos by major-league players, this fable covers its bases with sincerity and humor. |
| TimeEric DoddsLittle Big League was a movie for kids that never talked down to its target audience. It gave equal weight to issues that could easily be expected under these unusual circumstances. |
| Chicago TribuneJohanna SteinmetzIt's not the greatest movie about baseball ever made (and I'll keep my mouth shut on that one if I know what's good for me), but it's not the worst, either. Like the game itself, it's pretty darn fun. |
| Hartford CourantMalcolm JohnsonAs the fortunes of the Twins improve to put them in hot contention for the pennant, Little Big League gains a certain excitement. In setting out its personal stories, however, the screenplay and direction offer strictly minor-league material. |
| The Seattle TimesJeff ShannonThe scenes on the ballfield have a credibility that is unusual in a baseball film. Adding to the realism are the appearances of a number of major league players as the Twins' opponents. The glow and cleancut innocence of these scenes evokes the magic of the game as seen through the eyes of a youthful fan. |
| ReelViewsJames BerardinelliThis film never believably captures the sport it portrays, and that leads to a picture that's closer to a strikeout than a home run. |
| Tampa Bay TimesSteve PersallThe ballplayers themselves are a well-drawn, enjoyably kooky bunch, but it's absolutely impossible to believe that they would accept Billy's leadership. (If you believe this premise, then you probably believe Marge Schott doesn't look like a Saint Bernard.) And of all the child actors in the movie, the scrawny 13-year-old star shows the least presence. |
| Arizona Daily StarPhil VillarrealForgettable in every way. The kids-in-big-leagues theme is thankfully dead for now. |
| EmpirePaul MerrillA few more laughs wouldn't have gone amiss, but then baseball's a serious business - especially when you've got your maths homework to finish before the team talk. |