Ahhhh Morris "The Blade" Buttermaker. Right up there with Chuck Noll and Herb Brooks if you ask me.
First, let me make something very clear here right off the bat. I know there is an original and a remake. I know that a lot of you elder statesman reading this only view the Walter Matthau version as the "real one", but I'm a disciple of the church of Billy Bob Thornton's crew and that's the movie this blog is about. I caught it this past weekend twice...on IFC.... and I was just as interested in it as I was when I was a little 5th grader watching it in the cinema. One thought came to mind though as I was enjoying myself watching the triumphs of America's favorite little league team. I wondered why this movie wasn't mentioned in the same breath as other great sports movies. Make no mistake about it, the movie is an outstanding watch. From Billy Bob's performance as Buttermaker and his rivalry with Greg Kinnear and his grape nuts, to little kids saying curse words, and a great ending that is the furthest thing from a cliche, this movie deserves a ton more love whenever sports movies are discussed.
Another thing that I found out after watching over the weekend is that the actress Sammi Kane Kraft, who played Amanda Whurlitzer, Buttermakers' daughter, passed away in 2012 at the age of 20 after getting into a car accident! My mind was absolutely blown when I found that out. Look I know I just brought the mood way down and took us to a weird place but I just had to share.
Anyways, I'll leave you with the wise words of Buttermaker himself - " Now, my old coach used to say a tie is like kissing your sister, but the way we've been playing, it's more like kissing a really hot stepsister"
Iconic
Photo Courtesy of Getty