It is both painfully honest and laugh-out-loud funny at the same time.

If you're interested in the topic at hand, you should just watch it and judge yourself because the reviews have gone very biased by people that didn't even watch it and just hate (or love) the creator. I liked it, it was well written, narrated, and directed and it was about a topic that interests me.

It's easily one of the freshest, sharpest and most enjoyable films of this year.

Through painfully honest and emotional moments, the movie becomes irresistibly relatable

Billy Beane (Brad Pitt) is a former baseball player who is now the general manager for the Oakland Athletics. When he is faced with the prospect of losing 3 of his key players, he approaches the 'boss' to try and get more money from him in order to replace these key players. When the 'boss' informs Beane that no more money is available Beane must try to build the best team that he has with the money that he's got; fortunately he is able to recruit stat-man Peter Brand (Jonah Hill) who teaches Beane to look at baseball scouting from a completely different angle...What I know about baseball could be written on the back of a postage stamp and therefore I decided to watch Moneyball hoping that the film would educate me somewhat whilst also providing me with an uplifting story. Whilst it does a little of both, I didn't find Moneyball to be an entirely satisfying product...One thing I did notice about this film is how cold and clinical it feels; for the most part it's quite dour and depressing and at times it plays out more like a cold documentary than an uplifting piece of cinema. This is further extended to the baseball players within the film; there's no backstory to any of them and no real development to them as people which makes it impossible to root or care for any of them - this is made worse by the rather unceremonious way that they are traded to other teams (again made worse by how accepting some of them are of their dismissals which doesn't sit well with the flow of the film given that Beane had to give Brand a pep talk on how to deal with players reaction to being dismissed). Perhaps Director Bennett Miller wanted to keep the film low-key to avoid it being too melodramatic, but there has to be at least a degree of melodrama otherwise the film can come across as being rather flat and unengaging which is what happens in Moneyball. These things do give the film a rather heavy going feel about it which makes it a bit of a mare to sit through. I confess to knowing nothing about Baseball so the various stats talks and tactical discussion went over my head (this may cause a problem to non-Baseball fans who choose to watch this film as it does take up a good chunk of the running time and this aspect of the film may be boring to some people - it certainly was for me). I think what makes things worse is that I didn't feel that the film did much to uplift me; I never felt a sense of euphoria at any point and wasn't cheering the Oakland Athletics on in the way the filmmakers wanted me to - although I'm prepared to acknowledge that what they achieved with the money/resources they had was quite a feat. As mentioned, it is a combination of the flat way the film is presented, the weak characterisation, and it's general failure to truly uplift me that were the biggest factors working against the film (the film even finishes on a slightly negative note when providing its summary at the end).If there are any positives to this film then they lay with the acting; Brad Pitt does really well and is perhaps the only person it is possible to be behind throughout the film; his Billy Beane has the charisma and desire, but his flaws are shown as well which did give me some investment in the film. Jonah Hill is surprisingly low-key, but does well with what he has to work with - my one criticism is that he doesn't develop much of a working chemistry with Pitt which only adds to the multitude of problems I had with this film. Those with an interest in Baseball may get something out of this, but it did little for me I'm afraid.

I'm interested in the stories that use science for success. This movie shows that in a unique way of using data analysis and statistics to predict sports.

(Originally reviewed: 24/02/2017) Brad Pitt is one of my favourite actors; and I have seen many great performances from him; and his role as Billy Beane in Moneyball is perhaps a contender for second best after his portrayal of Tyler Durden in Fight Club of course. I do not follow baseball but I found the entire story a breath of fresh air; each scene is invigorating, the acting compelling and the plot always compelling. The supporting performances are very good too; Jonah Hill (Peter) is stunning as Beane's Analyst/assistant; he disappears into character and stays likable throughout. There were many good performances in the picture and here's a few more among it; Philip Seymour Hoffman (Art the coach), Robin Wright (Sharon), Kerris Dorsey (Casey Beane) and Chris Pratt (Scott/player) who was surprisingly decent for a change.Steve Zaillian and Aaron Sorkin's screenplay is excellent, the film is exceptionally well written, Bennet Miller's direction is very good and the film never drags; I felt immersed in the story, fully engaged within every scene and always compelled to find out the outcome. There's a tremendous scene where Pitt's character refuses to watch his own team play; and without saying anything; his emotions are transparent, noticeable and show that this is a man who just wants to win for a change; There's quite a few complex scenes like this where you just see Billy Beane sitting there and reflecting on things and there far from dull; there simply brilliant. Moneyball is a great sports drama and one with two Oscar worthy performances from Pitt and Hill and one that is without a doubt one of the best films of 2011.

I decided to watch this film because it had good reviews. I admit that I don't know anything about or have any interest in baseball, however I have watched and enjoyed other similar films with a sports theme before so I wasn't too put off. Unfortunately I think watching nearly ANYTHING else would have been better than sitting through this film. I can only describe the whole thing as bland. Bland characters, bland visuals, bland dialogue, bland music. In fact there was virtually no music accompanying the film, which I think is one of the big reasons it feels so flat. In fact, large (and I mean huge) swaths of the movie are carried out in complete silence. Everybody talks slowly and in a monotone. The sets are dull and grey. I felt nothing for the characters and was drifting off to sleep less than half way through the film. Maybe if you are an avid baseball fan you will enjoy this movie? Otherwise I honestly can't see why anyone would sit through it. Avoid!