Film Analysis

The Sandlot

OW:  Scotty Smalls is an ordinary kid who has just moved into a new town just before school gets out for the summer.  At first it is hard for him to make friends, but eventually a boy named Ben Rodriguez takes him under his wing and becomes friends with him.  He teaches him how to play baseball and lets him join their team.

Call:  One summer afternoon the team finds themselves in trouble when they run out of baseballs to play with.  Scotty remembers that he had seen a baseball in his dad's trophy room.  He quickly runs home and ignores the signature that is marked on the ball.  Scott is up to bat first and on the second pitch to his horror, he smashes the ball over the fence.  He then tells the rest of the team that it was signed by Babe Ruth and they realize they have to find a way to get it back.  The only problem, a giant monster dog lives on the other side of the fence.

Refusal:  At first Scotty is so shocked that all he can do is lay down and think that he is dead.

Mentor:  Benjamin is the mentor in this movie.  No matter how tough or bad things get, he always gives Smalls confidence and never puts him down.  He is always thinking of ways to try and help him.

Threshold:  Scotty and the team start building contraptions and thinking of other ways to get the ball back from the beast.  They try again and again but nothing seems to work.

Tests, Allies, Enemies:  The only enemy in the movies is the beast dog because he has the ball and won't give it back.  The entire baseball team are Scotty's allies.  One big test is how they are going to get the ball back without getting killed.

Approach:  Ben finally realizes that the only way they can get the ball back is if someone jumps over the fence on their own and retrieve the ball by hand.

Ordeal:  On the night before the big event Benny receives a revelation.  Babe Ruth appears to him in a dream and tells him what he has to do.  He tells him just to jump the fence and grab the ball.  He also gives Benjamin some very good words of advice that stick with him through the rest of his life.  "Heros get remembered, but legends never die."

Reward:  After jumping the fence and retrieving the ball from the dog, everything falls right into place.  The old man who owns the dog trades them a way better baseball for theirs, they become friends with the dog, and Scotty ends up only getting in a little trouble.  Also Benny "The Jet" Rodriguez goes to the MLB when he grows up.

The Road Back:  The boys go back to their ordinary lives of playing baseball at the Sandlot again.  Eventually they all move away and lose connections with each other.