Derry Herrera
Not sure how, but this is easily one of the best movies all summer. Multiple levels of funny, never takes itself seriously, super colorful, and creative.
Keeley Coleman
The thing I enjoyed most about the film is the fact that it doesn't shy away from being a super-sized-cliche;
Matho
The biggest problem with this movie is it’s a little better than you think it might be, which somehow makes it worse. As in, it takes itself a bit too seriously, which makes most of the movie feel kind of dull.
BobbyT24
Watch this movie. Please forget the critics and their ratings. They are just plain wrong on this gem of a picture. A "Rotten Tomatometer" rating of 30% by the critics but a 78% by the viewing public??? That should tell you all you need to know.Imagine yourself being transported back to an innocent time in your life where everything was peaceful, uncomplicated and joyous. The best and most interesting summer of your life. That's what this movie portrays through flashbacks, flash-forwards and honest feelings portrayed by a very talented cast of actors and filmmakers."Stealing Home" is one of those movies that should have a bigger following than it does. It's been almost forgotten as a movie, which is a shame. This may be more "chick flick" than male-oriented and although has baseball as it's core, plot and relationships are at the center of the story, not sports. As a male, this is still one of my favorite movies. The story is touching, beautiful, emotional, and nostalgic while still showing frailty of life. Losing a loved one has a universal impact on those left behind.Mark Harmon and Jodie Foster head a fabulous cast of actors in this movie. Shown mostly in flashback in Billy's final innocent summer spent with his parents and his babysitter-of-all-babysitters, Katie (Foster) before heading off to play minor league baseball in the Phillies' organization, life couldn't be more idyllic on the lovely beaches of the Jersey shoreline.The movie opens where washed-up adult Billy (Harmon in current day 1987), while lost in a mid-life crisis and out of baseball altogether, is given a call to come back home to rural New Jersey and look after the ashes of his childhood babysitter, Katie, who committed suicide at the family's beach house. The story progresses in flashback of Billy recalling all the fantastic, gorgeous, funny and tragic adventures of Billy's and Katie's relationships and moments leading to where Billy is now. Flipping from current day back to the late-'60s is flawless and never throws the viewer as Billy searches for what is the "right" thing to do with Katie's beloved ashes. You meet Katie and how mature, yet oh so mischievous, she was and how teenage Billy (William McNamara) could come to fall in love with someone who treated him as the most incredible little brother she'd never had. You meet Billy's perfectly loving parents (Blair Brown and the underrated John Shea) and how much joy and unwavering support they meant to Billy while growing up. Add Jonathan Silverman as Billy's ever-horny best friend, Alan Appleby, as the comic relief and ever-underachieving wingman and you have the making of a special movie. As Billy realizes how closely his life is tied not just to baseball, but to the lives of his tight-knit family and his best friends, it reveals a complex web of love, sacrifice, and truth Billy comes to understand was meant to make him a better human being, not just a ballplayer.This movie is stunning. From the photography, the acting, the screenplay, and the excellent soundtrack. It is both funny and tragic and everything in between. It feels like a faint summer breeze blowing on you as you sit quietly on a beach chair at the ocean at your family's summer cottage. The kind of wisp of air that leaves a mark on you that you can't touch but you know it will always be with you wherever you go. It's beautiful.If you love the actors, you'll love this movie. If you've ever lost a loved one and forgot how special those times were with that loved one before it all became too complicated, this is the movie for you. It will make you think. It will make you feel. And you will remember how much love there is in this world. All you need is a push sometimes to realize how much. It is a movie about seasons of life and how precious they are and always will be. Give this movie a chance. You may find it special also.
little bird
This movie for me is like a warm blanket. I have to watch it at least once a year. I stumbled across it when it was on late one night here in Oz & from the first few minutes I was hooked. It is just such a magical story. I LOVE, love, love everything about it, the actors, their characters, the first love, the relationships, the setting, the era, it's just wonderful. Not to mention the freaking AWESOME soundtrack. Billy's house & the summer house on the beach are the kind of homes everyone would love to grow up in, they are perfect places for childhood, adolescent & adult memories to be nurtured. 'Be my friend' watch this movie,it is inspiring. :)
Luis Guillermo Cardona
On behalf of youth, there have been some of the worst scarecrows of film history, but also, from time to time (¿why is always good once in a while?) Is a story that blanket the soul and brings us back the romance, sometimes we lost forever. And it's so beautiful dream with open eyes! And so great was that first love that made us believe that in this world was perfect! There is, perhaps, other moments that are remembered with more gratitude, as experienced with tenderness and passion in our adolescence. "Stealing Home" is one of those movies. The story is about a boy (Billy Wyatt) baseball player, in crisis after the death of his father who one day finds out that Kathy Chandler, his sweet first love, killed himself and hopes that he is the man take charge of her ashes. Then the memories begin. With each haunting space, the past returns unstoppable, and Billy is remembered as a ten year old boy fascinated by the beautiful Kathy sixteen. Travel by car, the first installment, the horse diver, swimming pool... The enormity of the simple, tenderness and charm of every gesture, every touch, every word. The forever stamp each encounter... and death that is interwoven to tell her it was all an illusion and that nothing is to touch it again. Kathy was a young girl who wanted to own your life every minute, every second. He wanted to chart a path of freedom in a world where constraints arising everywhere. But you can say I tried to exhaust his strength... to vanish in a haze of memory. Jodie Foster gives an adult character,charming and credible. In full bloom of adolescence, showing mature, sensitive, beautiful, and lets us feel that great actress who has always been throughout his career.Beautiful songs and a nice atmosphere reminiscent of famous titles as "Summer of 42" or "The Man in the Moon", make this an enjoyable film worth seeing and remembering.
megoobee
The first time I saw this movie over 10 years ago, I thought the movie made no sense and boring. The problem was, I didn't try to understand the movie. Fast forward to the present, I watched the movie again and now understand the story. Life, love, exploration, death, it's all in the story. A boy's life shown from the perspective of a man. While the flashback scenes may seem long to some, they tell most important parts of the story. In my opinion, if the story was shot straight-forward (ie: from beginning to end) instead of using present/cut to flashback, the story would not be as effective. It won't win any awards but it's entertaining nonetheless.
