Lessons From the Hardball Film Applied to Real Life

The film is based on the book, ‘Hardball: A Season in the Projects’, by Daniel Coyle, and although the film is not an exact replica of the book by Coyle, it is an account similar to the Near North Little League’s 1992 season. The film features Keanu Reeves portraying a character of a young man who is in the habit of gambling, and having suffered heavy losses is compelled to take a loan from a friend on the condition of coaching a Near North inner-city little league baseball team. The plot of the film shows how this young man is given a new outlook on life along with the learning and creativity he goes through in dealing with and teaching the kids in the team. The movie portrays the learning experiences in changing the attitude of the young team members to go through the rigors of a never give up attitude that the young coach is naturally duty-bound in setting such an example amongst the children. The movie details the pitfalls and victories that the team goes through with the efforts of the character played by Reeves and how he achieves personal salvation in performing these tasks. This is an important lesson that one can apply to one’s life in accepting challenges and getting through with determination and appealing to self-esteem. Another lesson learned from the film is from the character of the young man played by Reeves that it is more of a destructive habit to engage in gambling activities that do more harm than bringing about a sense of earning money which is but a superficial sense of achievement. The film is clear in the portrayal of its message that self-determination and an attitude of ‘never say die’ goes a long way in achieving predetermined goals with the help of teamwork and effective coordination.