Field of Dreams 1989

Dave Kehr, Chicago Tribune: The sentimentality, of which there is plenty, is nicely balanced by a humor of ironic pragmatism, as when Ray, having built his baseball field as a monument to human dreams, decides to charge tourists $20 a head to visit it. Read more

Michael Wilmington, Los Angeles Times: All of this would work better if Robinson built up the reality of the town more, made the citizens a more palpable presence, as Frank Capra did in Hollywood's greatest fable-fantasy, It's a Wonderful Life. Read more

Caryn James, New York Times: It seems much easier to fall into Field of Dreams than to resist its warm, intelligent, timely appeal to our most idealistic selves. Read more

Jonathan Rosenbaum, Chicago Reader: The conception is sentimental, but the storytelling remains assured and effective. Read more

Michael Booth, Denver Post: The life-equals-baseball masterpiece still packs an unexpected kick. Read more

Roger Ebert, Chicago Sun-Times: Field of Dreams will not appeal to grinches and grouches and realists. It is a delicate movie, a fragile construction of one goofy fantasy after another. But it has the courage to be about exactly what it promises. Read more

Peter Travers, Rolling Stone: A dedicated cast acts out this gooey fable in deadly earnest. Read more

Richard Corliss, TIME Magazine: Despite a lovely cameo turn by Burt Lancaster, Field of Dreams is the male weepie at its wussiest. Read more

Colette Maude, Time Out: Together with moments of dry humour and fine performances, the political element lends the film gravity sufficient to counterbalance any sense of whimsy. Pure magic. Read more

Variety Staff, Variety: Field of Dreams sustains a dreamy mood in which the idea of baseball is distilled to its purest essence: a game that stands for unsullied innocence in a cruel, imperfect world. Read more

Desson Thomson, Washington Post: The movie may steal a base here and there, but there are no homers. Read more

Rita Kempley, Washington Post: Poesy, pointlessness and baseball worship aside, the movie is easy to get along with. Read more