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Show It i l I l l 1 I I I tl! b.v Hick Hroiili Iris Raines (Glenn Close), Roy Hobbs' (Robert Redford) childhood sweetheart who he has not seen in 15 years, goes to Wrigley Field to see him play in her hometown. The Natural' combines baseball with a touch of King Arthur considered over the hill. But he's got to win the pennant for the gruff, long-suffering Knights manager, Pop Fisher Fish-er (Wilford Brimley). Otherwise, Other-wise, it goes to Pop's nasty partner, The Judge, who abides in a constantly-dark office like a cave monster. Brimley gives a wonderful performance in the style of old-time actors like Walter Brennan. Richard Farns-worth Farns-worth as team coach Red Blow doesn't have a large part, but gets the chance to appear with old pal Brimley. (Both men began as extras and horse wranglers in Westerns.) These two deserve de-serve a picture to themselves. them-selves. Kim Basinger as Memo is a gal hoping that Hobbs will lead her to the pot of gold. Basinger is an interesting actress, as she proves in a scene where she visits the ailing Roy. She swings from affection to helplessness and itchy, neurotic greed. Robert Duvall is annoying and smarmy as the pushy, but not too smart, sports columnist Max Mercy. But it's a slim part for one of Duvall's stature. Roy's real male antagonist is gambler Gus Sands, played by Darren McGavin, who is not even billed in the movie! McGavin plays Gus as a smooth jungle character, bulging out one eye to "read" Roy. Another excellent job comes from Robert Prosky as The Judge, who has a cunning drawl and the most ominous pair of light-reflecting specs since the warden in "Cool Hand Luke." Randy Newman wraps it all up, behind the scenes, with a heartfelt musical score oozing ooz-ing Americana. Redford's movie is a natural for summer, and might breathe some life back into the national pastime. ( A Classic Recommended Good double-feature double-feature material Time-killer For masochisls V only j The Natural In several past films, Robert Redford has played the golden god who turned out to have feet of clay when seen close up. In "Downhill Racer" he was a heel; in "Great Waldo Pepper" he was obsolescent; in "The Way We Were" he couldn't face the political dilemmas around him. But in "The Natural," his character really is a hero. That may sound as if Redford is going backward in the kind of roles he plays. But not really. Redford knows how to play the Golden Boy, in all his imperfection. That has prepared pre-pared him to credibly play an idealized version of the same character. As mythic baseball base-ball player Roy Hobbs, Redford nicely balances modesty mod-esty with strength and a pensive way of carrying destiny upon his shoulders. As a young boy on a Midwestern farm, Roy develops de-velops a consuming love of baseball, nurtured by his father. Dad dies of a heart attack one day, and later that night a bolt of lightning splits asunder the oak tree outside Roy's window. From the ravaged trunk, Roy chops out a hunk of wood and fashions it into a baseball bat with the name "Wonderboy" carved on it. Setting out on the road, he seems destined for greatness. great-ness. At a county fair, he even strikes out the best batter of the age, a Babe Ruth-type known as the W hammer (Joe Don Baker). But then he is injured in an encounter with icy, enigmatic flapper Harriet Bird (Barbara (Bar-bara Hershey). Roy disappears for 16 years and then one day turns up in the dugout of the jinxed New York Knights. With Wonderboy in his hands, he slugs balls into the stands (also the stadium lights and timeclock) and propels the Knights out of the cellar. Now the only problem is if he will succumb to the charms of the moll, Memo Paris, or somehow make contact with his childhood love Iris (Glenn Close) who follows his career with distant, rapt devotion. "The Natural" is a baseball base-ball story, but it's as mystical as "Dragonslayer." Both Redford and Close play larger-than-life characters with a clean, straight style that looks simple. Though some audiences may snicker at the "legend" overtones, director Barry Levinson leaves it as unforced as possible. The story is old-movie sentiment merged with Arthurian Ar-thurian legend. Roy's 16-year' 16-year' s disappearance after Harriet Bird is like the medieval story where a hero is put to sleep by a sorceress' curse. When he awakes, he's |