Movie Review- The Greatest Game Ever Played

A few days ago, while I was on a walk with our kids, my wife Stephanie rented “The Greatest Game Ever Played” (PG, Disney, 2005) from our local McDonald’s Redbox. We rarely have the opportunity to relax with one another and watch a movie but fortunately this night we did.

What a tremendous movie! Set in early 1900′s, the film details the determination, passion and success of a working class young man from Boston named Francis Ouimet. The climax of the movie (which is inspired by a true story and based on a book by Mark Frost) is when Francis competes in the 1913 U.S. Open against his boyhood idol, a British golfer named Harry Vardon.

Besides having a hot chick next to me on the couch there are multiple reasons why I enjoyed this movie. For starters, it is laced with references and images of the struggle against any separation between the rich and the poor. Golf was, and in many cases still is, a sport that divides people of different socio-economic classes. Yet neither Vardon nor Ouimet let this stop them. Their valiant determination to push through such sinful man-made barriers was inspiring.

A second reason I liked the film so much was because of Francis Ouimet’s virtuous character. There is a wonderful scene in the movie where Ouimet’s caddie (a funny, fat little 10 yr. old) is convinced by the golf club members that Francis would rather have an older, more professional caddie. When Francis learns how the club members are deceiving his friend he becomes indignant and he tells the little caddie that he wants no one else on his bag besides him. Then he stares down the club members, and with a fierce intensity in his eyes and cold steel in his throat, he tells them, “Never talk to my caddie again!”

Francis Ouimet was a young man filled with virtue and determination. He worked hard to develop his skills and he didn’t let anything stand in his way. “The Greatest Game Ever Played” is the perfect movie to watch with your kids, especially for dads and sons. There are many examples of solid character and emulative behavior, all of which could lead to some wonderful conversations and teaching opportunities for parents.