Charlotte Wilder had never seen Ć¢ĀĀField of Dreams,Ć¢ĀĀ so she reviewed the classic film. [View in browser]( [FOX SPORTS INSIDER WITH MARTIN ROGERS] In todayās FOX Sports Insider Newsletter with guest author Charlotte Wilder: In preparation for Thursdayās āField of Dreamsā game between the New York Yankees and Chicago White Sox on FOX, Charlotte decided to finally watch the movie and give her review ... we take a look at what the Bengals should expect from the return of quarterback Joe Burrow ... and we get hyped for a baseball game in a cornfield. On Thursday, the Chicago White Sox and the New York Yankees will meet in a cornfield in Iowa. Itās a very famous cornfield. In fact, itās the most famous cornfield in this country because this cornfield once belonged to Kevin Costnerās character, Ray, in the movie "Field Of Dreams." And it now belongs to people in America who care deeply about baseball. I care deeply about baseball, but until this weekend, I had never seen this movie. It came out in 1989, the year I was born, which I could try to use as an excuse. But the thing about movies is that once theyāre made, you can watch them anytime. So the truth is that I didnāt watch it because everyone I grew up with loved it, and I'm a contrarian ā and also because I was obsessed with "Angels In The Outfield" and had no interest in watching a different baseball movie with themes about heaven. But since the network I work for is airing the special game this week (6 p.m. ET Thursday on FOX), it seemed like a good time to watch the film. So if youāve seen it before and want a refresh or if youāve never seen it and donāt have time to check it out before Thursday: Please, come right this way. The film opens on a montage of old photos with the twinkly, sentimental piano music that accompanied every movie from the late ā80s and early ā90s (think "Mrs. Doubtfire" when Robin Williams is alone with the toy dinosaurs in that film studio). Ray Kinsella (Costner) voices over the story of his fatherās life. John Kinsella, we gather, loved baseball ā the Yankees specifically ā but couldnāt make it as a player. He fought in World War II and then settled into life as a blue-collar worker. He never amounted to much in Rayās eyes, so Ray left home determined to be more than his old man. He went to Berkeley, where his major was "officially English, but really, it was the Sixties." Read: He smoked a lot of pot. [STORY IMAGE 1] Ray met his wife, Annie, in college. Annie is from Iowa. They got married and had a kid named Karin, and at the age of 36, Ray bought a farm. I am unclear on how Ray bought a farm because he didnāt seem to have a job or money before that, but we meet our hero when heās walking aimlessly through his cornfields, so somehow he did it. This is where things get interesting. Ray hears a voice that says: "If you build it, he will come." I didnāt know that famous line was from "Field of Dreams." I thought it was an old Roman saying. But then I realized that I was thinking of "Rome wasnāt built in a day." Iām going to be honest: From here on out, I had very little idea as to what was happening in the movie. The basic gist is that Ray hears this voice telling him to build a baseball field, SO HE DOES. Heās scared of never being spontaneous and thinks that if he doesnāt act now, heāll end up being boring like his dad. I want to tell Ray that 36 isnāt that old and that he has a few years before he needs to kick into midlife crisis mode, but maybe 36 was older in the '80s than it is now. Rayās wife is strangely supportive of her husbandās blind drive to follow this voice, even if it means using all their savings to install massive floodlights and mowing down enough of their corn crop that they can no longer break even. They end up owing their house to the bank and also Annieās brother, Mark, who seems to be in business with the bank guys. This, however, doesnāt stop Ray from chasing his dreams, even though he doesnāt know what his dreams are. That's because Shoeless Joe Jackson and the whole 1919 Black Sox team show up to the field. They are ghosts, Iām pretty sure, but Ray, Annie and Karin can see them. Annieās brother and mom canāt, though, so they tell Ray heās nuts. The movie gets even wackier when Annie delivers an impassioned speech against censorship at a PTA meeting. Some very proper-looking lady who seems to have wandered into this movie from "Footloose" is trying to ban a book in the Iowa public schools. The author is a guy named Terence Mann (no, not the current NBA player), played by James Earl Jones. We find out that Mann was a hippie/activist/the guy who coined the phrase "Make love, not war," but he has since given up hope for humanity and become a computer programmer in Boston (???). [STORY IMAGE 2] Annie calls the woman arguing against Mannās book a "Nazi cow" and a "book burner" and tells the woman that she didnāt experience the Sixties but "had two Fifties and moved right into the Seventies." The woman is like, "Well, your husband plowed under his corn and built a baseball field, the weirdo!" You gotta admit, she has a point. Annie wins the argument when she gets everyone in the audience to raise their hands and basically denounce communism (once again: ???). But Ray isnāt really listening to his wife during her moment of patriotic, first-amendment glory. Instead, heās listening to the voice, which is now telling him that he has to take Mann to a baseball game because Mann once wrote a story with a character named John Kinsella, Rayās fatherās name. So Ray goes to Boston and kind of kidnaps James Earl Jones, a.k.a. Terence Mann, at fake gunpoint. The Mann storyline is interesting ā he is sick of feeling like the world thinks he owes it something. He doesnāt want to be a figurehead for peace and love anymore because he doesnāt believe in them. But Kevin Costner wonāt leave his apartment, so Mann is like, fine! Iāll go to Fenway with you, you lunatic. As someone who grew up going to school right next to Fenway Park and loves that ballpark more than anything else in sports, I was quite pleased with this turn of events, even if I was completely clueless as to why they were happening. Fun fact: According to Wikipedia, Ben Affleck and Matt Damon were extras in this scene. Doesnāt get more Boston than that, kid! From there, Ray and Mann drive to Minnesota to find an old ballplayer, but it turns out that ballplayer is dead. So they time travel and discover that this ballplayer played only one inning in the major leagues and then became a doctor. (Meanwhile, back in Iowa, Annie has causally lost the house to the bank, even though neither she nor Ray seems particularly worried about that.) Ray and Mann go back to Iowa, and on the way, they pick up a hitchhiker, who ā you guessed it! ā turns out to be a young version of the dead doctor they just met when they traveled back in time. The guys get home. Shoeless Joe and his buddies are all playing a game on the field when Annieās brother comes to seize the farm. But Ray and Annieās daughter, Karin, who must be around 6, is like, "Donāt sell the farm. People will pay to come to this baseball field" (though itās unclear if the general public will be able to see the ghosts). Mark gets angry and basically pushes the child off the bleachers, which doesnāt get nearly enough attention after the fact. Karin is lying on the ground, seemingly lifeless, when the young-man version of the dead doctor steps off the field, turns into an old man and saves Karinās life. Mark watches this happen and suddenly believes Ray, so he tells them to keep the house (even though thatās not how banks or mortgages work). [STORY IMAGE 3] Then Mann ā who seems to once again believe in peace and love, thanks to time travel and sports ā delivers an impassioned speech. "The one constant through all the years, Ray, has been baseball," he says. This is hands-down the sappiest speech I have ever heard in a movie, but for some reason, I start tearing up. I begin to cry harder when Ray realizes that his dead father is the catcher ā but as a young man, before "life wore him down." Ray also realizes that "If you build it, he will come" was always referring to his dad, so he finally understands his father and asks him to "have a catch." The movie ends with a bunch of cars driving up to pay Ray to look at the field. As the credits roll, Iām completely confused and very emotional. Look, I canāt tell you how this movie logically goes from A to Z, but I can tell you that Z is "feeling some type of way about your family, baseball and nostalgia." In other words, Z is the whole point. The journey to get there is enjoyable, and it doesnāt really matter what turns it takes. Which is exactly like baseball itself. You donāt have to understand the gameās intricacies or even pay attention the whole time youāre watching, as long as you know the end result and understand why the game matters. [STORY IMAGE 4] Iāve often said that going to a baseball game is a religious experience. There is something hallowed about sitting in a ballpark on a summer evening with a hot dog. Time slows down, your practical worries fade away, and you fall into the rhythm of sounds: the bat cracking, the ball thudding into a glove, the people cheering, the ushers yelling about peanuts and beers you can buy. Baseball is about the build-up and release of tension. Action is not guaranteed, but feeling is. I apologize that that paragraph is the corniest thing Iāve ever written, but a) I mean it and b) "Field of Dreams" is one of the corniest movies Iāve ever seen. Yet somehow, it carries itself with its own earnestness. The nostalgia of it ā even things like Costnerās perfect '80s jeans and his wifeās high-waisted shorts that are once again fashionable in 2021 ā is comforting, 32 years later. If I had seen this as a kid, I donāt think I would have had any problem following the plot: Itās a fantastical adventure that children can accept. When youāre little, you donāt think twice about whether something could actually happen, and you donāt judge a man who hears a voice and decides to listen to it ā even if it means ruining his livelihood in the process. It is bold for what is basically a science fiction movie to exist in a world that isnāt magical. As an adult, it feels bold to succumb to something that doesnāt fully make sense. But the important thing is that you come away from it understanding that family matters and baseball matters because it can connect you to your family. "Field Of Dreams" is a romantic movie about a romantic sport. The point isnāt to understand why the cars are lining up to see the dream field. Itās to trust ā or at least hope ā that if you were given the chance, youād line up, too. Charlotte Wilder is a general columnist and cohost of "The Peopleās Sports Podcast" for FOX Sports. She's honored to represent the constantly neglected Boston area in sports media, loves talking to sports fans about their feelings and is happiest eating a hotdog in a ballpark or nachos in a stadium. Follow her on Twitter @TheWilderThings. [STORY IMAGE 5] Hereās what others have said ... Ben Verlander: FOX Sports Baseball Analyst: āThis place is magical. I get the chills every time I walk through these cornfields.ā Steve Stone, Chicago White Sox analyst: āMy favorite baseball movies is āField of Dreams.ā It has a sense of mysticism wrapped around a message of hope. The scene where father and son play catch still brings tears to my eyes. What I would give to do that one more time. Baseball and a magical field in Iowa. Powerful combo.ā Aaron Boone, New York Yankees manager: āIāll have my glove, and Iām sure Iāll have a catch somewhere that day.ā [IN OTHER WORDS] - Protection will be crucial early on in the return of Cincinnati Bengals quarterback Joe Burrow, [FOX Sports Injury & Performance Analyst Dr. Matt Provencher writes.](
- What should fans be wishing for as Week 1 of the NFL season approaches? [FOX Sportsā Colin Cowherd shares his list.](
- The Yankees are testing the notion that bigger is better in baseball, [FOX Sports MLB Writer Jordan Shusterman writes.]( [THE INTERNET IS UNDEFEATED] [THE INTERNET IS UNDEFEATED]( āIf you build it, they will come.ā The Field of Dreams Game is set get underway tonight, featuring a matchup between the New York Yankees and the Chicago White Sox in Dyersville, Iowa, where "Field of Dreams" was filmed. Check out this incredible promo video, which was shared by our @MLBonFOX team. The video includes everything from the iconic house featured in the movie, to the cornfields and the field itself where the game will be played. Coverage will begin at 6 p.m. ET, with first pitch scheduled or 7:15 p.m. ET on FOX. Play Ball! [VIEWER'S GUIDE] New York Yankees vs. Chicago White Sox (FOX, 7:15 p.m. ET)
Andrew Heaney takes the mound for the New York Yankees, who go up against Lance Lynn and the Chicago White Sox in the Field of Dreams Game. NBA Summer League Basketball (ESPN2, 7 p.m. ET)
Jalen Suggs and the Orlando Magic take on Carson Edwards and the Boston Celtics in NBA Summer League action. NBA Summer League Basketball (ESPN2, 9 p.m. ET)
Tyrese Maxey and the Philadelphia 76ers battle Jalen Johnson and the Atlanta Hawks in NBA Summer League action. [BET OF THE DAY] [BET OF THE DAY] Odds provided by [FOX Bet]( It has been 32 years since the iconic ballpark in an Iowa cornfield from "Field of Dreams" became a part of American life. On Thursday (6 p.m. ET, FOX), Major League Baseball will turn the Hawkeye State into baseball heaven with a game between the New York Yankees and Chicago White Sox at an 8,000-seat stadium custom-built next to the movie landmark. As you watch the Field of Dreams game on FOX Thursday night, [you can win big for free with FOX Super 6](. Just answer correctly six questions about how the game will play out, [and you could win $10,000 of David Ortiz's money.]( Itās free and easy to play ā [just download the FOX Super 6 app from your phone or tablet device, make your picks and tune in!]( Here are the questions for Thursday nightās game: How many home runs will be hit?
The options: 0, 1, 2, 3, 4 or 5-plus How many runs will be scored?
The options: 0-3, 4, 5, 6, 7 or 8-plus How many strikeouts will be thrown?
The options: 0-5, 6-8, 9-10, 11-12, 13-14 or 15-plus Who will have the winning pitcher, and how many innings will he pitch?
The options: Yankees or White Sox, with assorted ranges from 1/3 of an inning to six-plus innings Which team will score more runs, and how many will they score?
The options: Yankees or White Sox, with ranges from one to nine-plus runs Which team will win, and by how many runs?
The options: Yankees or White Sox, with ranges from one to nine-plus runs [WHAT THEY SAID] āIf you build it, he will come.ā ā Field Of Dreams [FOLLOW FOX SPORTS] [Twitter]( [Facebook]( [YouTube]( [Instagram]( Download FOX Sports App: [Fire TV](
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