The Sandlot Is The Perfect Summer Film
A time machine that lets you relieve those carefree summer days.
The Sandlot was released on April 7, 1993. I was almost six years old. Watching that film at the Utah Theater in Logan is one of my earliest memories. I don’t remember who I was with but I do remember sitting several rows back from the small screen and enjoying the movie. The Sandlot encapsulates everything that was great about being a kid in the summer. There’s an innocence and wonder to the film that has captivated me—and so many others—for the past 30 years.
Unbridled Freedom
Everyone thinks that when they grew up was the best. I’m partial to this opinion because I grew up in the late 90s and early 2000s. There were fewer things to do in the summer back then so being outside was the best option. As soon as I finished my daily chores at home, I was out with my friends riding bikes, exploring, and hanging out. The Sandlot demonstrates the unbridled freedom of being an adolescent better than any film I’ve watched.
The characters in the film are rarely, if ever, at their houses. They’re often playing baseball, hanging out by a drug store, or at the pool. Even when they’re bored, they look like they’re having fun. Many of my summer days were spent trying to have fun, see something interesting, and stay cool.
The Fourth of July
The Fourth of July is the high watermark of summer, even though the holiday takes place two weeks after the summer solstice. The fever pitch of the 4th is a cacophony of parades, fireworks, cookouts, and conversations with friends and family. There’s zero expectation beyond enjoying yourself.
The Fourth of July scene in The Sandlot is a high point in the film before Smalls gets into the biggest pickle of his life by playing with a baseball signed by Babe Ruth. The excitement of playing baseball under the light of fireworks would make any kid feel like they’re playing in the big league. What I love most about this scene is how well it conveys the carefree life of being a kid. Watching this scene as an adult I can’t help but notice all of the work the adults put into the block party: the food, tables, chairs, fireworks, etc. As a kid, you don’t think about these things. That’s because, as parents, we do so much for our kids to ensure they have a great childhood.
Kid Problems
What I find to be the most enduring aspect of the film is how dramatic the experience of losing a Babe Ruth-signed baseball is. It might as well be the end of the world for the kids. The team is beside themselves after they discover they were playing with a baseball signed by their idol.
What happens next is a series of attempts to retrieve the baseball from the movie’s antagonist, The Beast. The kids start the retrieval process with simple tools. As each tactic fails to get the ball, they get more complex with their devices but ultimately fail. It seems the easiest solution is to jump over the fence and grab it.
Hilarity ensues when The Beast jumps the fence and chases Benny, the all-star player, across town. The chase ends with a final showdown between Benny and The Beast where he snatches the ball from the dog. In the process, The Beast gets injured and the team makes the right decision to save the dog.
The owner of the house finds out what the team’s been up to and asks why they didn’t just knock on the door and ask him to get it for them. Smalls and Benny meet with The Beast’s owner and discover that he used to play baseball with Babe Ruth. He trades them a baseball signed by the 1927 Yankees team in exchange for the chewed-up ball they just retrieved.
I remember dealing with problems as a kid and thinking it was the worst thing ever. But in reality, it’s inconvenient or even funny. Our perception of the world is narrow when we’re younger so the worst things are that, the worst things. We didn’t know any better back then. Solving problems—similar to losing a collectible baseball—helped us make sense of the world. It gave us problem-solving skills that informed our later decisions.
Why The Sandlot Is The Perfect Summer Film
As a kid, there’s nothing better than spending endless afternoons with your friends. The freedom and lack of responsibility we experienced as kids is lost on us at the time because we don’t know any different. When you grow up, have a job, raise a family, and take care of a home, it’s only then that you realize how awesome it was to be a kid.
The Sandlot is like a time machine that we can use to relieve those carefree summer days when the most important thing was to have fun with your friends. It’s a buddy film that gets better with each viewing. You don’t have to play baseball to understand its core message. You only need a childlike disposition and a sense of wonder to appreciate the film.
Long live summer!
The free range childhood of the Sandlot is the antithesis of our current helicopter parenting reality! https://12ft.io/proxy?q=https%3A%2F%2Fwww.theatlantic.com%2Ffamily%2Farchive%2F2023%2F07%2Fhelicopter-parenting-child-autonomy-standards%2F674618%2F%3Futm_source%3Dapple_news