Such a frustrating disappointment

A different way of telling a story

The biggest problem with this movie is it’s a little better than you think it might be, which somehow makes it worse. As in, it takes itself a bit too seriously, which makes most of the movie feel kind of dull.

There is, somehow, an interesting story here, as well as some good acting. There are also some good scenes

I've only recently developed an interest in baseball, not surprising I suppose, given the almost zero coverage it's gotten here in my native Scotland and sought out this thrilling short documentary after watching Ken Burns' exhaustive 11 part history of the sport on Netflix.So while being in no way an expert on the sport, I was at least aware of the huge rivalry between the two competing teams the New York Yankees and the Boston Red Sox as well as the heretofore history of domination of the former over the latter ever since, so the legend went, Boston sold all-time great Babe Ruth to their rivals and never won a World Series again for nigh on a hundred years when this dramatic series (actually for the right to play in the World Series Finals of that year). What made it so dramatic was the circumstances of their win, a come-from-behind 4-3 triumph after falling three games behind. More than that, the story packs in the key moments of the drama as Boston improbably came back from the dead, with none more memorable than the game that their injured pitcher played through an excruciating (and obviously bleeding) ankle injury to help his team win.Related in strictly day-by-day chronological fashion, the film-makers only sparingly use retrospective narration by key players in the drama, preferring to match these up with contemporary news and sport coverage of the day. Focusing entirely on the events of the four days, the documentary does a good job in encapsulating the lows and highs of the Boston team, staff and fans as their team finally defeat "the Curse of the Bambino".I enjoyed it very much and felt akin to the Bostonian cause having once visited Fenway Park for a Red Sox match fifteen years or so go.My crush on baseball goes on, long may it flourish and documentaries like this to be made

While I think the filmmakers could have explained more about the history of the rivalry between the Yankees and Red Sox as well as the Sox drought on World Series wins, this is otherwise this is a perfect sports documentary. Even though I knew that the Red Sox managed to finally win a series against the dreaded Yankees (and so will most viewers), they managed to create a HUGE sense of tension--one that kept you on the edge of your seat--years and years after this great series. Excellent editing, a nice use of stock footage and interviews and nice music--it all came together on this one and Gary Waksman should be commended on this one. Well worth seeing--particularly if you are Bostonian. And if you are a Yankees fan, get over it--after all, you have a bazillion World Series wins to console you over this one loss!

There is no doubt that the Red Sox 2004 American League Championship Series, and the following World Series Championship are truly great sports stories. Only if you absolutely hated the Red Sox could a person say anything contrary to that, and even some of those haters would even admit that it was a great story. The legendary struggles of the Red Sox vs the Yankees; The Curse Of The Big Bambino, and the black cloud that hung over the Bo Sox and their fans for the 86 year World Series drought that followed; All coming to such a dramatic end is the kind of story that was too great to be written in Hollywood. Mainly because a fictional version would be too unbelievable to leave much of an emotional impression on the viewer. However when this story, 86 years in the making actually did all finally unfold, it left an impression far beyond Boston. It left an unforgettable emotional impression on countless sports fans across the globe. If Bobby Thomson and the New York Giants had The Shot Heard 'Round The World, then the Red Sox pulled off The Shocker Heard 'Round The World.All that said, I was fairly disappointed in this instalment of the 30 for 30 series. Don't get me wrong, it isn't bad, but it really isn't all that great either. Put it this way, in 10 or 20 years this isn't the documentary I'd want to show young kids about this great sports story. The editing in this film and the overall direction just leaves a lot to be desired. This is an okay attempt to relive these 2004 Baseball moments, however there is a tremendous amount of room for improvement given the events and history here.4/10

30 for 30: Four Days in October (2010) **** (out of 4) Another terrific entry in ESPN's 30 FOR 30 series. I'm sure baseball fans will know this story and God knows that the people in Boston and New York will certainly remember every second of these four days. The story is pretty simple as the Red Sox fell behind three games to zero only to mount the greatest comeback in sports history to finally get over their curse, beat the Yankees and end up winning the world series. Not only did they finally beat the Yankees but they became the first team to come back from a 3-0 deficit. I've been an Atlanta Braves fan all my life but I'm enough of a baseball fan where I watch the playoffs no matter if my team is in it or not. Perhaps because I was use to the Braves coming so close and then choking I could identify with the Boston fans who went into this series expecting it to be there year only to face the hardship of their team losing the first three games. I think fans everywhere, no matter who your team was, started to cheer for them and one game at a time we witnessed history. The documentary does a terrific job at showing what it was like in Boston as we get plenty of behind the scenes footage from inside the clubhouse as well as some fun stuff at Boston bars. Just watching the fans go through their ups and downs was entertaining enough for a five-hour movie. The film runs just under an hour but you can get all the magic that these four days contained. I don't think anyone who watched this series will ever forget it and this documentary does a great job at reliving those days and the greatest comeback in history.