FILM REVIEWS

Moneyball (PG-13) tells the true story of Oakland A’s general manager Billy Beane’s successful attempt to put together a baseball club on a small budget by employing computer-generated analysis to draft his players. Though he does not reach his goal of winning the World Series, he helps change the way baseball is approached. The film asks what we devote our lives to and why. The final scene, with Beane listening to a song performed by his daughter, caps this theme with the phrase “enjoy the show.” A good message for all of us, baseball fans or not.—Gordon Houser

Contagion (PG-13) is a thriller about the spread of a deadly disease and the panic that ensues. An international team of doctors contracted by the Center for Disease Control deals with the outbreak. Director Steven Soderbergh tracks the progress of the disease and the CDC’s attempt to identify the virus in order to find a cure. The film moves quickly as suspense builds. It presents ethical dilemmas people face about access to information or medicines. While this is fiction, it could happen. (See Miscellany, page 10.)—gh

Higher Ground (R) is perhaps the first film since The Apostle to portray a fundamentalist Christian group with honesty and respect, neither preaching a point nor holding it up for ridicule. Vera Farmiga, who directed the film, is magnificent in the lead role of a woman who embraces faith, then experiences ambivalence, leading her to question what she’s been taught. The portrayal of her group could have been more nuanced, but the film tells an engaging story of faith.—gh

Restless (PG-13) tells the story of a terminally ill teenage girl who falls for a boy who attends funerals. He lost his parents and nearly died himself in a car accident and talks with the ghost of a Japanese kamikaze pilot from World War II. The teenagers’ quirky relationship makes the focus on death and dying less maudlin. This jaunty film depicts the relish of being alive, though it ignores the Source of that life.—gh