John Sayles directs John Cusack, Charlie Sheen and David Strathairn in this dramatisation of the Black Sox scandal when the underpaid Chicago White Sox accepted bribes to deliberately lose the 1919 World Series.

Baseball. An all-star cast. America’s loss of innocence. The unbeatable grind of capitalism. The accidental Field Of Dream’s prequel flick. Sayles is an unshowy yet marvellous filmmaker. Beloved by critics but too often overlooked by audiences and awards bodies. He has his house players but the love for ensemble storytelling means the big names have to work overtime to hit their marks. Without constant close-ups and grandstanding. Cusack clearly chimes with this style as he gives his first outstanding acting performance and carried on exploring the ensemble format throughout the Nineties with his leftie A-List pal Tim Robbins. The bosses always win.

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Perfect Double Bill: The Natural (1984)

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