Forgive me baseball movie fans, for I may have sinned. I've gone my whole life, until tonight, without watching the 1994 remake of "Angels in the Outfield." I confess. I've avoided it for years because I feared the over-the-top cheesiness that I was sure would make it too much to stomach. I wasn't entirely wrong, but not completely right, either. Fun fact: the owner of the Angels in the film, Hank Murphy, is a cowboy-hat wearing, straight-talking fella that's loosly based on the real-life owner of the Angels back then, "The Singing Cowboy" Gene Autry. Details like this and other fun tidbits keep this remake from becoming two hours that feel like 40 days and 40 nights. (Okay, I'm done.)

The general premise of "Angels in the Outfield," is that a kid, Roger Bowman, who is stuck at a foster home makes a wish for the Angels to win because his dad said that their family would only get back together "when the Angels win the pennant." Of course, this becomes a bit literal as actual angels show up to help Roger's wish come true. As the action progresses you learn a bit about some of the players and the grizzled old manager played by none other than Danny Glover. Will the Angels win the pennant? Only Heaven knows.

While this is mostly a kids' flick, it has a PG rating for reasons I don't understand. There are a few curse words that seem like they could come out and let this be a bit more of a straight up kids movie, but what do I know? The cast is a fun mix of veteran actors who perfectly represent 1994 like Glover, Tony Danza, and Christopher Lloyd and at-the-time unknown young actors like Joseph Gordon Levitt, Matthew McConaughey, Dermot Mulroney, and Adrien Brody. The acting is fine and the on-field baseball action fluctuates between solid baseball play and Looney Tunes-type action when those helpers from above get mixed up in the game. The result is a movie that is undeniably Disney in its makeup, but interesting enough to be at least watchable. Glover and Levitt carry the bulk of the acting as we don't really get to know the other characters too well. Christopher Lloyd plays the head angel and he's pretty much what you expect him to be: quirky, confusing, and, yet likable. 

After the last out I found myself thinking that this wasn't nearly as bad as I expected it to be. If you watched it as a kid, I can see where it may be a sentimental favorite like cotton candy at the ballgame. I'm glad I finally gave it a chance. Now, I feel like I need to go dig up the 1951 original for comparison.
 

Scorecard: Squibber single.

Best line: (baseball announcer) Ranch Wilder: Whit Bass takes the mound with his oddball antics that are now well known to the fans.
                 (Color man) Wally: That's right, Ranch. This season alone we've seen him lick dirt, eat bugs, and floss his catcher's teeth in the dugout.

Run time: 1 hr 42 min

Where can you see it? Finally! One that's easy to find. "Angels in the Outfield" is on Disney+ as well as TBS if you have the ability to get TBS on demand titles.