Moneyball

Right now you can watch Moneyball in Australia on Amazon Prime Video and BINGE, and in the US on Netflix and YouTube TV — and it holds up to as much attention as you give it. A tight runtime that never overstays its welcome. A 7/10 rating says what the writing already makes obvious: this one works. Brad Pitt sets the tone, and the rest of the cast matches it scene for scene. Put it on tonight on Amazon Prime Video and see for yourself.

Moneyball arrived without much fanfare and built its audience the hard way — through word of mouth. The writing in Moneyball treats its characters as people first, plot devices second. The story of Oakland Athletics general manager Billy Beane's successful attempt to put together a baseball team on a budget, by employing computer-generated analysis to draft his players. Brad Pitt and Jonah Hill lead a cast that treats the material with real seriousness. Moneyball came out in 2011. Moneyball resists tidy resolutions in a way that respects how messy real consequences actually are. There is real craft here, even in the moments that do not fully land.

Viewers drawn to character-driven storytelling will find plenty to sit with in Moneyball. It has built its own audience without needing a direct comparison. Best experienced as a single, sustained watch from start to finish. Brad Pitt is the centre of it, and it is one of their strongest performances on record. The patience it asks of you early on is paid back with interest.