Hustle (2004)

Starring: Tom Sizemore, Sarain Boylan, & Dash Mihok

Rating: 3 out of 5 stars

He's not in the Hall of Fame, nevertheless, Pete Rose was still one of the best players in Baseball history. He played for an amazing 27 years, setting the all-time hits record, but this film ignores all of that. I'm a baseball fanatic and I find bio-pics, like this one, to be a great tool for learning more about the people who came before my time. Hustle was unfortunately very one sided and focuses entirely on Rose's activities after his playing career. Tom Sizemore stars as Rose and makes this film worth watching, he really does do a tremendous job, and that's the only reason this film is rated ad highly as it is. After doing some research, it turns out that the events in this film are historically accurate, but blown way out of proportion. Hustle makes Pete Rose look like a junior gangster, running around Cincinnati, ripping people off, and using anyone that he can find. The truth is that Pete Rose was a sick man with a gambling addiction. He got in over his head and yes, he started betting on his own sport and even the team he managed. Rose was never buddy buddy with the mafia, he never bet hundreds of thousands of dollars at one time, and he was never involved with drugs. This film makes a case that Pete Rose was a small time gangster in a baseball uniform and that's simply not true. The man had an addiction that he's been treated for. This addiction cost him his career, his status, and even his family. 25 years later, he's admitted to what he's done and has sincerely apologized. I personally think, it's been long enough and it's time to put the man in the Hall of Fame. It's also time for someone to do an accurate film depiction of Rose, that shows the good along with the bad, something Hustle simply doesn't do.