Eye opening
David E. Levine | Peekskill , NY USA | 03/24/2005
(5 out of 5 stars)
"I saw this movie on ESPN several times. It is an eye opener, if factually correct. Tom Sizemore plays Pete Rose and depicts him getting stooges to place bets for him. Rose's complicity in gambling on baseball is no longer in question, indeed, the movie closes with actual footage of Rose making admissions. What was a revelation to me was the depiction of Rose as a totally self centered user. Dash Mihok is very convincing as a sucker Rose uses to place bets for him and, as Rose gets more deeply involved, Rose cajoles him into laying out money on his behalf. Rose was smooth and he was adept at sucking others in and assuring them that all is OK with breezy assurances and back slapping. He had no real friends, only poor suckers who, starry eyed at being part of a celebrity's inner circle, were taken advantage of. They were Rose's "friends" only so long as they were useful to him. Otherwise, Rose would dump them and not return their calls.
Rose comes across as a prize BS artist who, cajoles and gets the celebrity stricken hanger on, played by Mihok, to do his dirty work. Rose's sin of betting on baseball, and particularly the Reds, was unforgivable but, not nearly as unforgivable as was his use of others. He ends up smooth talking his stooge rather than paying him back the money he owed. In fact, through his lawyer, Rose attempted to make it appear that he was doing the poor guy a favor when he paid back only a portion of the debt. Being involved in gambling was not half as bad as dragging others in with him and then attempting to leave them holding the bag. I am fully aware that filmakers resort to dramatic license but, if Rose's amoral use of others is subtanially true, then he certainly should never, ever, be allowed into baseball again. Perhaps, he should be allowed into the hall of fame, so long as his plaque does not gloss over his misdeeds. However, he should never be allowed on a baseball field in any official capacity."
All You Need To Know About Pete Rose
G. Abbate | Surprise, Arizona United States | 03/31/2005
(5 out of 5 stars)
"This movie does a pretty good job of showing what Pete Rose is about.....himself. He may have admitted to betting on baseball and the Reds after fourteen years of denial but he believed then and now that he is bigger than the game. The movie shows this.
The special features on this DVD are very good. It has interviews with the investigator John Dowd, Fay Vincent & Paul Janzen who was dumb enough to listen to Pete. Also included is the press conference with Bart Giamatti & the interview where he admits his guilt but STILL denies that they showed him the evidence that they had against him. Just check out these interviews and the movie and you'll agree that Pete doesn't belong in the Hall Of Fame."
Hustle
E. Wehrman | Cincinnati, OH | 12/03/2009
(5 out of 5 stars)
"Tom Sizemore did a good job as Pete Rose, except for the way he was walkign when he entered the gym in the very beginning. The Special Features were really neat, and it made me realize I hate Charlie Gibson even more than I thought, because it seemed to me that he asked Pete Rose the same question two times in a row, but reworded it the second time, which is stupid, because you're going to get the same answer you got before. Pete Rose did bet on baseball, and what he did did not affect the outcome of baseball games, yet he's banned from baseball for life, whereas Mark McGwire, Jason Giambi, Barry Bonds, and numerous other steroid users, are either still playing baseball, or srill affiliated with baseball in some way when what they did affected the outcome of games. They wouldn't have hit like they hit if they didn't do steroids. Bud Selig told Hal McCoy off the recored that Pete Rose will never be reinstated as long as he is commissioner, so hopefully we will get a new commissioner in 2012 that will reinstate Pete Rose, and make him eligible for the Hall of Fame, where he belongs."