Catching Hell

Dean-O here.

I need to disclose a few things before I start:

1. I grew up in the Chicago area
2. I am a devout Cubs fan
3. I drove 8 hours from Orlando to Atlanta early on Sunday, October 5^th, 2003 and sat down the 3^rd base line at Turner Field that evening as the Chicago Cubs defeated the Atlanta Braves in Game 5 of their Division Championship Series, putting them 4 wins away from making their first World Series appearance since the 1940’s. After the game, I drove back home and went to work without sleeping…or without a voice.

Needless to say, I was consumed with the ensuing Cubs chase for the National League pennant against the Florida Marlins. I was elated after the Cubs took a commanding 3-1 series lead after 4 games. And I was on the borderline of hysteria as I watched Game 6 unfold on my TV. The Cubs were up 3-0 going into the 8^th inning. Mark Prior was on the mound and he was dominant. A lifetime of dreams was in our grasp. The Cubs were on the cusp of making it to the World Series.

Then, a fly ball went down the left field line, and everything changed.

It became known as “The Bartman Ball”. Steve Bartman, an unassuming 20-something fan ended up touching the ball as Moises Alou, the Cubs left fielder, reached up to try and catch it. Alou didn’t make the catch, and he immediately reacted with outrage. The ensuing collapse by the Cubs is epic, legendary, and still makes me sick to my stomach. Bigger than that, though, is the reaction to Bartman that occurred during the game. He was isolated, taunted, vilified, and became the symbolic scapegoat for the Cubs failure.

Last month, ESPN Films released a documentary by Alex Gibney titled “Catching Hell”. In his film, he examines the notions of “curses” and “scapegoats” while providing an in-depth perspective on that fateful play and the subsequent fall-out. ESPN Films has produced many impactful documentaries as a part of their “30 for 30” series, and this was no exception. Obviously, this film brought back some painful memories, but I was fascinated by two aspects of his film in particular. First, he incorporated footage from two amateur documentarians – one guy behind the video camera, one guy in front of it. They recorded the experience of arriving at the ballpark that day, getting to their seats in the left field bleachers, and giving their own “fan reaction” running commentary of the events as they unfolded. What this footage captured that Fox TV Network coverage did not was the raw emotion of the fans as the 8^th inning unfolded. The feeling in the stadium went from jubilation to confusion to disbelief to anger and hatred…all within a span of 30 minutes. Most of that anger was directed at the kid in the left field seat…not to the product on the playing field. To watch that “gang mentality” play out so clearly on film and tying it to the coverage that Fox provided – essentially fueling it without fully appreciating the impact they were having – it was a masterful presentation on Gibney’s part. Equally as enthralling was the “behind the scenes” footage – the interviews with the Fox TV producer and commentators, with security personnel at the stadium that day, and with those in the seats around Bartman. They all played a part in the way that the events unfolded around this young man, and hearing first-hand accounts of how he had to be hidden, disguised and escorted to a temporary location before eventually going to his hotel room was captivating. Above all else, though, hearing the story of Bartman’s confusion over what had transpired, his watching the replays of the events in the bowels of Wrigley Field’s security office, his remorse and his outright fear – it was compelling.

While there were parts of this film that I could have done without – specifically the preacher who goes into a diatribe on scapegoating and blowing up the “Bartman Ball” – I was really impressed with this film. Going into it, I thought I knew what to expect. After all, I lived through these events. Gibney managed to give viewers a comprehensive perspective on the incident and the fallout from it. I learned more about the event and the person it impacted than I knew going in, and it made me reflect back on those events in a new light. This film is as much a study in human behavior as it is a dissection of an unfortunate event in a historic baseball series, and I would recommend it to anyone – Cubs fan or not!

NBM rates Catching Hell as Awesome.