Could Not Buy the Story

"This movie was the worst sports story I have ever seen. I am disappointed in myself for having wasted my time watching it."

That's too bad Northstar. If I had to rank Field of Dreams and The Natural, Field would come out first, by a hair, but I'll stop and watch this everytime. The attraction is the underdog and baseball, two things Americans root for (at least we used to). Of course its a fantasy and it doesn't follow the book faithfully, what movie does? I prefer the movie to the book, only because in its ending does it convey a sense of hope, that there are second chances and that's what this movie is all about. With Field of Dreams, I watch it for its ending when Ray Kinsella (Kevin Costner) asks his dad, "Dad, wanna have a catch?" What man who grew up playing catch with their dad wouldn't want to do that just one more time? But with The Natural, it is the second chance, the underdog being able to do it, finally, and without compromise. The Natural is great for its look, its story, its acting and finally, its tale of redemtion.

It's one of the best works of theatrical art produced in this country, and it's not about baseball.

Read the book, it's much more realistic.

"we had to accept that the old players could come back to life which was less of a leap than the belief that Roy Hobbs could hit a home run on every swing"

Let me see if I understand; you felt the natural was not believable because no one could hit a home run on every swing but "Field" was ok because it's easier to believe dead ballplayers can come back to life and play baseball in an Iowa cornfield with thousands attending???

Let me suggest that you are watching movies for all the wrong reasons; movies are intended to entertain people and you're apparently looking for reality, unless it involves dead ballplayers (I guess).

Pay attention. All of your questions are answered in the movie.
Harriet shoots Roy b/c she's a deranged killer traveling the country killing the best atheletes.
It takes him 16 years to come back b/c of how that shooting affected him.
The Judge could take over the team b/c he and Pops had a deal (they both owned half the team) that if the team did not win the pennant that year then the Judge could buy him out.

I thought you said you watched it? It was all there:

Why did Harriett shoot Roy?
Why does anyone shoot anyone? It was based on a true story about a young girl who was obsessed with a baseball player in the 1950's. He got traded, she couldn't deal with it, next time he came to town she shot him. Harriett had a whole serial killer motif going where she stalked and killed the best athletes of her time (a football player, then an Olympian). She planned to shoot The Whammer (aka Babe Ruth) but Roy "beat" him so she switched targets.

Why did it take 16 years for him to try to make a comeback if he loved the game so much?
Roy was a proud guy from a small town with dead father to complicate things. He had one goal in life - to play pro ball. When he didn't make it, especially the reason he didn't make it, he could not go home again. He felt like he let himself down, his town, his girl, and most importantly his father who died when he was young and basically instilled this goal into his son. He was lost, ashamed, and immature. We never hear the whole story but it sounds like things snowballed, the depression started, and he never got back on track. He couldn't put the ghost of "what might have been" to bed so he went back to baseball....as a hitter. He couldn't pitch due to his injury.

Why was the judge going to be able to take over the team if they lost?
They explained the whole thing in the movie. Red explains it to Roy: Pops got into financial trouble and had to sell his shares of the team to the judge. When he sold them he got a clause in the deal that said if the Knights win the pennant the next season (the Hobbs season) he could buy the shares back. Didn't you watch?

I'm not sure that you could make the case that ballplayers coming back to life is a harder sell than Roy's ability with the bat. I agree it is a little ridiculous but it IS a fantasy. And, it seems like Roy was the streakiest hitter EVER. When he was hot you couldn't get him out and when he was off he couldn't hit ANYTHING! In the end it averaged out to just a rare, special talent and not "game-changing" otherworldly.

I kept feeling like I had missed something and maybe I did but the story just seemed terribly disjointed.

Rule #76: No excuses. Play like a champion.

They explain everything in the movie. Re watch it.

And read the book.

OP: Harriett shooting Roy was based on an actual event, the shooter being Ruth Ann Steinhagen and the player being Eddie Waitkus. btw - she just died last December.

To put Field of Dreams in the same category with The Natural is like comparing my granddaughter's finger painting to the Mona Lisa. Field of Dreams was, to put it plainly, stupid. Not only the worst sports movie I ever saw, it was the worst movie I ever saw. If you think FoD is "charming" and TN is "dumb", that tells me all I need to know about you... and it ain't good.