The Legend of Bagger Vance
Directed by Robert Redford
- drama
- romance
- fantasy
The story
World War I has left golfer Rannulph Junuh a poker-playing alcoholic, his perfect swing gone. Now, however, he needs to get it back to play in a tournament to save the financially ravaged golf course of a long-ago sweetheart. Help arrives in the form of mysterious caddy Bagger Vance.
What it’s like
Warm golden-hour light spills across Georgia fairways in this 1930s-set film, with lush, slightly soft period colour, sun-bleached greens and dusty ochre clubhouse interiors, and long, unhurried wide shots that let the Southern landscape breathe. Its sound is mostly gentle: birdsong, the soft thwack of a club, murmured Southern voices, and a warm orchestral score that swells in the quiet moments. The mood is wistful and reflective, a dreamy blend of drama, romance and a touch of fantasy, with the rhythm of a slow golf round rather than a sprint. Its emotional core is a shell-shocked war veteran, a hard-drinking gambler who has lost his confidence, slowly finding his way back to himself with a mysterious helper's quiet guidance. Intensity is low: war is alluded to through memory and a brief heart-attack scene, with no graphic violence, and the drinking and despair are handled softly. It suits a slow weekend afternoon or a comfort watch, and is for viewers who want an old-fashioned, sentimental story about healing, self-belief and a little magic.
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