In Catching Hell, Oscar-winning director Alex Gibney explores the psychology of die-hard sports fans and scapegoating through the lens of two infamous moments in baseball history. Now available On Demand via Tribeca Film.
At Game 6 of the 2003 National League Champion Series between the Chicago Cubs and the Florida Marlins, in a stadium of almost 40,000 rabid fans, a would-be foul ball found its way into the glove of one man—the soon-to-be-infamous Steve Bartman. Bartman, never again seen in public after that fateful night, became one more asterisk in the annals of sports history...
Until Oscar-winning director Alex Gibney (Taxi to the Dark Side, Client 9: The Rise and Fall of Eliot Spitzer) made a movie about him and other famous scapegoats, including Bill Buckner, whose through-the-legs error was a pivotal plot point in yet another Game 6, this time in the 1986 World Series between the Boston Red Sox and the New York Mets.
Produced by ESPN Films, Catching Hell premiered to enthralled audiences at the 2011 Tribeca Film Festival, and is now available on demand via Tribeca Film's VOD platform. To get you in the mood, we've put together an exclusive interview with Gibney, talking about the genesis of the movie, and his own "pain" (his word) following the 1986 Buckner flub. It's amazing how raw such pain can still be, as fellow sports fans will surely understand.
Special offer: Enter for your chance to win an invitation to a screening of Catching Hell in Tribeca on Tuesday, June 28, at 7:00 pm.
Watch Tribeca's exclusive interview with Alex Gibney:
Find out how YOU can see Catching Hell in your area. The film will also premiere on ESPN on September 27, 2011.
Want more? Check out the archived video of the entire After the Movie panel from the 2011 Tribeca Film Festival, featuring Alex Gibney talking with ESPN's Chris Connelly.
Want more from Tribeca? Visit TribecaFilm.com.