Off the Black
Encyclopedia
Off the Black is a 2006 American
drama film
starring Nick Nolte
and Trevor Morgan
. It was written and directed by James Ponsoldt
, who also has a small role in the film, and is his feature directorial debut.
) is a bitter, disconcerted high school baseball umpire and chronic alcoholic who, after a series of unusual events, crosses paths with Dave Tibbel (Morgan
), a high school baseball player seeking revenge after Cook's questionable calls cost his team the most crucial game of the season. Over time, an unlikely bond forms between the mismatched pair, and Dave agrees to pose as Ray's son for the old man's forty-year high school reunion. The film is a story of two wandering lost souls, one an adolescent boy struggling (along with his younger sister-a sad lonely Sonia Feigelson) with an absent mother and a father (played brilliantly by Timothy Hutton) who has entirely checked out, and the other an older man, who has seen the curve balls life can throw at you and continuously struck out in his struggle to be the man he wishes to be.
United States
The United States of America is a federal constitutional republic comprising fifty states and a federal district...
drama film
Drama film
A drama film is a film genre that depends mostly on in-depth development of realistic characters dealing with emotional themes. Dramatic themes such as alcoholism, drug addiction, infidelity, moral dilemmas, racial prejudice, religious intolerance, poverty, class divisions, violence against women...
starring Nick Nolte
Nick Nolte
Nicholas King "Nick" Nolte is an American actor whose career has spanned over five decades, peaking in the 1990s when his commercial success made him one of the most popular celebrities of that decade.-Early life:...
and Trevor Morgan
Trevor Morgan (actor)
Trevor John Morgan is an American actor. He has appeared in the films Genius, The Sixth Sense, The Patriot, A Rumor of Angels, Jurassic Park III, The Glass House, Chasing 3000, Mean Creek, Barney's Great Adventure, Local Color, Family Plan and Uncle Nino.-Early life:Trevor John Morgan was born...
. It was written and directed by James Ponsoldt
James Ponsoldt
James Adam Ponsoldt is an American film director, actor and screenwriter from Athens, Georgia, now based in New York City.-History:Ponsoldt grew up in Athens and attended Cedar Shoals High School...
, who also has a small role in the film, and is his feature directorial debut.
Plot synopsis
Ray Cook (NolteNick Nolte
Nicholas King "Nick" Nolte is an American actor whose career has spanned over five decades, peaking in the 1990s when his commercial success made him one of the most popular celebrities of that decade.-Early life:...
) is a bitter, disconcerted high school baseball umpire and chronic alcoholic who, after a series of unusual events, crosses paths with Dave Tibbel (Morgan
Trevor Morgan (actor)
Trevor John Morgan is an American actor. He has appeared in the films Genius, The Sixth Sense, The Patriot, A Rumor of Angels, Jurassic Park III, The Glass House, Chasing 3000, Mean Creek, Barney's Great Adventure, Local Color, Family Plan and Uncle Nino.-Early life:Trevor John Morgan was born...
), a high school baseball player seeking revenge after Cook's questionable calls cost his team the most crucial game of the season. Over time, an unlikely bond forms between the mismatched pair, and Dave agrees to pose as Ray's son for the old man's forty-year high school reunion. The film is a story of two wandering lost souls, one an adolescent boy struggling (along with his younger sister-a sad lonely Sonia Feigelson) with an absent mother and a father (played brilliantly by Timothy Hutton) who has entirely checked out, and the other an older man, who has seen the curve balls life can throw at you and continuously struck out in his struggle to be the man he wishes to be.
Cast
| Actor | Role |
|---|---|
| Trevor Morgan Trevor Morgan (actor) Trevor John Morgan is an American actor. He has appeared in the films Genius, The Sixth Sense, The Patriot, A Rumor of Angels, Jurassic Park III, The Glass House, Chasing 3000, Mean Creek, Barney's Great Adventure, Local Color, Family Plan and Uncle Nino.-Early life:Trevor John Morgan was born... |
Dave Tibbel |
| Nick Nolte Nick Nolte Nicholas King "Nick" Nolte is an American actor whose career has spanned over five decades, peaking in the 1990s when his commercial success made him one of the most popular celebrities of that decade.-Early life:... |
Ray Cook |
| Sonia Feigelson | Ashley Tibbel |
| Rosemarie DeWitt Rosemarie DeWitt Rosemarie DeWitt is an American actress. DeWitt played Emily Lehman in the Fox television series Standoff, co-starring her now husband Ron Livingston, from 2006 through 2007, and played Charmaine Craine on Showtime's acclaimed original series, United States of Tara... |
Debra |
| Timothy Hutton Timothy Hutton Timothy Tarquin Hutton is an American actor. He is the youngest actor to win the Academy Award for Best Supporting Actor, which he won at the age of 20 for his performance as Conrad Jarrett in Ordinary People . He currently stars as Nathan "Nate" Ford on the TNT series Leverage.-Early life:Timothy... |
Mr. Tibbel |
| Sally Kirkland Sally Kirkland Sally Kirkland is an American film and television actress.-Early life:Kirkland was named after her mother, fashion editor Sally Kirkland, who was a fashion editor at Vogue and LIFE magazines, and was raised in Philadelphia, Pennsylvania. Her father, Frederic McMichael Kirkland, worked in the scrap... |
Marianne Reynolds |
| Noah Fleiss Noah Fleiss Noah Fleiss is an American film and television actor. He was born in White Plains, New York.Fleiss made his screen debut as a young runaway who drives cross-country with his brother in Josh and S.A.M. , perhaps his best-known film... |
Todd Hunter |
| Johnathan Tchaikovsky | Paul Michaels |
| Michael Higgins | Al Cook |