Off the Black
| Off the Black | |
|---|---|
 Theatrical release poster | |
| Directed by | James Ponsoldt |
| Produced by |
Scott Macaulay Robin O'Hara |
| Written by | James Ponsoldt |
| Starring |
Nick Nolte Trevor Morgan Timothy Hutton Sally Kirkland |
| Music by |
Claire Campbell Alex Neville Brian Petway |
| Cinematography | Tim Orr |
| Edited by | Sabine Hoffmann |
| Distributed by | Axiom Films (UK and Ireland) |
Release dates |
|
Running time | 90 minutes[1] |
| Country | United States |
| Language | English |
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.[2]
Plot
Ray Cook (Nolte) 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, played by Sonia Feigelson) with an absent mother and a father (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 | Dave Tibbel |
| Nick Nolte | Ray Cook |
| Sonia Feigelson | Ashley Tibbel |
| Rosemarie DeWitt | Debra |
| Timothy Hutton | Mr. Tibbel |
| Sally Kirkland | Marianne Reynolds |
| Noah Fleiss | Todd Hunter |
| Johnathan Tchaikovsky | Paul Michaels |
| Michael Higgins | Al Cook |
Reception
Off the black received positive reviews and has a rating of 65% on Rotten Tomatoes based on 43 reviews with an average rating of 6.3 out of 10. The critical consensus states "Nick Nolte shines in his role as an irascible high school umpire, imbuing this indie coming-of-age dramedy with heft and true-to-life warmth."[3]
The film only had a limited release in America and made $24,425.[4]