Field of Dreams

Movie Details:

Cast & Characters:

• Kevin Costner as Ray Kinsella
• Amy Madigan as Annie Kinsella
• Gaby Hoffmann as Karin Kinsella
• James Earl Jones as Terence Mann
• Ray Liotta as Shoeless Joe Jackson
• Timothy Busfield as Mark
• Kelly Coffield Park as Dee, Mark’s wife
• Burt Lancaster as Dr. Archibald “Moonlight” Graham
• Frank Whaley as young Archibald Graham
• Dwier Brown as John Kinsella
• Lee Garlington as Beulah Gasnick
• Michael Milhoan as Buck Weaver (3B)
• Steve Eastin as Eddie Cicotte (P)
• Charles Hoyes as Swede Risberg (C)
• Art LaFleur as Chick Gandil (1B)

Storyline:

Iowa farmer Ray Kinsella hears a voice in his cornfield tell him, “If you build it, he will come.” He interprets it as an instruction to build a baseball field on his farm, upon which appear the ghosts of Shoeless Joe Jackson and the other seven Chicago White Sox players banned from the game for throwing the 1919 World Series. When the voices continue, Ray seeks out a reclusive author to help him understand the meaning of the messages and the purpose for his field.

About Movie:

Field of Dreams is an American sports fantasy drama directed and written by Phil Alden Robinson, adapted from W. P. Kinsella’s 1982 novel Shoeless Joe. The film stars Kevin Costner as Ray Kinsella, a farmer who builds a baseball field in his cornfield, guided by mysterious voices, leading to extraordinary events. Amy Madigan, James Earl Jones, Ray Liotta, and Burt Lancaster also star, with Lancaster making his final film appearance.

Filming began on May 25, 1988, and primarily took place in Dubuque County, Iowa. Key locations included a farm near Dyersville, an empty warehouse in Dubuque, and Galena, Illinois, which stood in for Moonlight Graham’s hometown. Fenway Park in Boston was also featured in the film. To accommodate the film’s timeline, filmmakers used irrigation to quickly grow corn to Kevin Costner’s height.

Despite having the cast and crew he wanted, Robinson experienced significant stress throughout production, fearing he wasn’t doing justice to Kinsella’s novel. Producer Lawrence Gordon reassured him that the final product would resonate with audiences.

Released on May 5, 1989, Field of Dreams garnered positive reviews and earned three Academy Award nominations: Best Picture, Best Original Score, and Best Adapted Screenplay. In 2017, it was selected for preservation in the U.S. National Film Registry by the Library of Congress.

Budget & Box Office Collection: