The Hill (2023) It is based on the true story of baseball player Rickey Hill and shows the general struggle between a father and son over God’s plan for Rickey.
Young Rickey is defined by his love of baseball and his “prodigy” batting skill. Rickey’s girlfriend thinks he’s cheating because he can’t have full body rotation in braces. Yet he can hit rocks with a stick over 100 feet.
Rickey’s girlfriend says “I know what a homer looks like.” Rickey responded, “It’s not a homer until you’re in the majors.”
Hitting to close to home
He will eventually get his opportunity to bat in the majors, but he has obstacles before that. A main obstacle is the attitude of his father. James Hill is a preacher. His faith comes before his family.
A scene that demonstrates this is a dinner argument with him and his mother in law. After James says grace, his mother in law says “(Faith) It’s mighty hard to muster when he providth so little… fifty dollars a month, your children are starving.”
James “You know sometimes Lillian sometimes faith takes sacrifices of the Apostles.” In response “None of the Apostles had bad bones!” James “That’s enough!” Lillian “You can shut me down, but how are you going to quiet that voice that says you starved that boy (Rickey) and put him in a wheelchair. (The Hill, 2023, 00.13.00-00.14.30)
Life Stats
The word wheelchair is used as a marker of failure here. It is supposed to be an awakening to James that his faith is obscuring his ability to take care of his family. Lillian directs attention to the fact Rickey has outgrown his braces and is not going to get better without new ones, but the family doesn’t have money for a doctor.
At the mention of new braces James tries to tell Rickey what doctors believe, and Rickey stops him and asks to be excused. James confronts Lllian and says he will not apologize for his faith in God.
She says her faith is all she’s got and it sustains her but she lives here on Earth. And Rickey needs a doctor to get better. The next scene James catches Rickey and his older brother Robert looking at baseball cards. Robert says Rickey loves baseball and James quickly says he’s not going to play baseball.
The Preacher’s Prodigy
You are your younger brother’s keeper and what you put in his mind. He addresses Rickey
“Son, I’ve seen you hitting those rocks. You would do that all day if you could. Even suffering through pain. You’re not going to play baseball. You can’t even run. And if you did you’d be ridiculed and sustain an injury you’d never recover from. He is referring to his spirit and not Rickey’s legs. James says “You have the heart of a lion, but the soul of a timid lamb. And I wanna protect that” (The Hill 2023 00.17.00-00.17.49)
The need for protection at the cost of a perceived reality check from a parent is reminiscent of the struggles of Finding Nemo and the model of overprotective parenting. The relationship of limits and aspirations for a child with a disability is often different than a parents. All parents are responsible for setting limits and maintaining their children’s safety.
Swinging Against the Odds
Having a disability can make those boundaries less apparent. Later it is mentioned how Rickey has defied the doctor’s expectations many times. So why can’t Rickey play baseball? After so many miracles.
James’s struggle with Rickey’s potential seems to stem from a fear as a parent outweighing miracles. A turning point happens when Rickey defies his father and tries out for baseball. When he finds out James almost spanks Robert for forging his signature on a permissions slip. When Robert says through tears “You can beat me all night. You’re not going to change Rickey.”