This review contains details about the documentary. If you have not seen Believeland and do not want to read spoilers, stop reading and go watch!
If you looked across social media in the days leading up to the television debut of ESPN’s 30 for 30 documentary Believeland, most Clevelanders who have lived through most of the heartbreak of the city’s sports teams said they’d seen it in person or enough on ESPN to live through it again.
Others are sick of the ‘woe is me’ pity on Cleveland attitude. Cleveland native Andy Billman’s direction of this documentary didn’t withold any woe is me moments. Obviously, highlights of Red Right 88, The Drive, The Fumble, The Shot, Game 7 of ’97 (I still can’t watch that Craig Counsell round third base), and of course LeBron taking his talents to Miami.
For me, the interview with Earnest Byner that might have been the most heartbreaking point of the entire show, talking about The Fumble and the angry, disappointing letters he received from Cleveland fans. Byner cried during the interview and clearly it still resonates with him.
Full disclosure: I am not old enough to have seen any of the Browns heartbreaking finishes and his reactions during this interview made me lose it and want to give Earnest a hug.
Getting sit down interviews with Marty Schottenheimer, showing all angles of Craig Ehlo on Michael Jordan and sitting down with Ehlo were both tough to swallow truths but also captivating.
For the portion reliving celebrating 1995 and the championship we all thought was coming, Billman brought in Jim Thome, Kenny Lofton, Tom Hamilton and Mike Hargrove to talk about being in the same situation as the ’86 Browns – happy to be there in 95 and expect to win the next year or sometime soon. The window seemed to be open for multiple World Series after 1995.
Unfortunately for Tony Fernandez, his error in Game 7 was shown before his heroic home run of chance in Game 7 of the ALCS. Without Fernandez, the Indians may not even be in Miami to have a chance to win that game.
Four years ago, Hargrove was the guest speaker at the New York Penn League All-Star game luncheon when it was in Mahoning Valley. He told a story about how people asked him how long it took him to get over losing the 1997 World Series.
“Just as soon as it happens, I’ll let you know,” he said.
In 2016 in Believeland his response was “Just as soon as it happens, I’ll let you know.”
We’re with you, Grover.
The haunting recount by Jim Donovan and Scott Raab about commissioner’s trophy, champagne on ice and the covering of the Indians locker room was a chilling tale and a giant, cruel tease. Tom Hamilton recalled being disturbed by the situation and the tempting of fate.
It felt like being left at the alter.
I don’t think anyone is over the Browns leaving. Even though Art Modell in all likelihood saved the Indians from being moved to New Orleans, his son David saying the Browns “paused” and not moved, didn’t gain the family any new fans.
There were a lot of pieces of Believeland that really sucked me in and made me appreciate what I’ve been through as a fan and what many older fans went through that I wasn’t around to see.
The less compelling spots included way too much Scott Raab and Tony Rizzo (a different review for a different day).
Luckily, the last of the shots in the show were of last year’s NBA Finals against the Golden State Warriors. While that ended painfully for Cleveland fans (and many Cavalier players on obviously related note), it summed up theme through the whole documentary.
Hope.
Every interview with fans after the ’86 and ’87 Browns was “we’re going to come back next year and win it all” and “we’re disappointed, they’re disappointed. But that doesn’t mean we love them any less. We’re proud of them.”
There weren’t those interviews for the Cavs, but highlights of Indians fans lined up in the early hours of the morning to greet the team after they came home from the Game 6 loss in Atlanta in 1995. Fans were hopeful that the streak would end with that. They were also hopeful after the Cavs fell to the Warriors at the end of last year.
While hope and support has waned for the Indians over the years, the documentary was far from ‘woe is me’, it was certainly one of hope and worth watching.
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