:
Drew Barrymore,
Drew Barrymore,
Jimmy Fallon,
more...
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Peter Farrelly,
Bobby Farrelly,
Peter Farrelly,
more...
see all cast/crew...
: 
: 20th Century Fox
: Comedies, Romantic Comedy
: 103 min.
: English, Spanish, French
: English, Spanish
see additional details...
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Nick Hornby's acclaimed memoir about one man's struggle to balance his love of a woman and his love for soccer was the basis of a well-reviewed British film in 1997, and now gets a Americanized rewrite with this picture, in which the game is changed from soccer to baseball. Ben (Jimmy Fallon) is a high-school teacher who meets Lindsay (Drew Barrymore), who has a successful career in business. Ben and Lindsay don't appear to have much in common on the surface, but they hit it off and are soon involved in a serious romance. But when spring rolls around, Lindsay becomes aware of the true love of Ben's life -- the Boston Red Sox. Despite the team's lamentable record, Ben has been a fiercely loyal Red Sox fan since childhood, and Lindsay finds it hard to compete with his passion for baseball, while Ben is forced to choose between the obsessions of his youth and the enthusiasms of a responsible adult. Fever Pitch was shot in part in Boston during the 2004 baseball season, which to the surprise of the filmmakers saw the Red Sox winning baseball's world series for the first time since 1918. ~ Mark Deming, All Movie Guide
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| Sports Obssessed
by talltale
September 6, 2005 - 2:53 PM PDT
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2 out of 2 members found this review helpful
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The Farrelly Brothers' least shocking-funny movie so far but probably their sweetest, FEVER PITCH didn't rake in the moolah but may do better on video. It deserves to. Jimmy Fallon does penance for his stupid "Taxi," while Drew Barrymore comes through as loveable and a bit more intelligent than usual--thanks to some very good dialog and situations that bring out more of a mature adult than we've seen previously.
Even non-sports fans like me should find a lot to enjoy here because the movie addresses the question of why so many men get crazy where sports are concerned, putting them above family, friends, and even rudimentary self-interest. (There's one terrifically pointed line, uttered by a little league player, that nails this beautifully.) As usual, some of the humor fails or seems out of place (particularly against so much intelligence and charm). But there are more than enough fun and telling situations here to please the guys--and the gals.
The film, taken from a novel by Britisher Nick Hornsby, was made once previously (1997), starring Colin Firth, with a screenplay by Hornsby himself (the Farrelly version uses journeymen screenwriters Lowell Ganz and Babaloo Mandel). The original (with Firth's obsessed Brit football fan in place of Fallon's Red Sox crazy) never got much a release in this country (it's available on video). It was worth a watch, though. So's this one. |
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GreenCine Member Rating
(Average 5.70)
37 Votes
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