Summer Catch is much better

Rating: Null/10 (29 October 2003)

It's hard for baseball movies to have good storylines for some reason. I rented this movie with great expectations after watching and loving Summer Catch. Unfortunately, even with a cast like Kevin Costner, Susan Sarandon, and Tim Robbins, this movie failed miserably. Granted they're two different types of comedies; this is more of a dry-humor film, and Summer Catch appeals to young adults more with its cheesy, teen movie funniness. However, you need to take it for what it is, and I loved Summer Catch and I love Jessica Biel. Freddie Prinze Jr's Ryan Dunne character is a much better pitcher than Tim Robbins' Ebby Calvin "Nuke" LaLoosh in my mind. If I had to pick between the two of them, I'd pick Freddie, no doubt about that one.
The film centers around the hard-throwing yet iratic arm of LaLoosh (Robbins) and in order to make it to the show, he needs lessons in baseball and in life from no other than a twelve-year minor league veteran catcher, Crash Davis (Costner). Davis dislikes LaLoosh based on his attitude toward the game and the relationship he has with the team's supporter, Annie Savoy (Sarandon).
Basically, the whole movie revolves around the battles between Costner and Robbins and the seductions of Sarandon. If Kevin Costner wasn't in this film, it would've been far worse. Atleast Summer Catch had great performances in Freddie Prinze Jr., Jessica Biel, Matthew Lillard, Fred Ward, Brittany Murphy, and Marc Blucas.
Bull Durham didn't have that much entertainment in it. The funniest parts of the film were when Robbins calls out Costner to fight in the back of a bar and Robbins tries to throw a baseball at Costner's chest. Robbins fails miserably, and when he runs up to Coster to try and punch him, Costner knocks him down with one blow to the face. It was funny. The other funny part or parts i guess, were Robbins' wacky pitching motions on the mound. He would wind up and turn his whole body to the plate, kind of like Hideo Nomo but with this funny look on his face. I laughed at that also. That's how disappointed I am with this movie, I'm looking for parts that were funny or appealing to me.
Summer Catch has it all over this film.