Much More Fun than a Baseball Game

Rating: Null/10 (18 September 1999)

I consider this is a love story. Love for other persons as well
as for a thing, the game of baseball. Baseball is more than a
mere backdrop or love object, it is integral to the relationships and the story. Since I am not a baseball fan, I
cannot speak to the authenticity of the game shots, though my
experience suggests that they might be inauthentic. To be
truthful, I find watching baseball boring; the baseball scenes
in the film were not boring to me, so likely they are not
authentic. My logic would lead me to surmise that baseball
aficionados might not be as pleased with this film as others.

I appreciated Billy Chapel as a character -- all male, all
masculine. Surely Kevin Costner could have played him softer,
but he didn't and I'm glad. It is an act of courage (and surely
"love" as the title suggests) that Billy Chapel pitches in spite
of the pain in his arm. This character is the epitome of
male-masculinity -- tough, courageous, self-centered, and
needing lots of extra time to acknowledge his own and others'
feelings. He is mystified by the femininity in both Jane Aubrey
(Kelly Preston) and her daughter, Heather (Jena Malone) as well
as pushing away the caring of his friend Gus (John C. Reilly).
Considering the overall quality of the film (which I considered
high), I was surprised at several technical problems: music
with words so loud they competed with dialogue, confusion on
time/flashbacks, and lack of clarity about passage of time (ie,
is this a minute later or two days later?).
I left feeling satisfied as a movie viewer. Thanks, Hollywood,
for making an absorbing film.