Recent Reviews

• Music Movie • Big Star: Nothing Can Hurt Me - Read it • Music Movie • 20 Feet From Stardom - Read it • Sci-Fi Movie • Avatar - Read it • Alternative Music • Everclear - In A Different Light Read it • CD Music • The Bushpilots - Seven Ways To Broadway Read it • Live Music • Craig Cardiff, Matthew Barber, Julie Fader - Live at Black Sheep Inn, Wakefield Quebec Read it • Drama Movie • Capote - Read it • Drama Movie • Brokeback Mountain - Read it • Drama Movie • Syriana - Read it • Live Music • Jim Bryson, Justin Rutledge - Live at the Black Sheep Inn, Wakefield QC Read it Browse the Review Archives

• MOVIE REVIEW (Comedy) •

Fever Pitch Drew Barrymore, Jimmy Fallon The Official Site Collector's Edition DVD at Amazon.com

Released: 6/1/2005

The Farrelly Brothers, known for the over-the-top humour in such films as There's Something About Mary, take the high road in this romantic comedy, which is also a remake of a british movie and novel by Nick Hornby (High Fidelity, About A Boy).

The original features Arsenal FC (football club) whereas this one features the Red Sox and just happened to be filmed the year that the Red Sox broke the "curse of the bambino" which had been blamed for them not winning a World Series since 1918.
In this "mismatch" love story, Barrymore plays a high-powered number-cruncher and Fallon plays a lowly school teacher who asks her out on a dare. The story is a fairly predictable romp through "girl finds boy's hobbies endearing, then gets tired of them, so he offers to give them up to prove his love, so she says he doesn't have to and she was being selfish" territory. OK maybe that's not familiar territory but it's still a pretty predictable film. The occasional tasteless elements (shaving balls and the like) seem very gratuitous and detract more than they add. And although the couple is relatively believeable and the acting is acceptable, Barrymore's nervous tics don't suit this character as well as they do some such as her character in 50 First Dates, and the chemistry in 50 First Dates was also a lot more palpable. Fallon also seems uncomfortable or aware of the camera in some of the scenes adding an odd nervous tension to the whole film.

Overall worth renting in a pinch but you wouldn't be missing much if you skipped this one, even if you're a Red Sox fan.

Back

Recent Reviews