Movie Info

RATING:

PG-13 for crude and sexual humor and some sensuality

GENRE:

Romantic Comedy

STARRING:

Jimmy Fallon, Drew Barrymore, Willie Garson, Ione Skye, Lenny Clarke, Jack Kehler, James B. Sikking, JoBeth Williams

DIRECTORS:

Bobby Farrelly and Peter Farrelly

WRITERS:

Lowell Ganz and Babaloo Mandel

BASED ON A NOVEL BY:

Nick Hornby

DISTRIBUTOR:

20th Century Fox

 

Please Note

In providing movie reviews on our site, CBN.com is not endorsing or recommending films we review. Our goal is to provide Christians with information about the latest movies, both the good and the bad, so that our readers may make an informed decision as to whether or not films are appropriate for them and their families.

MOVIE REVIEW

Fever Pitch

MovieGuide Magazine

What's This?

CBN.com – Fever Pitch is another cute, mostly innocuous comedy with Drew Barrymore. Saturday Night Live's Jimmy Fallon stars as Ben, a school teacher who harbors a lifelong fixation with the Boston Red Sox. Barrymore plays Lindsey, a straight-laced professional who is great at her job but can’t find success outside the office. Ben charms Lindsey, and their burgeoning relationship is going perfectly – until baseball season starts.

Once the Red Sox take the field, Lindsey sees that Ben is utterly obsessed with baseball. His apartment walls, telephone, shower curtain, and even the silverware bare the Red Sox logo. Naturally, he has season tickets, but baseball begins to distract Lindsey from her work and then from her affection for Ben. It is almost impossible for her to have a normal life with him due to his fixation.

Both of them see the value of compromise – one with baseball, one with career – and the story plays out to a satisfyingly romantic “Gift of the Magi”-style conclusion.

Fever Pitch is charming but goofy and peppered with a few light sexual jokes, much like 2004’s 50 First Dates with Barrymore and Adam Sandler. Fever Pitch, however, has less sexual content. Jimmy Fallon and Drew Barrymore don’t have the most convincing chemistry on screen, but the audience can’t help but root for them to solve their problems.

The worldview is muddled but technically humanist. Everyone lives for their own reasons, often just for personal comfort. Nothing about the movie’s premise is offensive or objectionable, however. Many people will relate to the notion of getting carried away or loving someone who is.

Behind the camera are the Farrelly Brothers, makers of There's Something About Mary and Dumb and Dumber. Although those slapstick movies were imbued with some trace amount of genuine emotion, the directing team seems out of their element here. Many of the non-sequitur jokes feel forced, and the movie’s pacing is very jerky with a couple of boring stretches.

Think twice before taking teenagers to see Fever Pitch, because there are several sexual references and innuendos, plus it is clear that Lindsey and Ben sleep together while dating. In other words, Ben gets much further than first base with Lindsey, but nothing is directly shown except for Ben and Lindsey lying together and starting to take off their clothes in one scene. Overall, Fever Pitch tries for “cute” and almost succeeds.

Address Comments To:
Rupert Murdoch
Chairman/CEO
News Corp.
Peter Chernin, President/COO
The Fox Group
20th Century Fox Film Corp.
A division of Fox, Inc. and News Corp.
10201 West Pico Blvd.
Los Angeles, CA 90035
Phone: (310) 369-1000
Website: www.fox.com