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Plot Summary
Jimmy Morris (Denis Quaid) is a
chemistry teacher in a small Texas town called Big Lake. Morris, who
nearly made it as a profession pitcher, also coaches the High School
baseball team. Big Lake isn’t a big baseball town and the team are
losing all their matches. The team know that Morris is a great pitcher but
missed out on the big time because of injury so they strike a deal with
him. If the team win the District Title, Morris must go for a trial for
the semi-pro leagues. Morris reckons that the team haven’t got a chance
and at his age he reckons neither does he…
Review
The film tells a simple story
based on a real person and the message is that it’s never to late to
follow that dream and the importance of having commitment and high
expectations for chasing meaningful goals.
It's a nice, pleasant film but
lacks any real drama or excitement. The story moves along quite slowly and
unfortunately it’s all fairly predictable. Much of the start follows the
High School team and their progression to winning the District Title.
There are too many baseball scenes in this part (especially as the outcome
is so predictable) and the film only really begins to get interesting when
Morris goes to the trial.
Denis Quaid, with his trademark
grin, always seems to be popular but never became a huge star. He is very
credible in the role of Jimmy Morris and makes the character genuine,
modest and likeable. Jimmy Morris knows he’s been given a second chance
and he, more than anyone, looks surprised.
Rachel Griffiths plays his wife
and she balances the follow-your-dreams theory with the
dreams-don’t-pay-the-bills theory as she struggles to pay the bills and
look after the kids.
Nice family movie for a rainy
Sunday afternoon.
Lasting
thought: You can do what you like until it’s time to do what you were
meant to do.
Reviewed by Niall Quinn,
Premier Movie Reviews
2002 |