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Billy Chapel (Kevin Costner) is having a bad day. His girlfriend Jane (Kelly Preston, stunning as ever) says she's leaving, and his boss (Brian Cox) says he's selling the business and ace employee Billy may be out of job. Sounds like business as usual for an old-fashioned veteran. However, the business is baseball and for Billy Chapel, the 40-year old former all-star for the Detroit Tigers, it means his career--and his life--is at a crossroads.
Although it is noBull Durham,For Love of the Gamefinds a solid and very believable role for Costner. The film is based on Michael Shaara's (The Killer Angels) stream-of-consciousness novel (the rough manuscript was found after his death 1988). The entire film takes place on Billy's day on the mound against the Yankees, a meaningless late-season game for the Tigers, but everything for Billy. In flashbacks, he lingers over his long relationship with Jane and his baseball career (from World Series heroism to a career-threatening injury). His one viable link to the game at hand is his catcher, played winningly by John C. Reilly. Costner, like Chapel, is looking for one more great performance, but the film is too simplistic and loopy at times to resonate. The love story has an extra helping of cuteness, and legendary baseball announcer Vin Scully nearly takes on a leading role, waxing grandiloquent. It's no grand slam, but a solid double.--Doug Thomas
I know, I know... I know Kevin Costner can't act his way out of a paper bag. I know he produced such cinematic horrors as Waterworld, and the Postman (shudders). "Ride Postman, Ride!" I will say this film is thankfully not at those levels. Although the hollywood drama (with all the saving grabs) of the perfect game is a little much.
The film is definitely thoughtful and entertaining. I liked the baseball dialogue, and the symbolism in the film. The flashbacks, which I first thought was going to be annoying worked well. The anti-Yankee rhetoric is ok by me as well. A perfect game against thrown against the yankees by a washed up pitcher is definitely entertaining and something to get behind.
The chemistry between Costner and Kelly Preston is a tad weak in my opinion. It's hard to find that appeal these days that rivals the golden era of cinema. The worse part of the film is when he is stading outside of her home in the rain (like a stalker) when she is inside entertaining a metrosexual artsy fellow. What a loser! Anyways the film is entertaining because it deals with real life pain and drama, although it goes over the top at times. I like when Costner is sobbing at the end after the perfect game because life is often about realization and reflection, and the movie pushes home a run there.
Classic This movie is def one of my favorites, it ranks up there with all of the famous classics!!I loved this movie this movie has to be one of the best baseball and love movies I have ever seen. It is perfect for a date because the guy can get into the baseball part and aa little bit of the love story and the girl can get into the love story and a little bit of the baseball story without feeling let down
