They need a Freddie (Major League: Back to the Minors (DVD))

Member Name: freediveheaven

Product:	Major League: Back to the Minors (DVD)
Date:	07/11/04 (73 review reads)
Rating:

Advantages: Funny in parts

Disadvantages: Not a classic

To describe baseball as the American equivalent as cricket is rather a simplification of the truth however there are similarities. Both are relatively slow moving with an extremely complicated set of rules and the playing time for both runs into hours (and in the case of cricket days) Also both sports tend to produce a plethora of statistics for the hungry fans and most importantly the opportunity to consume large amounts of alcohol in the middle of the day.

One difference to the best of my knowledge is the fact that I cannot recall Hollywood producing a major picture on the subject of cricket, while baseball has provided the subject matter or the backdrop for a number of movies of mixed quality. Field of Dreams was a good quality film while Madonna lent her name to a turkey the title of which escapes me.

Major League probably rests somewhere in the middle of these two, it is a very predictable comedy with a standard formula storyline and enough laughs to keep it interesting. It has a pretty good cast who all turn in commendable performances and keep the action moving along.

The Storyline

If you have ever seen the ice hockey movie Slapshot then you can pretty much guess the storyline as the two moves are similar except that Slapshot is a whole lot funnier and more violent. Now if after 15 minutes of watching you cannot guess what the ending will be then basically you probably recently voted for George W or would have if you had the chance.

The movie is based around the Cleveland Indians who had suffered a 50-year losing streak stretching back to the mid 1930’s. Interestingly in the real world this year World Series Champions the Boston Red Sox ended a similar run but I digress. At the start of the new season the Indians have a new owner, the widow and former Vegas showgirl of the previous owner who died just before the season starts. Rachael Phelps (Margaret Whitton) hates living in Cleveland and yearns to take the team to Florida, to achieve this she has learnt that if the attendance in a season drops below 800,000 she can break the contract with the city and move the team. Her plan is to assemble a bunch of no hopers to perform so badly that people will stop attending.

Hence she recruits the new team coach Lou Brown (James Gannon) who works in Tireworld and coaches the Toledo Mudflaps to lead the team and a whole bunch of losers, has-beens and wannabees are invited to summer training. Tom Berenger plays Jake Taylor a former great who is down on his luck and wallowing in the Mexican Leagues who just wants one more season in the sun, Roger Dorn (Corbin Bernstein) who is more concerned with investments than playing, rookie Ricky Vaughn (Charlie Sheen) a pitcher who is just out of prison and soon earns the nickname of wild thing due to his dress sense and ability to pitch everywhere but over the plate, Pedro Cerranno (Dennis Haysbert) a voodoo worshipping Cuban exile and finally Willie Mays Hayes (Wesley Snipes) who turns up uninvited to camp.

As you might have guessed the humour is predictable relying on the ineptitude of the players and some sly comments along the way from the fans and commentators as the group of individuals slowly form into a team after the predictable poor start. No one character manages to stand out although Whitton as Phelps does deliver some of the best lines and Sheen plays the part of the delinquent Vaughn competently. Renne Russo provides the romantic interest for Berenger but this adds little to the plot and only serves to cement the predictability of the storyline.

Recommendation

This is not the worst film I have ever seen and there are some good laughs in it. If like me you are into most sports then it at least has a subject matter you can relate to even if the game of baseball is confusing in all its nuances.

With a runtime of 90 minutes and a certificate 15 due to the language it is a fairly enjoyable romp and a nice way to pass a rainy Sunday afternoon although having watched it again recently it does look a little dated.

I paid £5.99 for it a few years ago and I certainly would not recommend paying more than £5 for it.

Summary: