Common Sense Media Review
By Nell Minow , based on child development research. How do we rate?
Enjoyable baseball-centered romcom has language, sex.
Parents Need to Know
Why Age 14+?
Any Positive Content?
Where to Watch
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Fever Pitch
Parent and Kid Reviews
What's the Story?
In FEVER PITCH, Ben (Jimmy Fallon) is a high school teacher who happily explains his priorities on ESPN: The Red Sox, sex, and breathing. When Lindsay (Drew Barrymore) meets Ben, it's wintertime, and he's a sweetheart of a beau who takes tender care of her when she has food poisoning and reminds her that there's more to life than her job. By the time he has to explain why he can't go to her parents' party because he has to be at spring training, she already likes him enough to ask herself whether she can live with "summer guy" for half the year.
Is It Any Good?
The only thing surprising about this completely conventional big studio date movie is that it comes from the joyfully outrageous Farrelly brothers and the literary but widely-read Nick Hornby. The Hollywood studio de-flavorizing machine has toned them down and flattened them out and the result is perfectly enjoyable but perfectly forgettable. This is not a HA-HA movie. It is a chuckle/awww/chuckle/awwwwwww movie. Fallon and Barrymore are adorable and seem to get a genuine kick out of each other.
We know where this will all end up. The only surprise in the movie is the one everyone already found out about when the Sox won the World Series. On the way there are some distractions -- some are pretty funny, like the brief scene where Ben decides which of his friends get to use his sensational seats in Fenway Park, but most are a complete waste of time, like the scenes with Lindsay's friends and family. This gives it a dragged-out feeling, like the movie has gone into extra innings.
Talk to Your Kids About ...
Families can talk about the fine line between being a fan and being a fanatic. They could discuss the ways that caring deeply about a team, a star, a movie, or a video game, can make people feel like they are part of something, especially when they share those feelings with friends. How were Lindsay's feelings about her job like Ben's feelings about the Red Sox?
Movie Details
- In theaters: April 8, 2005
- On DVD or streaming: September 13, 2005
- Cast: Drew Barrymore , Ione Skye , Jimmy Fallon
- Directors: Bobby Farrelly , Peter Farrelly
- Inclusion Information: Female actors, Bisexual actors
- Studio: Twentieth Century Fox
- Genre: Comedy
- Topics: Sports and Martial Arts
- Run time: 100 minutes
- MPAA rating: PG-13
- MPAA explanation: crude and sexual humor, and some sensuality
- Last updated: May 24, 2024
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