Die Bären bleiben am Ball

that features the town I grew up in, Houston. If it's a film about paint drying, and was shot in the 70's, I'm there! But, about THIS movie....

"BNB BT" is a decent, but weak follow up to the original. But then most "Part II" movies tend to be, right? Without Tatum O'Neal, and Walter Matthau, the movie seems to just coast. Now, I like William Devane, but it would have had more "bite" with the original leads.

The kids are cute, they play their hearts out, and you just love them. We have the sub-plot with Devane and his son, and then, the BIG FINISH!

Yeah, it was filmed inside the "Seventh Wonder of the World", the Astrodome, famed for such things as, The Billie Jean King-Bobby Riggs "Battle of The Sexes" tennis match, Houston Livestock Show and Rodeo, Astro's baseball, Oiler's football( and the short lived USFL Gamblers, too!), and countless other events. Part of the old school charm of watching anything in the 'Dome, was that scoreboard that lights up with the cowboy, and bull, all LONG gone....

It's fun seeing places you knew growing up, AND seeing people who went to your school! The character "Janet" was played by Michelle Fruge, was a cheerleader and was in my graduating class of 1980, from Dulles High School, in Sugar Land Texas. 6 on a scale of 10, for Houston. 4 on a scale of 10 for everything else.

"The Bad News Bears in Breaking Training" is a cute sequel to the classic original. By know means does it come close to it predecessor but it is a fun time waster.

The Bears head off,unchaperoned, to play an exhibition game at the Astrodome against the Texas state champs. (One major flaw is that it is never adequately explained why the Bears would be making the trip since they lost the championship game in the original). The usual juvenile hijinks ensue on the road as they make their way there.

Once there team leader Kelly Leak enlists the aid of his estranged father (nicely played by William Devane) to coach the team. This leads to the opening of some old wounds between the two. It's a nice distraction from the main story and handled well until the cornball, cliched scene where the hatchet is buried.

The big game is handled well with the Astrodome surroundings a big aid.

While Walter Matthau and Tatum O'Neal (the star pticher in this one is played by Jimmy Baio who is given nothing to do)are sorely missed, the cast does an adequate job of making the film amusing for kids.

The final result is a nice little film. The game is the best part but there are plenty of amusing moments (including the requisite bad language from the kids) to keep you mildly interested. If you don't agree, just take a peak at "The Bad News Bears Go To Japan." This film will look like a classic compared to that disaster.

Most of the standard crew (Walter Matthau and Tatum O'Neal are huge absences though) return for this feather-weight sequel to the highly popular original of 1976. This time juvenile delinquent Jackie Earle Haley and his teammates hit the road to Houston to play a little league game in the Astrodome. It seems that Haley's estranged father (William Devane) also lives in Texas and he becomes a focal point as the club lacks a manager. The kids are more grown up this time but their maturity seems to be on the decline as they only care about girls (who are all obviously older than they are) and getting into general mischief. The only real attraction is the Astrodome as the old scoreboard and the novelty of the eighth wonder of the world in 1977 make the closing act of the picture a nostalgic view to a part of sports history that many have already forgotten about. Overall the movie is a stinker with little else to recommend. 2 stars out of 5.

Folks, There is only one group of people who will truly enjoy and think this is a great film-the group who it was intended for: those of us who were in our pre-teens or early teens who saw this when it first came out in the Summer of 1977.

The tale is pretty much the kind of thing that every red-blooded American boy of that age would dream about. The little leaguers fire their tyrannical coach and "borrow" a van to play at a little league championship in Houston. To avoid spoiling it, I'll just say that this deals with their adventures along the way and the results. A "Huckleberry Finn" of the 1970s, to be generous.

The overprotective parents and PC squads of today would have heart attacks at the scenes of the kids' foul language, cigarette smoking, chasing a grown woman, committing grand theft auto, and swiping Playboy magazines. But most of us who saw it at the time knew that this was over -the top and didn't take it that seriously.

Yeah, an adult viewer would agree that the story, writing, and acting are atrocious. But this wasn't intended to be Shakespeare. See it with a 13 year old mind and trust me, you'll "get it." For those of us who saw this as 13 year olds in 1977, leave your brains at the door and enjoy the nostalgia and the theme song "Looking Good." To everyone else-you've been warned!

The Bears are back but Amanda Whurlitzer and Buttermaker are gone. Kelly Leak (Jackie Earle Haley) drives the new dictatorial coach Manning away. The team is off to the Houston Astrodome to play the Houston Toros. Leak brings on Carmen Ronzonni from back east to be the new pitcher. The boys drive to Houston on their own. They discover that they still suck after playing a roadside game. They get into trouble for their van and Kelly decides to contact his estranged father Mike Leak (William Devane). Sy Orlansky (Clifton James) is the local businessman sponsoring the game.

Most of the gang is back with the exception of the big stars. It's too bad that Walter Matthau and Tatum O'Neal can't return but it may be asking too much for sequels of that era. The story isn't much. I don't know why the Bad News Bears get to play in the Astrodome. There are snippets of fun but mostly it doesn't live up to the original. That is until Tanner runs around and the Let Them Play chant. It's cheesy but effective and it's the Astrodome.