Mr 3000

After seeing the trailers, you hope for so much and hope that all the funny stuff isn't just in the trailer and that it will be funny. Then you hope you haven't over-shot it and get disappointed. This movie delivers! And is funnier than you will think, even from the premise and the trailers. Bernie Mac is perfect in this role; almost to the point where you think it may be type-casting...he's that good. The entire supporting cast is amazing too, and that is rare in a comedy. It's one that you have to watch a couple of times because you will miss bits and pieces in the theater as the laughter rolls over a few choice lines. The way it was shot and some of the surprises (like having some of the crew from the Best Damn Sports Show Period on the couch), also kept you into it. My expectations, although a bit high, were easily met and surpassed by this witty and wonderful movie. Oh, and the baseball references. There were enough to keep baseball enthusiasts interested, but not too many to go over the heads of most viewers. I had a good time watching it. That's rare in movies.

Bernie Mac is what makes you watch Charles Stone III's "Mr. 3000". Mac is totally funny and has a great screen presence. No doubt this is a star vehicle for Mac, who really benefits from a surprising screenplay by Eric Champnella, Keith Mitchell, and Howard Gould. Their "Mr. 3000" is funny, edgy, and appropriately sentimental. Bernie Mac plays Stan Ross, a great Major League hitter, and also a major league arrogant jerk. Upon reaching his 3000th hit and securing his place in the Hall of Fame, Stan retires leaving his team in a lurch just before the playoffs. Stan parlays his "Mr. 3000" title into a successful business. However, 9 years later when Stan is on the verge of possible sports immortality with an induction into the Hall of Fame, a statistical error reveals that Stan Ross, "Mr. 3000", is really Stan Ross "Mr. 2997". Stan is shy 3 hits-- pretty much killing any chance of a trip to Cooperstown. So at nearly 50 years old, Stan decides to make a comeback. Seeing the potential of increased ticket sales by his return, his old team welcomes him back. Well, at least the owners do. How difficult would it be to get 3 more hits? Well, that is some of the movie.

Bernie Mac has this charm about him that even when playing a world class arrogant jerk, he is still likable. That is amazing. However, in the evolution of the story by Champnella, Mitchell, and Gould, Stan's (Mac's) introspection of the man he was in his youth is effective and at times poignant. Mac as Stan is smart and gradually sees the impact of selfishness on his teammates in the past and present, and with his old flame Mo (a wonderful and gorgeous Angela Bassett). He sees much of his young self in superstar hitter T-Rex (a commanding Brian J. White). Consequently Stan gives T-Rex a wake up call. T-Rex could end up being a lone jerk like Stan, or he could really make a profound difference by being a leader, and inspire his teammates. This is one of the great touches of the "Mr. 3000". Another great touch is Michael Rispoli as Stan's one loyal friend, Boca, who finally points out to Stan that he loves him, because he can always count on Stan to do what is right for Stan, regardless of anyone else. At the heart of the movie is the amazing Angela Bassett as Mo. She knows that Stan is a jerk and she still loves him. She also is sad and angry that Stan doesn't just grow up, knock it off, and be the great man that he deserves to be.

The end really took me by surprise-- I did not expect it. Without giving anything away, everything works out sometimes in the most unsuspecting ways.

Bernie Mac is wonderful here. "Mr. 3000" is that cool fantasy movie where one gets to atone and correct for being young and stupid. And I guess we all continue to do this is some way or fashion. "Mr. 3000" also does this with a sense of humor. This is a great thing.

If you like baseball, here is a good film for you. Bernie Mac is perfect in the title role as a Brewers baseball player with an ego the size of Milwaukee who retires just after he thinks he gets his 3000th hit, which he assumes will make him a shoo-in for the Hall of Fame. Many years and no induction later, he learns that three of the hits did not count, and he returns to the game to get those three hits. Mac does a good job and actually fleshes out the character, as his return helps him learn more about being a team player. I really liked this film when I saw it.

*** out of ****

This is an excellent movie because it delivers on the promise of its marketing: you get the story of a 47 year-old former hitting star of the Milwaukee Brewers (Bernie Mac as Stan Ross), who retired nine years earlier with exactly 3,000 hits, believing that to be his ticket to the hall of fame, and milking the "Mr. 3000" persona for all it's worth commercially. It is very common in real life for former athletes to become car dealers and high-end stockbrokers, selling expensive things to rich people who want a little nostalgia as an extra, and if you check the end of "Miracle" you'll find many former members of the 1980 gold medal squad working in finance or banking.

The last-place Brewers are desperate for attendance (at least their owner, played by Chris Noth, is), and they lure Stan back to the ballpark to retire his number. While compiling a list of each of his 3,000 hits, it is learned that three of the hits were counted twice and he only has 2,997 hits, thus cancelling his ticket to Cooperstown. Stan will have none of this, and returns to the Brewers, whose owner figures he'll be a welcome distraction from the standings. Ross faces an uphill battle from the team he publicly derided prior to his return, even finding himself on the receiving end of a seemingly endless tirade of trash talk from a mascot dressed as a BRATWURST. The movie even paid an homage to the "sausage races" that occur in Milwaukee during the seventh inning stretch (a race between four mascots in various sausage uniforms).

The usual suspects (ESPN, etc.) make cameos, and Stan's on-again, off-again love interest (an ESPN reporter played by Angela Bassett) enjoys his company but finds him unsuitable for commitment to anything but his mirror. Stan has a full life and several close friends who accept his narcissism as part of the package that drew the fans to the ballpark all those years. The fans seem willing to forgive Stan everything because he came through for the team all those years, and even empathize with his plight to recapture his primary glory in life, taken from him through a mathematical error not even his. Paul Sorvino manages his best Earl Weaver impersonation as manager Gus Panas, but I was never a fan of that shtick when Earl did it.

The film has no real bad guy (other than Stan's ego), but they add an "It's A Wonderful Life" element to the film in the form of T. Rex Pennebaker (sp?), the brash young slugger you build championship teams around. T. Rex is a lot like Stan used to be, thus giving Stan pause, for like Stan used to, T. Rex walks the walk as he talks the talk. To his credit, T. Rex gives his all even for a last-place team, even if it's only to boost his stats.

Stan, who left the Brewers in a pennant race nine years ago, now tries to be a team player as he pursues the elusive three hits. He tries to show he has matured and loves the game, and assumes a mentoring role for a talented yet very undisciplined, young team, but the "old Stan" does not go away quietly, and in a way that's good, because for as egotistical as Stan is made out to be, it is obvious that he loves people, the spotlight, and genuinely wants to be liked. He just assumes that everyone is out for themselves the way he is out for himself.

If you tried to write the ending to this film, it wouldn't be surprising if you were not too far off from how they wrote this one. The movie doesn't even try to be unpredictable, and this is another strength, because there's really only one or two ways a movie like this can end.

"Mr. 3000" has those moments, those moments where you agree that this should have been made into a multi-million dollar feature with big stars and extras and a caterer and all that. There's some pretty funny jokes. It's not a bad film. But it just doesn't really excel anywhere that a sports comedy worth its investment should.

Bernie Mac plays Stan Ross, the titular Mister, and he kind of has the feel for the role all down. But there's two scenes where Mac's inner nice-guy comes out and deflate the bloated jerk he's supposed to be playing. Therefore, the film has this two-headed character, one who is Bernie Mac improvising a nice little scene, and one who is Stan Ross, Mr. 3000 himself.

People have complained the film is too Disney, too formulaic, but the essence of sports is surprise within the bounds of formula. Disney's rules of narrative almost work here; the embittered jerk stripped of his former greatness finds redemption in a second try for his title. It's up to the filmmakers to make it work, to make the redemption by baseball story find nuance and still move the audience. When the drama works (exclusively on the baseball field) and the comedy too (exclusively near the baseball field), this film works too. When it doesn't (pretty much all the arbitrary directions the plot turns to show that he is a jerk), the movie falls flat. So enjoy, but beware the slow scenes with little meaning.