Eephus

A charming, memorable cast makes this movie special. Every actor gets his time at bat, and by the end of the movie I was amazed how well I knew and understood these characters. The small town charm and loving tribute to the passing of time and legacies contribute to a story that pulls you in. I can't say it's an edge-of-your-seat thriller, but you will still care every time a character steps up to the plate (literally and figuratively). In many ways the movie reminded me of a David Mamet play. I was also impressed by the cinematography; the final 15 minutes of the movie are a technical marvel of lighting and camerawork. Overall an excellent film!

Eephus was yet another movie with a ton of hype around it that I was expecting big things from and I still liked it but not as much as I was hoping.

One thing I want from sports movies is some great sports action and this really didn't have any of that. I think because of the lack of fast paced sports action, it feels like the movie drags a bit, especially the last 30 minutes. An anti climactic ending too annoyed me.

It has that vibe though that I like in movies, I still can't explain it but it has it. It's also up there for the funniest movie of the year for me, a lot of funny lines throughout. The thing I really liked was it felt like a realistic approach to a local type of baseball game, it didn't feel like someone trying make a high budget sports movie, it felt like I was watching something real.

This was Carson Lund's full length directorial debut and I think he did a solid job here, a very indie vibe he brought to this movie.

I don't think this compares to some of my favourite baseball movies like The Sandlot & Bad News Bears (2005) but it's still solid.

67/100.

This is bound to be an unpopular opinion, but, to me, fewer things in life are more boring than baseball - except perhaps for movies about baseball (with a few exceptions like "The Natural" (1984), "A League of Their Own" (1992) and "42" (2013)). And that foregoing assessment, in my view, is more than applicable to this positively dreadful debut feature from writer-director Carson Lund. This alleged comedy tells the story of two men's recreational baseball teams in a small Massachusetts town who embark on playing the last-ever game to be held at a local ballpark that's about to be torn down to make room for construction of a new school. The implausibly overlong matchup, brought about by a series of completely unfunny incidents that stretch out the length of the game, goes on from midday through the afternoon and into the crisp, chilly fall evening wherein the players try to continue competing in the dark (gee, now there's a load of laughs for you). There are also numerous talky, uninteresting conversations among the players in the dugout, along with views from the sidelines, where a handful of passing spectators offer their observations about what's transpiring on the field. These sequences do little to add to the film and serve only to pad an already-tedious narrative. The sad part in all this is that the premise truly had the potential to make for a fun and heartwarming picture. Unfortunately, though, the absolutely flat dialogue, lame plot elements and undercooked character development prevent that from materializing. While this offering admittedly features some impressive cinematography and a well-conceived production design, there's not much else to commend here. That is, of course, unless one compliments the creators on their fitting choice of title for the film: An "eephus," for those who aren't aware of what it is, is the name for an obscure form of curveball, one that's thrown deceptively slowly, almost to the point where it lulls the batter into a sense of mesmerized complacency, as if to put the hitter to sleep. And, on that score, the filmmaker has truly succeeded in crafting a picture that lives up to its namesake where audiences are concerned. All I can say is that I'm truly glad that I didn't pay box office ticket prices to see this one.

Let's face it, most of us live lives that don't add up to much in the grand scheme of things. But we can still construct a meaningful life, if we act with integrity and see things through.

That's what I see as the main idea being explored in this movie about a New England small-town adult rec-league baseball game. The game is "meaningless" according to standard criteria. It's a make-up game being played in mid-October between two middling teams that aren't contending for the league championship. Most of the players are middle-aged men without any particular talent.

But it's also the last game that will ever be played in this league, because the field is scheduled to be paved over to build a new school. The players understand that a part of their lives is about to end, and accordingly they invest the game with a sense of purpose. There are umpires, concessions, and even an official scorer. When light starts to fade and the score is tied, the teams refuse to quit, using their car headlights to keep playing until there is a resolution.

My description sounds heavy and the movie could have easily been preachy or cliched, but the filmmakers convey their ideas in a low key, shambolic way, with lots of understated humor and random moments of grace.

This is a wonderful little movie that really hit home. If you've ever spent any time around baseball and especially an adult rec league, you can relate, and the fact that my teenager laughed along with me is a testament to it's appeal. Amongst all of the big budget movies, the realistic dialogue, characters you can relate to and beautiful scenery make it a refreshing departure form the norm. Baseball fans, and especially Red Sox aficionados will appreciate and enjoy the two cameos of Joe Castiglione and Bill Lee. While the characters aren't deeply developed, they are relatable. The true beauty of this movie is it's simplicity.