The Scout

I like good baseball movies - the Natural, Field of Dreams, the Sandlot, Pride of the Yankees, etc. But I hate this movie because I can't tell if this is supposed to be a comedy or a drama. It seems like neither. Also, the baseball scout, played by Albert Brooks, seems more out of touch with reality than the troubled Brendan Fraser character. I can't stand Brooks in this movie. i am usually more of a glass-half-full type of person when I evaluate movies, but I can't believe some of the favorable comments for The Scout. You have to be kidding? I can't believe that Bob Costas and Tim McCarver, both with well-respected baseball reputations, would agree to be part of the absurd ending. I know it's a movie, but as someone who loves baseball, the final scene is a complete insult to the game...and the movie business.

Sent on a route through the deepest parts of Mexico because of a big screw-up, New York Yankees talent scout, Brooks, finds the pitcher of the century in Fraser: a top-notch pitcher and a very good hitter, too. The only problem is that Fraser has the mind of a pre-adolescent teen, whose goals are simple, but his temper and emotional needs get in the way.

The movie has a good premise, and the stars of the baseball diamond appear in many cameos (including Yankees mogul Steinbrenner) have a nice touch. The actors try to do a good job, but they just don't pull this movie off. There is no "believability" to it! I just don't buy it!

The only good scene where Fraser demonstrates his child-like anger is when he tells the photographer to, "stop taking pictures of me...weren't the first thirty-four enough?" His emotional attachment to Brooks is found early on, but the therapist's theory of "possible homocidal tendencies" towards Brooks is not brought out enough in the movie. There is no substance to this film. If you're a Fraser fan, you might enjoy this film, but I found little else of any value and no credibility in this film.

Considering that this film had the screenwriting and acting talent of Albert Brooks, one of the funnier writers in the industry, and the acting of Brendan Fraser (don't laugh, I actually think he's a pretty good actor), it was very disappointing to see it fizzle the way it did. It starts off great, with Brooks being banished to Mexico, and the Fraser character is amusing for a little while. Unfortunately, we get bogged down in the emotional trauma of Fraser's eccentric ballplayer, when we should be enjoying the silly antics we all came to see. Let's face it, the Fraser character should have been a wacky, yet lovable idiot, but instead is a whining, depressed, troubled person. This really doesn't work, since the story would easily have lent itself to a comedy, and Brooks still seems to think he's acting in one. I don't really know where this went wrong, I have a feeling that there were some conflicting ideas on the writing end, but this movie is best left on the shelf. If you want a great Albert Brooks film, see Defending Your Life.

Albert Brooks stars as a down on his luck desperate baseball scout who finds a golden arm (Brendan Fraser) while in Mexico. Unfortunately he is a little bit eccentric. Has some good bits dealing with the fish out of water plot but overall it doesnt build up any steam and just kind of fizzles itself away.. on a scale of one to ten.. 5

Really The Scout is a sort of dumb comedy, but that can be good. It is rather silly and that is the point. It's plot is implausible. The plot twists are odd and somewhat predictable. But I liked it and watched it more than once. So don't write it off because it doesn't fall into what the ideal of a baseball movie should be. If you write it off do it because it does not live up to its cheesy comedy roots, and frankly it odes that. If I had a VCR here I'd be running out to the Blockbuster now.