Summer Catch

Summer Catch is a romantic comedy about a local college baseball player (Freddy Prinze Jr.) playing in the Cape Cod baseball league, who falls in love with a rich girl, Tenley Parrish (Jessica Biel), who is home in cape cod for the summer and is going to leave to San Francisco to work for her rich uncle because her father told her to. The Cape Cod Baseball league is a league of the finest college baseball players who are bought together to play in a summer league using wooden bats. These players are usually close to making the Major League and getting paid. It is said that 1 out of 6 major league players has played in the Cape Cod league. Many scouts come to watch these games. Prinze plays the baseball player Ryan Dunne who is a Dr. Jeckle and Mr. Hyde type pitcher. He always starts the game well but ultimately comes to the point where he loses his focus and blows it. Prinze is always seen as a failure to his father and his brother. They think that he will end up cutting grass for his father for the rest of his life. Jessica Biel, has rich parents and can have whatever she wants. She falls in love with Ryan Dunne and is caught between choosing her fathers wishes, moving to San Francisco and working for her uncle, or staying with Ryan whether he makes it to the big leagues or not. At first Ryan is not a hit with some of his teammates such as the Dodger Blue, Eric Van Leemer, who turned down a 2 million dollar contract. Eric acts kind of a character foil for Ryan. They are both off the wall pitchers, Eric has a glove that is different colors and has flames, while Ryan just blows up on the field but Ryan found his success in the end by working hard at it. Eric just always had the talent and never had to look deeper to find his pitching groove. But Ryan becomes good friends with his other teammates such as Billy "Bru" Brubaker, Miles Dalrymple and Mickey "Domo" Dominguez (Wilmer Valderama). The movie does have its funny moments such as the times that Ryan and Bru wear the thongs or how Domo's "baseball mother" loves the young cape cod baseball players and gives Domo his own private show which involves a cucumber (lets leave it at that). But baseball and love stories do not mix. The movies ending is horrible, just as the final baseball game gets to its climax, Ryan is 2 outs away from the baseball Mecca of achievements for a pitcher, a no-hitter, he leaves it for Tenley Parrish. I just feel that he should have at least pitched the no-hitter instead of taking himself out. In the end, Ryan Dunne did make the Major Leagues for the Philadelphia Phillies, and ironically, he still has the destruction point in the big leagues because he gives up a homer. After watching this movie, writers have found a way to turn the American pastime game of baseball into a chick flick.

Summer Catch was not the worst movie I've ever seen, but it could have made it there with a little more trying. The best actors in the movie were either given little to work with in trite, cliched roles, or were not given enough screen time to showcase their abilities. Bruce Davison, Brian Dennehey, and Jason Gedrick, as Jessica Biel's snobbish father, the gruff coach with a heart of gold, and Freddie Prinze's older brother, who settled for a career as a bartender instead of aspiring for more, are, respectively, the former. The latter include Marc Blucas (Riley on Buffy the Vampire Slayer), Christian Kane (Lindsey McDonald on Angel, also Love Song, Crossfire Trail, Broken Hearts Club), and Wilmer Valderrama (That 70's Show). All three do get to show some of their stuff on the diamond and appear to be athletically talented. But they are wasted otherwise. Freddie Prinze Jr. and Jessica Biel don't seem to generate any real sparks. The little girl (Tenley's little sister) who wants to be the team mascot is cute, and Fred Ward acquits himself well as Freddie's father. Beverly D'Angelo should never, never have participated in the excruciatingly bad imitation (perhaps parody should be the better word) of Susan Sarandon in Bull Durham. However, I will buy this when it comes out on video because I can fast forward through Freddie and see just the parts I want!

I grew up on Cape Cod. First of all Summer Catch was filmed in North Carolina not the Cape. One Crazy Summer (John Cusack/Demi Moore) was filmed in my hometown on the Cape but I hear the unions make it near impossible to film in Massachusetts now. Some of the pictures of fields and buildings were really from Chatham however. Much of Summer Catch rings true. Very few Cape kids actually have ever played in the Cape League. It is elite baseball. The summer on the Cape is full of babes and booze just like the film shows. The rich of the rich have summer homes on Cape Cod (like Rand in the film)and I was a "lawn boy" just like Freddie Prinz back in the 80s but not good enough to make the Cape League baseball. I could relate to this film and enjoyed it thoroughly. It brought me back to the parties and warm summer nights on the Cape that have a feeling like no where else on Earth. Rent it or catch it on HBO like I did. As for Ms Biel I am a fan for life and I hope she has a great career and maybe comes down to the Cape and parties with us sometime. She burns up the screen. I saw Scooby Doo before this film so seeing Shaggy catching and Fred pitch it made movie a little funny and I ws waiting for Scooby to run on field. Final Analysis...Summer Catch is a Grand Slam!!!

`Summer Catch' gets points for trying hard, but it is saddled with so many liabilities that it crashes and burns without getting much altitude. The script is a mish mash of tired themes. Small town boy makes good meets boy from the wrong side of the tracks meets baseball underdog gets big break. The film tries to bill itself as another `Bull Durham' but it has none of the subtlety, comedy or insider perspective of that film. Mostly this is just another lightweight Freddie Prinze, Jr. romantic comedy where Jessica Biel is the catch of the day.

Prinze plays his standard romantic hero role and tries to throw in some baseball. He is fair at both but keeps getting outshined by his supporting cast. I've never really understood the big sensation over Jessica Biel. She shows in this film that her acting is far inferior to her looks. Biel and Prinze interact like marble statues, nice to look at but no chemistry whatever.

The best performances were given by supporting cast members. Fred Ward does a terrific job as Ryan's dad. Brian Dennehy is always fabulous in supporting roles and does not disappoint as the coach of the A's. Brittany Murphy does a fantastic wild thing, with a provocative earthiness that is simultaneously seductive and cute.

There is not much substance here. The baseball scenes are weak and the romance is tepid. The film has some endearing moments but fails to distinguish itself except that it gets goofy far too often. I rated it a 5/10. Fans of Prinze and Biel will enjoy seeing them look sexy for an hour and three quarters. Others might want to miss it.

`Summer Catch' is yet ANOTHER `coming of age' movie, albiet with a attractive cast and some pretty funny humor. Freddie Prinze, Jr. leads an attractive, talented cast in a story which is one third `Bull Durham, one third `Porky's' and one third `every boy from the wrong side of the tracks meets rich girl movie you've ever seen." Considering it's pedigree, it's surprising this movie was made within the bounds of a PG-13 rating. Perhaps, that's part of the problem. Just when you are expecting it to open up and get REALLY raunchy, it backs away. Certainly, there is NO problem with the cast. Freddy Prinze, Jr. is quite earnest as Ryan Dunne, the `yard boy' turned pitcher; however, despite the slight accent, he's not particularly believable as an Irishman. As Prinze's love interest, Tenley Parrish, Jessica Biel brings the same qualities to the screen as Jamie Lee Curtis, in more ways than two. Once you get past the stunning figure (well showcased, briefly, in a bikini), you realize she's a real person, and a quite likeable one. Matthew Lillard is very funny as Billy Brubaker, as is Marc Blucas as Miles Dalrymple, Gabriel Mann as Auggie and Jed Rhein as Pete. Brittany Murphy makes an appropriately "local bar tramp," and Beverly D'Angelo (an incredibly well preserved 48) as the movie's `Mrs. Robinson'. Zita Gray is cute as Jessica Biel's little sister, Katie. Even Randi Layne makes a favorable impression in a VERY small role as Jessica's mother. Please don't let me forget the contributions of Brian Dennehy, Fred Ward, Bruce Davison and Jason Getrick.

One of the BIG problems with `Summer Catch' is the repetitiveness of the subplotting. You don't get just ONE example of the `boy virgin meets ‘Mrs. Robinson,' you get FIVE. The same goes for the `big talk about your career problems scene,' `local bar tramp causes the jock to miss his appointment,' etc. Perhaps that's why the movie seems overlong, which is a killer for a comedy. HOWEVER, I can't remember another movie I've seen recently in which I can remember the names of so many of the characters. That counts for a lot with me...