Eephus

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.

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!

As a lover of baseball, I was really interested to see what a new hardball flick (there being less and less of those these days) might bring to the table. Alas, I found Eephus more boring than the poignant emotion it was going for.

For a very basic overview, Eephus tells the story of a men's rec league baseball game on their beloved small-town field--which is about to be torn down for a new school to spring forth on its grounds. Through players leaving, a lack of baseballs & umpires (and talent, generally), and the encroaching darkness, the final game stretches far longer than anyone anticipates.

I clearly see what Eephus is trying to accomplish--a sort of minimalist commentary on the sport and camaraderie of baseball at a local level. One character says something to the extent that baseball is like "waiting for something to happen--and then it's over" and while that is a fun metaphor it doesn't work as the basis of a feature film.

Instead, Eephus is mostly boring and lacking any of the necessary plot or character development that could have made it interesting. A cardinal sin is that it features far too many characters to ever really let attachments form. This whole flick should have been about the uniqueness or outright oddity of grown men playing a kid's game in their spare time, but director Carson Lund never quite gets it there because there are just too many players and their "backstories" are either too droll or too brief to make much of an impact.

Eephus seems like a film that was entirely built around the "baseball is boring" criticism often lobbed that sport's way. So, the filmmakers here try to "get inside" that tedium and make an interesting film. But, at least for me, it (somewhat ironically) ended up exactly that: boring.

Truth be told, I am rarely truly bored by any film. I can usually find something to hold my interest. But with Eephus, I found myself checking "how much was left" on more than one occasion because everything is so sparse within its construction.

EEPHUS (2025) Like the pitch it's named after, Carson Lund's EEPHUS is a slow erratic curveball that sneaks up on you. Two baseball teams gather to play an organized pick-up game one afternoon. An old man sets up a card table to keep score. An even older gentleman takes his seat - pretty much alone with the sparse "crowd". A grumpy for-hire umpire reluctantly takes the field. A food vendor hawks pizza by the slice. The teams are made up by a motley crew of middle-aged townies and a few younger players some of whom may still harbor thoughts of semi-pro ball.

They are gathered in a rundown park, Soldiers Field, that has seen better days. The waning rays of the autumn sun fall on the colorful foliage as Halloween beckons in this small New England town. It's the last game to be played there as the stadium will be torn down to make way for a new school. The nearest similar playground is a half-hour drive away.

The narrator is legendary Documentary filmmaker Frederick Wiseman who drops pithy quotes from the legends of the game such as Babe Ruth and Yogi Berra. Wiseman's participation is approapriate for Lund takes a semi-documentary approach, favoring observation over narrative. The film never leaves the park. One simply watches the twenty or so men go through their paces, dropping in for snatches of conversation here and there. Like the sport itself, the movie can be slow - and dare one say it? - a bit dull. Of course, as any true fan of the game will tell you, monotony is part of the game, too - as it is in life itself.

None of the actors are particularly famous, but a few such as Keith William Richards and Paul Kandarian may be somewhat recognizeable. They all feel genuine. Red Sox announcer Joe Castiglione plays the vendor. The best cameo is an extended one by Boston baseball legend Bill 'Spaceman' Lee who shows up and disappears like a ghost pitching one inning (Lee threw the most infamous Eephus pitch in history at the 1975 World Series giving up a homer to Tony Perez even though he'd been strenuosly warned not to do so).

As the game drags on, people start to go home. It gets dark, but the core men soldier on. It's the last game after all. Plus, the score is tied. There HAS to be a result. They NEED to see it through. At this point, they are literally playing for the Love Of The Game as the old saying goes. It ends not with a huge epiphany (would be inappriate for a low key production such as this) - although there is a fittingly puny fireworks display planned.

EEPHUS is an elegiac look at the true meaning of baseball. Perhaps not a 'Field of Dreams' as much as a way of life for the diehard faithful who may have little else they can still cling to.

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.