Almost as boring as baseball, nice acting
thinks it's saying something profound about the human condition unlike the other Hollywood movies, but it's just as homophobic, misogynist and xenophobe as any of its contemporaries
If I hadn't committed myself to rewatching movies I'd never reviewed, I probably would never have revisited Bull Durham. It's a baseball movie, first of all, and it stars Kevin Costner. That is normally enough for a pass. I don't even know if I actually dislike Costner as a performer, or if he just consistently selects projects I have no basic interest in. Be that as it may, it was on the list, and so here I am. Bull Durham is not the main character's name as I falsely remembered - can anyone explain the title? it's about the Durham Bulls, but how does that grammatically resolve in that title? - he's a sort of baseball gunslinger hired by a Minor League team to get the local pitcher into the Majors. The baseball story has a lot of gumball machine philosophy, but it's pithy and Costner and Tim Robbins are fun foils for one another. As it turns out, this is just a side-show for a romantic comedy between Costner's Crash and Susan Serandon's sexy baseball groupie (the movie basically prefigures Almost Famous, but with sports) and the unfolding theme is that experience trumps raw quality, though not everyone necessarily delves that deep. I'm not sure how well the movie juggles the two genres at times (it seems all over and then they have to tack on more romance stuff), but ultimately, though I found it perfectly watchable, it's just not the kind of material I'll ever have much passion for.
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Comments 1 - 8 of 8
devilsadvocado
This one hasn't aged too well.Esnaider
Almost as boring as baseball, nice actingthinks it's saying something profound about the human condition unlike the other Hollywood movies, but it's just as homophobic, misogynist and xenophobe as any of its contemporaries
Siskoid
If I hadn't committed myself to rewatching movies I'd never reviewed, I probably would never have revisited Bull Durham. It's a baseball movie, first of all, and it stars Kevin Costner. That is normally enough for a pass. I don't even know if I actually dislike Costner as a performer, or if he just consistently selects projects I have no basic interest in. Be that as it may, it was on the list, and so here I am. Bull Durham is not the main character's name as I falsely remembered - can anyone explain the title? it's about the Durham Bulls, but how does that grammatically resolve in that title? - he's a sort of baseball gunslinger hired by a Minor League team to get the local pitcher into the Majors. The baseball story has a lot of gumball machine philosophy, but it's pithy and Costner and Tim Robbins are fun foils for one another. As it turns out, this is just a side-show for a romantic comedy between Costner's Crash and Susan Serandon's sexy baseball groupie (the movie basically prefigures Almost Famous, but with sports) and the unfolding theme is that experience trumps raw quality, though not everyone necessarily delves that deep. I'm not sure how well the movie juggles the two genres at times (it seems all over and then they have to tack on more romance stuff), but ultimately, though I found it perfectly watchable, it's just not the kind of material I'll ever have much passion for.Emiam
Metascore 73/100??4/10 ok film. Nothing more. Really.
tndouglas
Why the hell is this film on the AFI 100 laughs list? This movie isn't at all funny. Guess I missed that....EssexMutant
Only the 2nd most famous film of the 1980s to have numerous references to Walt Whitman.jhhayes
Great movie! It has a perfect blend of sports, comedy, and romance. Something for everyone.nicolaskrizan
They should have used »Great balls of fire« for the soundtrack.http://1001movies.posterous.com/1041