Fever Pitch

Review by Richard Lee

Fox Home Entertainment / 2005 / 103 Minutes / Rated PG-13
Street Date: September 13, 2005

Specifications:
-DVD-Video
-DVD-9
-Region 1

Aspect Ratio:
-2.35:1 Anamorphic Widescreen

Audio:
-english 5.1 dolby surround
-french dolby surround
-spanish dolby surround
-commentary by peter and bobby farrelly

Subtitles:
-english
-spanish
-off

Main Menu:
-play
-language selection
-scene selection
-special features
-inside look

Special Features:
-commentary by peter and bobby farrelly on/off
-deleted scenes
-gag reel
-“love triangle” internet featurette
-“break the curse” internet featurette
-making a scene “fever pitch”
-theatrical trailer
-if you liked this film, than you might want to try…

Directed by the gross-out comedy kings of late, “Fever Pitch” is The Farrelly Brothers first feature that is a simple romantic comedy without the gross-out factor; a step in a more mature direction if you will. Based on the book by Nick Hornby, “Fever Pitch” is actually the second movie version of the story, the first being more true to the original where the setting is London and the sport is soccer. For American audiences, this version, appropriately, switches the setting to Boston and the sport to that great American pastime, baseball. Jimmy Fallon plays Ben, a high-school math teacher who is a die-hard Red Sox fan. Drew Barrymore plays Lindsey, a successful career woman who, like Ben is to baseball, is so obsessed with her work, that it leaves barely any time for anything else. Their paths cross when Ben takes some of his students on a field trip to the business where Lindsey works. Lindsey, who feels her biological clock ticking, decides to go against her usual tendency to date guys of equal status, and date this school teacher whose down-to-earth charm and goofiness win her over. Their relationship is severely put to the test, however, when baseball season begins and Lindsey discovers just how die-hard a Red Sox fan Ben really is. You see, ever since Ben was taken to his first game as a kid by his uncle, he became hooked and has never missed a game since. Besides teaching, his whole life revolves around the Red Sox and the fans have become his surrogate family. 

The Farrelly Brothers, who also happen to be die-hard Red Sox fans, understand this obsession, as does probably every other sports fan or person who is so passionate about something that they re-arrange their lives around it; like home theater electronics. They have paid particular attention to historical accuracy; for example, at the beginning when young Ben sees his first game, The Green Monster, as it is known at Fenway Park was digitally altered to eliminate the bleachers that did not exist above it back in the 80’s. The fact that the Red Sox broke the 86-year-old Curse of the Bambino and won The World Series for the first time since 1918 was surely a blessing for the filmmakers beyond their wildest imaginations. The filmmakers likened the experience to actually filming the attack on Pearl Harbor as it was happening, though that analogy may be a bit too extreme. The film crew moved their operations from Boston to St. Louis in order to film the actors on the field in case the Red Sox won, which they did. 

Jimmy Fallon, previously a member of Saturday Night Live, and whose previous leading role was in the below-par action comedy “Taxi”, turns in a winning performance here though his acting chops still require a little refinement as his experience in sketch comedy still lingers. Drew Barrymore, on the other hand, finally finds her first “mature” role and leaves the previous dysfunctional young girl roles behind; “Charlie’s Angels” doesn’t and shouldn’t count. She has never been more charming since “The Wedding Singer” and is a good match for Fallon who is in reality a year older. A good supporting cast includes Ione Skye and Kadee Strickland as Lindsey’s friends and Jobeth Williams and James Sikking as Lindsey’s parents, the latter in particular having the movie’s funniest sight gag with a bad hair dye job. The movie’s author, Nick Hornby, served as one of the executive producers of the film and his presence, apparently, has served to keep the important elements of his story in place. Overall, an enjoyable piece of fluff with the romantic comedy angle for the ladies and the sports angle for the guys.

Picture Quality:

“Fever Pitch” is presented in 2.35:1 anamorphic widescreen; unusual for a comedy which almost always gets a 1.85:1 transfer. There is also a fullscreen devoted DVD out there too. The picture is richly detailed with bright, clear and vibrant color reproduction. Fleshtones are natural while the red, white, and blue of the Red Sox’s uniforms stand out. Blacks are solid with nice contrasting; a nice transfer.

Audio Quality:

The 5.1 surround track is pretty much standard stuff for a comedy; not much of a workout in terms of directionality from the rears save for telephones or radio commentary heard from the sides. Understandably, the crowd noise during the baseball scenes bring all the speakers into play completely enveloping the viewer; the LFE is pretty much silent throughout. “Tessie” by the Dropkick Murphys, “Dirty Water” by The Standells, and “Sweet Caroline” by Neil Diamond, all songs that are popular staples at Fenway Park, are featured in the soundtrack. 

Special Features:

Commentary by directors Peter and Bobby Farrelly provide insight into the making of the movie, as well as occasionally veering off on tangents to discuss their other movies. Never short for words, there are almost no breaks during their commentary, some of it amusing. They do touch on the final scene, in which the Red Sox win the World Series and Fallon and Barrymore are on the field; something many Red Sox fans were not appreciative of at the time.

“Deleted Scenes” come, thankfully, with a “play all” option, something that should be standard for all deleted scene sections. Some were simply extensions of existing scenes, particularly the opening scene with young Ben at his first game. Others dealt with Lindsey’s work habits and one with Ben talking with Red Sox players in a restaurant.
The “Gag Reel” is a short blooper reel with few chuckles but it is clear the actors were having a good time.

“Love Triangle” and “Break The Curse” are short featurettes, the first is a short synopsis of the movie narrated by Drew and mainly features clips from the film; an extended trailer really. The second featurette looks at the 86-year-old World Series curse and has cast and crew talking about the luck they had being there while the curse was finally broken; again featuring footage taken during that history-making night.
“Making A Scene: Fever Pitch” is a Fox Movie Channel featurette that goes behind the scenes with the actors and producers to detail how the final scene, from game 4 of The World Series, was hastily arranged and put together.

Lastly, there is the theatrical trailer for the movie; “Inside Look” gives you yet another trailer for Fox’s up-coming movie “In Her Shoes” with Cameron Diaz and Toni Colette; and “If you liked this film, you may want to try…” gives brief summaries of other Fox DVD’s that include “Never Been Kissed”, “There’s Something About Mary”, “Shallow Hal”, “Stuck On You”, “The Scout”, and “Life Or Something Like It”.