Fallon knocks it out the park in 'Fever Pitch'

By Forrest Hartman
Reno Gazette Journal

"Fever Pitch" is a good catch. Jimmy Fallon plays a high school teacher who is an all-around nice guy worshipped by his public school students. It's no surprise, then, that career gal Lindsey Meeks (Drew Barrymore) falls head over heels for him. Only problem is, Ben's heart belongs to someone — or rather something — else: the Red Sox. Directed by Peter and Bobby Farrelly. 20th Century Fox. 101 minutes.

The film is loosely based on writer Nick Hornby's book, which details his obsession with British club football (soccer for we Americans). But it has been adapted to the familiar world of New England baseball, where long-suffering Red Sox fans saw their title hopes stripped when Babe Ruth was traded to the Yankees in 1920.

The resulting "Curse of the Bambino" lasted 80-some years but was finally broken last season when the Sox beat the Yankees and won the World Series.

It was a joyous occasion for Sox fans, and a mixed blessing for filmmakers Peter and Bobby Farrelly who love the team but were shooting a movie that depended on their losing ... as they had for more than eight decades. But life demanded a rewrite, and the Farrellys obliged, leaving us with a picture that lacks angst, yet fits perfectly into the romantic-comedy genus.

Leading the way is Jimmy Fallon who, as teacher Ben Wrightman, is an all-around nice guy worshipped by his public school students. It's no surprise, then, that career gal Lindsey Meeks (Drew Barrymore) falls head over heels for him. Only problem is, Ben's heart belongs to someone — or rather something — else: the Red Sox.

The movie follows Ben and Lindsey's budding romance against the backdrop of the 2004 Red Sox season. At first, it looks like theirs is a match made in heaven. Lindsey is a workaholic who doesn't want a guy complaining that she's always at the office, and Ben wants to watch games guilt-free. But their differences eventually overtake them, delivering the doubt that every good romantic comedy requires.

Few people are as sports-obsessed as Ben, but most couples will find a bit of themselves in the movie. After all, what sports fan hasn't grumbled about going to a family get-together at the same time as the big game? And what woman hasn't lamented that her man's devotion to sports above all else?

It's as universal a plot as you're likely to find, and with plenty of baseball gags amidst the mushy stuff, "Fever Pitch" is a darn good date film. Farrelly fans may be disappointed that they've set their gross-out gags on the back burner in favor of more traditional humor. But they've done themselves a favor. This is their best film since "There's Something About Mary" in part because the over-the-top jokes are nixed, shifting the focus to beguiling performances by Barrymore and Fallon and the intelligent screenplay by Lowell Ganz and Babaloo Mandel.

This is a huge movie for Fallon because, after "Taxi," he was in danger of becoming yet another "Saturday Night Live" star jilted by the big screen. Here, however, he proves himself a competent and entertaining leading man with the potential to tackle both wacky comedy and lighthearted drama.

Barrymore has nothing to prove, as she's been cranking out likable romantic comedies for years, but she is in typically solid form. Like good actresses do, she makes the material seem even better than it is.

Movie fans can be thankful because we're left with a sweet diversion that scores a base hit at every turn.

Rated PG-13 for crude, sexual humor and some sensuality.