'Perfect Game' pitches near-perfect on screen
Cesar (Clifton Collins Jr.) and Mario (Moises Arias) discuss baseball and "the ladies." (Prelude Pictures)
The Perfect Game
Running time: 113 minutes
MPAA rating: PG (some thematic elements)
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"The Perfect Game," a little gem of a stand-up-and-cheer baseball movie, was almost shut-out before it ever made the big screen.
On the shelf, or should we say the bench, for well over a year, this is a must-see for anyone who loves baseball or just enjoys a solid tug on the heartstrings.
In a perfect world, "The Perfect Game" would be assigned enjoyment for every Little League team member, coach and parent around the globe. For those who don't enjoy the game of baseball, the family friendly entertainment scores with a mix of life lessons about tolerance and respect for all humans.
A note from this aisle seat: I consider myself a pretty serious baseball fan. Yet I had never heard the emotional story of a rag-tag team of Little Leaguers from Monterrey, Mexico that forms the foundation of this story.
In 1957, they walked 10 miles in 110-degree heat from the U.S.-Mexican border to McAllen, TX to play their first Little League game north of their home country . For many -- perhaps all -- of the 10-12-year-old players, it wasn't just their first glimpse of El Norte. It was also the first time the team that had to clear rocks to play ball on a makeshift dirt field ever got to play on grass.
The screenplay by W. William Winokur, working from his own book of 2008, while a little cheesy at times, grabs the heart early and begins a serious emotional squeeze play.
The actor most will recognize first is veteran comedian/actor Cheech Marin. Marin sinks his acting soul into the role of Padre Esteban, the priest who loves baseball almost as much as his first calling. San Antonio native Bruce McGill ("W.," "The Lookout") and Lou Gossett ("Jasper, Texas") add credence to small featured roles.
Of the adult actors, however, it's front-liners Clifton Collins Jr. and Emilie de Ravin ("Lost" on TV) who knock performances out of the park. Collins ("Extract," the "Star Trek" remake), turned heads in the industry opposite Philip Seymour Hoffman as Perry Smith in "Capote" (2005).
Collins is strong here as well as Cesar Faz, the Mexican steel worker who once had hopes of coaching in the St. Louis Cardinals organization, but was tagged out by the 1950s color barrier. Though reluctant at first, Cesar becomes the Little League coach, and pushes his players beyond expectations with fundamentals, hustle and heart.
De Ravin is all over the role of a spunky McAllen newspaper reporter who follows the team and records the story.
Several of the young cast members who make up the scrappy little Monterrey Industrials are standouts as well. Jake T. Austin ("Hotel for Dogs") will melt your heart as Angel, the ambidextrous pitcher verbally abused at home by a stern, grieving dad.
I was also very entertained by New York native Moises Arias (Rico on "Hannah Montana") as Mario, the team's little ladies man who serves as effective comic relief.
My only foul-ball complaint for veteran baseball movie director William Dear ("Angels in the Outfield") is that this film which takes place much of the time in Texas was shot in Los Angeles. The dead giveaway comes when someone in the film calls a team from the Rio Grande Valley town of Weslaco "Wes-layco."
That's the only error in "The Perfect Game," a walk away winner that no baseball fan or Little Leaguer should miss.
On the shelf, or should we say the bench, for well over a year, this is a must-see for anyone who loves baseball or just enjoys a solid tug on the heartstrings.
In a perfect world, "The Perfect Game" would be assigned enjoyment for every Little League team member, coach and parent around the globe. For those who don't enjoy the game of baseball, the family friendly entertainment scores with a mix of life lessons about tolerance and respect for all humans.
A note from this aisle seat: I consider myself a pretty serious baseball fan. Yet I had never heard the emotional story of a rag-tag team of Little Leaguers from Monterrey, Mexico that forms the foundation of this story.
In 1957, they walked 10 miles in 110-degree heat from the U.S.-Mexican border to McAllen, TX to play their first Little League game north of their home country . For many -- perhaps all -- of the 10-12-year-old players, it wasn't just their first glimpse of El Norte. It was also the first time the team that had to clear rocks to play ball on a makeshift dirt field ever got to play on grass.
The screenplay by W. William Winokur, working from his own book of 2008, while a little cheesy at times, grabs the heart early and begins a serious emotional squeeze play.
The actor most will recognize first is veteran comedian/actor Cheech Marin. Marin sinks his acting soul into the role of Padre Esteban, the priest who loves baseball almost as much as his first calling. San Antonio native Bruce McGill ("W.," "The Lookout") and Lou Gossett ("Jasper, Texas") add credence to small featured roles.
Of the adult actors, however, it's front-liners Clifton Collins Jr. and Emilie de Ravin ("Lost" on TV) who knock performances out of the park. Collins ("Extract," the "Star Trek" remake), turned heads in the industry opposite Philip Seymour Hoffman as Perry Smith in "Capote" (2005).
Collins is strong here as well as Cesar Faz, the Mexican steel worker who once had hopes of coaching in the St. Louis Cardinals organization, but was tagged out by the 1950s color barrier. Though reluctant at first, Cesar becomes the Little League coach, and pushes his players beyond expectations with fundamentals, hustle and heart.
De Ravin is all over the role of a spunky McAllen newspaper reporter who follows the team and records the story.
Several of the young cast members who make up the scrappy little Monterrey Industrials are standouts as well. Jake T. Austin ("Hotel for Dogs") will melt your heart as Angel, the ambidextrous pitcher verbally abused at home by a stern, grieving dad.
I was also very entertained by New York native Moises Arias (Rico on "Hannah Montana") as Mario, the team's little ladies man who serves as effective comic relief.
My only foul-ball complaint for veteran baseball movie director William Dear ("Angels in the Outfield") is that this film which takes place much of the time in Texas was shot in Los Angeles. The dead giveaway comes when someone in the film calls a team from the Rio Grande Valley town of Weslaco "Wes-layco."
That's the only error in "The Perfect Game," a walk away winner that no baseball fan or Little Leaguer should miss.
