Bleacher Bums (2001 TV Movie) User Reviews

no Oscars, but enjoyable

[bsl05 · 7/10 · 29 July 2003]

I could see how someone may not like this movie at all, but I thought it was enjoyable. It was borderline, not quite good yet quirky enough to be "good enough." As a big baseball fan I wish I could have this sort of life - just go to ballpark and hang out with people who I may or may not know and have a good time. 7/10

I enjoyed it.

[Jin-Roh_Brigade · 5/10 · 27 December 2004]

I would totally have to disagree with the guy above. He is speaking of a narrow path way of vision. I do not think he grasps the idea that the director was going for,I don't know what it was with this movie, but I found it very interesting to me. I enjoyed most of it... even though at times I was thinking "oh boy." There are many immature moments in the movie, but then baseball fans would know how it is really like in the stands. I mean, you can almost relate to everything u see, as if you have already seen it before at a game. The lead roll is played decently, but not perfectly. I see flaws in the movie, but then the point, to me, is very good. Overall, I guess you need to watch it to know if you like it or not.

A Satellite Dish Delight!

[ManOrAstroMan · 7/10 · 11 May 2003]

Yello, ever-hopeful die-hard Chicago Cubs fan here.

Finally, a movie "loosely-inspired" by my beloved Scrubbies. This made-for-tv flick is a surprising winner in the end. It features some second-rate television celebrities ("Hello, Newman") and great writing. Too bad they couldn't get the blessings of MLB. The "Bruins" sounds funny every time they say it. But otherwise, the characters are developed well and it ends with some imaginative twists. My take: if you see it listed on some movie channel, curl up and enjoy.

Final Grade: a loosely-inspired 7 out of 10.

Nice Ensemble Piece

[Schlockmeister · 7 April 2002]

It is clear that this was based on a play. The scenes are set in the bleachers of a "Chicago Bruins" baseball game during the course of a single game. This movie is a testament to team loyalty as well as loyalty to friends and the comradery of groups. Anyone who has spent much time at baseball games will recognoze some of the characters here. For me the rabid fan cheerleader steals the show, he spices the movie up just as he intends to spice the game up. I found myself rooting for him more than for the team. Nice ensemble piece. Would be interesting to see or read this plays script to see how it was originally set up for stage. If you like baseball or like well scripted movies, you wil enjoy this.

Yes it was a bad movie but HEY...I was in it!

[g_raimondo · 6/10 · 15 January 2007]

I was actually an extra in this movie and didn't get to see the finished product until much later. The movie was not great, that's true but after some research I found that this movie is based on a play and I think performing this show on stage may give it the endearing quality it lacks on screen. I spent 2 weeks in 2001 working on this movie. The direction was very good considering the seeming lack of budget that was present at the time. It was actually filmed at Varsity Stadium in Toronto and it was a blistering summer. I walked away as an extra earning my 8 dollars an hour and at the ame time feeling a proud and a new respect for all the extras in the movie industry.

Quietly charming

[tedd222 · 7/10 · 22 February 2018]

I saw it now as one of the producers is a friend. It has fun bits. The scoreboard scene with Maury Chaykin and Charles Durning is worth the whole DVD. It was set up that they had women up there. Someone said it is the gateway to heaven where they total up your hits, runs, and errors. The Gore Lieberman line is a throwaway, but laugh out loud. And the starting romance is a delight. We hope it works. The woman ever so slightly pulls the umbrella over, twice. A directors or actors perfect touch. Good actors. Good acting. The one flaw is Brad Garrett at the end becoming a mean dude. Not sure it was ever set up. Some funny bits. Worth the hour. Good job brother Rubin. As producer and the Cards manager.

Garbage!!!

[=G= · 3/10 · 8 April 2002]

Stupid, boring, and a complete waste of time. PU! This thing was awful. It is possible that baseball fans might find something to enjoy in this loser. However, I don't like baseball and could only stomach about half this flick so I did the Tivo fast-forward thing and estimated the rest was as bad as the first.

Take Me Out To The Ballgame

[scooterbrowne · 9/10 · 28 July 2004]

This movie is funny. I wish the guys that sat in the same section at the ballpark as me were as great as this cast played these characters. They heckle the opposition, they have their riffs with one another, and they have their friendships.

I found this at my local Wal-Mart in the cheap DVD bin and it is one of my best deals I have ever gotten on a movie. I picked this up for two reasons, one I am a huge Brad Garrett fan and two, I have been a baseball fan since the day I was born.

This was a very well done made for TV movie. This introduced me to Hal Sparks who's character you can't help but feel sorry for. This is a must see movie for any sports fan but especially baseball, for he/she has probably been one of these character or has been around these characters at the sporting event that they attended.

Great Topic, Disappointed in Delivery

[zdawg41 · 1/10 · 4 June 2002]

I am a big baseball fan, so I forced myself to sit through the whole thing. This movie was very slow and it completely lost my attention. The combination of a strong cast and great original material (taken from the play) should have equaled a fun movie, since it did not I am lead to believe the Screen Writers/Editors/Producers were extremely weak. I do not recommend that you waste your evening on this movie.

Sweet, Funny and Heartbreaking...Just like the Cubs

[billbowers93059 · 9/10 · 19 July 2003]

Yes, I know the team in the movie is the Chicago Bruins but you just know it's the Cubs. This is a good movie although not a good baseball movie. A little too cliche' and a few too many errors (pitcher not pitching from the rubber, players changing position, bad baseball skills. etc.) to be a good baseball movie. But a good character study with a great ensemble cast. The couple who fight over the betting, the estranged father and son who came back together, the blind man and the bimbo with a heart of gold and of course, the wacko fanatic played with a lot of zesto by Stephen Markle. A baseball fan will probably enjoy it most but it's still a good movie to watch on a rainy Saturday afternoon when the Cubbies (or your local team) has been rained out.

Watered Down Version

[zsenorsock · 2/10 · 7 November 2006]

I LOVE the original version of "Bleacher Bums". I saw it in Chicago with Dennis Franz and Joe Mantagnea. I've seen several other versions since then. I've loved them all, with their various differences in cast and performances. However, I HATED this adaptation.

The story is so entwined with Chicago and Wrigley Field if you can't shoot in Wrigley Field (or even America!) and you can't use the names of the actual players and the teams (St. Louis Eagles? Come on!) then DON'T make the movie. It's as if they made a movie about the team that plays in Fenway and called them the Beantown Belters and their arch rival the Gotham Goblins and shot it in Hong Kong...this is a miserable adaptation of a great play. And it has the WORST "Talk Soup" host ever, Hal Sparks.

Avoid it if at all possible.

The worst.....

[show_prep · 24 April 2003]

This quite possibly is the worst movie I have ever seen. I found it with some bargain bin DVD's, and now I know why. I am even a HUGE baseball fan, and hated it. The only 2 things worth seeing about this movie come in the first 15 minutes of the film. You see Sarain Boylan in a skimpy top, and you see them make up 2 ficticious teams out of 2 real teams. The St. Louis Cardinals are transformed into the "St. Louis Eagles" complete with a Mark McGwire substitute "Mike McGuinn". Same goes for the Chicago Cubs. They become the "Chicago Bruins" with a Sammy Sosa wannabe "Manny Mosa". If anyone wants to buy a used (watched once) DVD of this movie despite numerous poor reviews from IMDb users, let me know. I'll sell you mine... CHEAP! 1/2 out of 5 stars.

An inaccurate representation of baseball fans

[Pluto_of_Pluto · 1/10 · 7 July 2004]

One look at this movie and you will realize that none of the actors involved have ever been to a sporting event before. The acting is so p**s-poor you will be left with a urinary tract infection after watching it. I know some of these people really can act, but under Saul Rubinek's direction they all look like a bunch of hacks. The story itself is boring and nonsensical. The final product comes off as a putrid translation of a terrible play. People's problems cannot all be solved in the span of one baseball game. If they could be solved as quickly as they are here, it wouldn't be called life that we are living. It would be The Cosby Show. Rubinek should stick to stinking up the screen with his acting performances and leave directing up to someone with a little more talent. Where are you, Yakov Smirnoff? 1 out of 10 stars

What sports movies are all about!

[buttyfrench · 10/10 · 29 July 2003]

This movie captures the world of the baseball fan in perfect detail. The characters are full of personality and the acting is superb. If you have ever gone to support a ball team for more than one season, then you will identify with this movie. Wyne Knight is hilarious and Jeff Lazlo is great as the female impersonater, Melody. Just sit back and enjoy the action of baseball. The game reenactments are first rate and look for a cameo by one of the writers, Frank Sinatra, Jr.! Watching this movie makes me want a hot dog and a beer!

Unexpectedly good

[Raleigh-7 · 9/10 · 8 April 2002]

Having nothing to watch on TV that looked good, my wife and I picked this movie as it had Peter Riegert ,who we like, in it. It was so entertaining we stayed up till after 1 PM to see it to the end. If you really enjoy people-watching you will really enjoy this film. Saw it last night on Showtime. Surprizing so much could be put in a film lasting as long as a nine inning game. Loved the different characters in it.

Barf!!!

[davlin01 · 23 July 2003]

I as an ex-bleacher bum from the late 60's and early 70's. Thought that this movie was a piece of garbage. The movie took place in the right field bleachers when the real bleacher bums were in left field.

The producers of the movie tried to make the ball park look like Wrigley Field...no cigar. The scoreboard and the ivy looked a little too phony, and the inside of the park didn't look anything like Wrigley.

The characters in the movie were very uninteresting. Wayne Knight couldn't even save this bomb.

As an old Bleacher Bum and a Cubs fan I am insulted.

All this film has is heart!

[Maurice_Rodney · 8/10 · 5 May 2002]

All it needs is watching. The actors are uniformly good, and the chemistry feels genuine. The writers provide a broad sampling of the human experience in the microcosm of one small section of Wrigley Field. The die-hard fans are accustomed to having their hearts broken by the Cubs. That seems to have created some emotional calluses. This story is about how the addition of a new member shakes the group out of its doldrums. The interloper is a babe in the woods who simply loves baseball for the game itself. I know. This is shocking! It has that same effect on "the regulars". They do not know how to relate to someone who cheers for a well-turned play by the visiting team. She brings the fresh perspective of some one who remembers that it is a children's game, and that it is supposed to be fun! She is a splash of cold water that shakes them out of their entrenched cynicism, and forces them to see their game with fresh eyes. This is good stuff.

It's better the second time

[Raleigh-7 · 9/10 · 18 April 2002]

Watching it a second time proved to me it was even better than the 1st time. All the pieces of the picture seemed to move so easily into place. Showtime should be proud to have had this movie produced. Wonderful to watch the change in the characters over the time of the game;ie the acceptance of Melody by the group and interplay between Greg and Melody and she now feels accepted by the group and will return tomorrow to see the 2nd baseball game of her life.