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Show A&EDiversions Page 6 Thursday, Sept. 27, 2012 Baseball film is a foul ball Spencer Palmer torli), "Trouble with the Curve" Grade: C Film Review When you step up to the plate in life, do you hit a homerun or strike out? Gus (Clint Eastwood) is an ornery old widower who's struggling to keep up with his job as one of the Atlanta Braves' best baseball scouts. He has a knack of noticing the talent and, more importantly, the potential of players. He cares for the players he recruits, and he knows how to take care of them so they perform their best. Gus' friend, Pete (John Goodman), is also Gus' biggest advocate of the old school methods to the general manager of the Braves, Vince (Robert Patrick). Pete's rival, Philip (Matthew Lillard), constantly pressures Vince to rely on the technology developed to analyze statistics of the players to make a selection. Meanwhile, Gus' daughter, Mickey (Amy Adams), is busy in her career as a lawyer desperately trying to become a partner in a law firm. When Gus is assigned to go to North Carolina to scout out the latest rising baseball star, Bo Gentry (Joe Massingill), Pete persuades Mickey to meet up with her father to try to patch up Gus' career and their distanced relationship. After the father and daughter are reluctantly reunited at one of the games, they run into Johnny Flanagan (Justin Timberlake), a former 'TROUBLE WITH THE CURVE' is a sports-drama starring Clint Eastwood, Amy Adams and Justin Timberlake. The movie is about a retiring baseball scout who takes a final trip with his daughter. Stock photo an interest in Mickey, and pursues her with charm. Their banter is quick witted and exciting. The story develops further from that point. All the characters have a history, and much of that is explored throughout the rest of the film. "Trouble with the Curve" is a good drama with a smattering of comedy. It didn't strike out as a movie, but it certainly didn't score many points. It may seem to be a movie about baseball, but it's really about the characters and their development. The sport is only the medium through which the drama moves. The biggest weakness of the entire film was the pacing. Until the final few minutes, the movie felt like it was following a few people around in their normal lives, as if there wasn't going to be a resolution to the conflicts and difficulties revealed throughout the film. This may have been an attempt to make the movie feel more realistic, but sometimes the real world shouldn't be filmed. It was interesting to compare "Trouble with the Curve" with last year's hit "Moneyball." "Moneyball" emphasized and promoted the use of computer programs and statistics over the gut instinct of baseball scouts, while "Trouble with the Curve" pushed for the skill and experience of the scouts over the software. This movie was a great exhibition of a handful of great actors, but the supporting material couldn't hold them all up. This was director Robert Lorenz's first film he's directed on his own, but he's been the assistant director on a number of major movies, including "Mystic River," "Space Cowboys," and "Absolute pitcher Gus recruited years before now working as a scout for the Boston Red Sox. Johnny instantly takes Grcat Wcdding8 tic 1n with Great Invitations •Wedding Invitations and all Wedding Paper Goods •------• Resumes •Fliers • Commercial . Printing • Dissertations, , f SQUARE ONE' PRINTING 630 West 200 North, Logan • 753-8875 arts.usu.edu COLLEGE eA RT S 435397.8022 of UtahStateUniversity CCA BOX OFFICE CHASE FINE ARTS CENTER RM 139-B USU CAMPUS ADULTS $13, SENIORS & YOUTH $10, FACULTY & STAFF $8 USU STUDENTS FREE W/ ID MAURITIUS BY THERESA REBECK OCT. 2-6, 2012 • BLACK BOX THEATRE CHASE FINE ARTS CENTER I USU CAMPUS Produced by special arrangement with Samuel French, Inc. New York City I Originally produced in New York by the Manhattan Theatre Club, Lynn Meadow, Artistic Director, Barry Grove Executive Producer, Daniel Sullivan, Acting Artistic Director 2007-2008 Season, at the Biltmore Theatre on September 13, 2007 AL" Power," all of which, interestingly, included Eastwood in one way or another. He did well for his first picture, but he has room for improvement. It didn't help that his material came from first time writer Randy Brown, whose story was drawn out too long to satisfy the audience. Brown did redeem himself in developing well-rounded characters. All the characters were natural in their roles. It was easy to believe they were based on real people, although the movie was a work of fiction. Eastwood is as stubborn as ever, a trend of many of his movies, but especially his more recent hits: "Gran Torino," "Million Dollar Baby," and "Unforgiven." He is a talented actor, but he seems to be in a rut in his acting abilities, although his directing skills are still something wonderful to behold. Adams was amazing at playing the daughter of Eastwood's character. Her performance almost led the audience to believe she had been his offspring outside the theater. Adams continues to grow in her abilities, and has showcased her many talents in "Enchanted," "The Fighter," "The Muppets." Her next major picture is highly anticipated as she assumes the role of Lois Lane in Zach Snyder's "Man of Steel." Timberlake has broken away from his old *NSync days and has become a solid rising actor. He's played in a variety of genres, with examples of "The Social Network," "In Time," and "Bad Teacher." I especially liked his quick wit and humor he brought to Johhny Flanagan. Goodman is a classic down to earth comedy actor. He didn't have much screen time, but the time he had was just right, and each beat was perfectly timed. He's known for the television show "Rosanne," and his upcoming films include the predicted hit "Argo," and next year's Disney Pixar film "Monster University." Lillard, best known for playing the latest Shaggy in the Scooby-Doo franchise, seemed to play his typical annoying self, which is getting old. He's gotten older from his days in "Scream" and "She's All That," but he still hasn't Spencer Palmer Film Reviewer II with the Curve is a good drama with a smattering of comedy" grown up. Composer Marco Beltrami fell short from his usual greatness. The character themes weren't memorable, if they were there at all. Most of the music, it seemed, came from a collection of songs rather than a score. The one exception to the music was the few different renditions of "You Are My Sunshine," a personal theme for Gus and Mickey in the film, which added more heart to Eastwood's character. If you enjoy baseball or any of the primary actors, "Trouble with the Curve" may be a good date night movie to rent. — Spencer Palmer is a graduate student working toward an MBA with a recent bachelor's in mechanical engineering. Email him at spencer.palmer@aggiemail. usu.edu or visit his website, themovieknight.wordpress. com. NOW OPEN \ , , USU's FINEST FAKE NEWS SINCE ABOUT LAST WEEK Corn Maze is 21 Acres! • Lots Of NEW A \ ctiviiiii Giving away scooter! 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