The new owner of the Cleveland Indians puts together a team of
horrible players, only to have her plan backfire when they start to win. COMEDY/SPORT
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Major League (1989)Written and Directed by David S. Ward
Starring Tom Berenger, Charlie Sheen, Corbin Bernsen, Rene Russo, Wesley Snipes, James Gammon, Margaret Whitton, Chelcie Harris, Dennis Haysbert, Bob Uecker |
For some reason, baseball is the sport that seems to work best in sports comedies. I'm not a sports fan in any sense, but I always tend to enjoy comedies about baseball. But I digress. Major League is a delightfully quirky late 80's comedy that answers the age-old question "What if a baseball team sucked on purpose?" Sporting a cast of actors not well-known for comedy (apart from Charlie Sheen), it's frankly amazing that this didn't end up being dull as dishwater. It speaks to their skills as actors and the smartly written script that Major League has lasted as the go-to baseball comedy.
It's a simple enough plot, with the new owner of the Cleveland Indians purposely building a team of the worst players around so she can score big when they lose. Things change, however, when they catch wind of the scheme and start winning just to piss her off. The team consists of some colorful characters, including a voodoo worshipper and an ex-con with the fastest pitch in the world. Watching these big league rejects interact is funny in and of itself. The performances are great, especially Charlie Sheen and Wesley Snipes, who I think stole the show. What I didn't like was the abrupt ending. After the Indians defeat the Yankees and win the season (spoiler alert), the credits roll almost immediately. There was no aftermath. I wanted to see how the owner would deal with the big win or how Jake Taylor (Berenger) won back his ex-wife. There were a lot of lingering questions, but I still enjoyed the film. It's definitely got staying power and was far better than I expected. |