“Trouble With the Curve” not a home run, but still enjoyable and heartfelt

BY: Kelsey Williamson (Gainesville, GA)

If you’re a baseball fan, then “Trouble With the Curve” is definitely a movie for you. And even if you’re not, there’s still a great chance that you will find tons of things to love about this movie.The film does a great job of portraying issues that many people- sports fans or not- can relate to and enjoy. Some of these problems, such as the tattered father-daughter relationship or the workaholic only child, feel overdone or lukewarm. The cast, however, makes up for some of these deficiencies by helping the audience feel a range of emotions as the movie proceeds.

Clint Eastwood and Amy Adams make a great pair as father and daughter. I loved how the chemistry between them changes throughout the movie, going from cold and distant over a dinner to almost friends when watching baseball, and finally starting to heal the rift between them at the end. Gus Lobel, an aging Braves baseball scout, and his lawyer daughter Mickey are witty and fresh and provide the kind of banter guaranteed to make you laugh so hard you hurt and tear up all in the same two hours.

“Trouble” also does not fail to fill the role of a baseball film. It is full of trivia and statistics and game action that will please even the most avid of fans. The only downfall of the actual games played in the movie is that they are all centered on the kid everyone is scouting and few other players are featured. Little of each game is shown aside from the star players at-bat.

And, as with almost any movie, “Trouble” caters to a romantic crowd by throwing in a love relationship between Mickey (Adams) and a former first-round draft pick and current Red Sox scout, Johnny, played by Justin Timberlake. The relationship, although full of interesting conversation about baseball, is cliché and predictable. Every action taken by either Mickey or Johnny is easily anticipated, and the relationship could have developed further during the course of the film.

The end of “Trouble” had most of the elements that the rest of the movie was missing. The relationship between Mickey and her father finally began to truly develop, there was a feeling of hope for the new star that Mickey believes in for the future of the Braves, and Mickey finally decides to do what makes her happy.

It is not a film meant to intrigue or be dramatic with an unpredictable ending; however, it is heartfelt, charming and has characters with which people can identify. Maybe it’s the sports fan in me, or maybe it’s the Georgian in me that loves to see films set in Atlanta, but I fully enjoyed the movie. I would probably watch it again once it comes out on DVD, but it won’t be a movie that I watch repeatedly. Overall, I’d give it a solid B.