Bad News Bears: A DVD of the 2005 Film

By Bill Jordan
Updated: February 5, 2009

badnewsbears2005 Obviously, this film was not an original idea as it had originally come out (in various forms) decades earlier. Even though this is the case, Billy Bob Thornton and his crew allowed a new generation of people to learn the story of the Bears with a modern touch to the story.

The new film follows the basic story line that was set out by the first one and most of the characters are emulated in some form. There were some worries when the film came out that it would be modernized too much, but that is clearly not the case as everything that happens in the movie is fitting to its time period.

Thornton was very impressive in his portrayal of the coach of the team, Morris Buttermaker, who is portrayed as a has been baseball player. He lands the job of the coach of this team because he figures he can earn some easy cash on the side of his job as an exterminator.

He is confronted with the most multicultural team ever put together, which he dubs the “League of Nations.” Buttermaker gets reformed throughout the film from a drunk to someone who truly cares about the lives of his players. Although this may sound like the typical Hollywood story, he does have some relapses in character very close to the end of the movie which make his character seem believable.

Thornton’s character is paralleled against another coach played by Greg Kinnear who portrays the coach that all other parents fear for their kids. Kinnear acts as the guy who cares more about winning than whether the 12-year-old kids are actually enjoying themselves. These two characters cross paths throughout the movie and although Kinnear’s act is probably a bit over done, it is very humorous and does illustrate one of the biggest problems facing the young sports community.

The special features available on the disc include the usual deleted scenes, outtakes and theatrical trailer. Some not so common features include commentary by the director and the co-screenplay writers who provide some insight into the making of the movie and how they went about reformatting a classic film. The DVD also features video baseball cards of the players on the Bears.

The 2005 flick drips with dry humor throughout the film and depending on one’s sense of humor, is extremely entertaining. Even though the movie is nearly two hours in length, it keeps the viewer involved in the movie so that it does not seem to be really taking as long as it is.

While this movie does have its points, it will never be able to be considered a classic, as the first one is, by any means. That being said, making a classic was probably not the plans of the director who set out to make this film whose other works include the School of Rock.

It is aptly rated PG-13 due to some dirty language, questionable behavior and sexual innuendo. There is no doubt that the movie lives up to all of the things that garnered it this rating, but it does not overdo any of them to the point where it becomes unrealistic.

Overall, the movie would be very entertaining for the right age group, and while it is not one of the most memorable baseball movies, it creates an opportunity for someone who is not well versed in the game to still be entertained with the plot.

The Grade: 3.75/5

Bill Jordan is a contributor to BaseballReflections.com. He can be reached by e-mail at [email protected] .