Summer Catch

Summer Catch is a movie that some mothers might be hoodwinked into wanting their teenagers to see. It’s cute (almost innocuous, actually), there’s no swearing or drugs or graphic sex, everybody has good hair, and, most importantly, the young people in the move actually want something more than fun. Mothers in the movie, however, are completely irrelevant. One mother is watching her son from heaven, so she only gets talked about, and the other mother sits silently at the breakfast table while her daughter and husband battle about the girl’s future. Given a script where the fathers are portrayed as unadmirable, Summer Catch could have easily modified its anti-parent stance with one scene, such as a loving mother giving a confused young woman some solid advice about life, love and the meaning of grad school. Oh, well, to hell with the concept of role models: Let the kids fail on their own. Freddie Prinze, Jr. (Head Over Heels) is Ryan “Lawn Boy” Dunne, a local boy who works for the small landscaping company run by his widowed father (Fred Ward, Road Trip). Ryan knows all the best patches of grass in Cape Cod, including the manicured estates where he’s just another nameless hired helper. Askew from his mother’s death and being kicked off a college baseball team, Ryan knows his last chance for a baseball career is his home town’s summer league, which also happens to be one of the best baseball training camps in the country, run by Ted Kennedy look-alike Brian Dennehy (TV’s The Fighting Fitzgeralds). If Ryan can make it here, on the very turf he trims with his mower, he’ll capture the attention of the major-league talent scouts. Throwing a curve ball into his plans is a beautiful rich girl, who challenges him with the movie’s motto, “You want big rewards, you gotta take big risks.” The girl is Jessica Biel (Ulee’s Gold), who’s so gorgeous any guy in his right mind would fall on the beach and love her till dawn. But not our hero. In the whole movie this guy doesn’t evince one ounce of passion. It’s depressing. Ryan’s got a lot of cute, lusty buddies, though, so all is not lost. Take special notice of the catcher, Matthew Lillard (She’s All That), and pitcher wildman, Corey Pearson — definitely young men with hits in their futures. (Also notice terrific little Zena Grey, who has the funniest scenes as the home team’s costume-changing mascot.) Even more curious is that Summer Catch never creates any passion about baseball, either — especially odd considering director Michael Tollin was Oscar-nominated for his 1995 documentary, Hank Aaron: Chasing the Dream. Somewhere in the journey from real-life baseball to the big-screen rendition, the director struck out. If you love baseball and romance, run to the video store and check out Bull Durham.