Major League DVD
Paramount Home Video
Rated: R
Genre: Comedy
Length: 107 minutes
Director: David S. Ward
Year: (1989)
Britt Gillette's Major League DVD Review
Featuring a motley band of eccentric baseball teammates, Major League ranks as one of the best sports comedies ever produced. Released in 1989, it covers the story of the hapless Cleveland Indians (winners of numerous division titles in the decade since) who are inherited by the dead owner's self-centered, bitchy wife, Rachel Phelps. Locating a clause in the team's contract with the city that will allow her to move the team to Miami if attendance falls below two million for the year, she decides to do everything in her power to make the Indians not just losers, but the worst team in history. The result is a memorable excursion in baseball playoff history…
Hiring ex-Toledo Mud Hens manager, turned tire-shop manager, Lou Brown (James Gammon) as the new manager of the Indians, Rachel Phelps begins to construct a team destined to lose - thus sending her to the far more preferable climate-friendly Miami. Bringing in a string of others misfits including Willie Mays Hayes (Wesley Snipes), a lightning bolt speedster who can't hit, Jake Taylor (Tom Berenger), an aging catcher with bad knees, Roger Dorn (Corbin Bernsen) a high-priced, low-talent free-agent acquisition, Pedro Cerrano (Dennis Haysbert), a power-hitter who can't hit a curveball to save his life, and Ricky "Wild Thing" Vaughn (Charlie Sheen), a fireball pitcher who can't hit the broad side of a barn - a pathetic display of baseball futility quickly ensues.
Longtime Indians announcer Harry Doyle (Bob Uecker) provides a plethora of hilarious one-liners and perfect comic relief as he (whiskey in hand) follows the beginning of a magical season for Cleveland's lovable losers. Off-the-field stories also crop up with Jake's pursuit of his old flame Lynn Wells (Rene Russo), and Ricky Vaughn's affair with rival teammate Roger Dorn's wife Suzanne (Stacy Carroll).
In the end, only one thing on earth can motivate and mold this ragtag crowd of rejects into a playoff contender - their mutual dislike of Rachel Phelps. Downgrading Indian facilities as punishment for each win, she eventually has them flying to games in antique bi-planes and traveling cross-country by bus. Amazingly well-written, Major League is a comedy classic that truly delivers. Love of baseball is a plus, but not necessary for one to enjoy this movie. Funny is funny, and laughter is laughter. They extend beyond the boundaries of sports.
Britt Gillette
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Posted on 7 December 2004