"Fever Pitch"

Directed by: Peter Farrelly, Bobby Farrelly

Starring: Drew Barrymore and Jimmy Fallon

Rating: PG-13 (mild crude and sexual humor and some sensuality)

Running time: 102 minutes

Best suited for: Couples. Sports for him, romance for her

Least suited for: Rabid sports or romance fans, neither of whom get the whole enchilada in this one

Acorn’s Rating Guide:

The "Curse of the Bambino" was obviously a 20th-century thing. "Fever Pitch" is a film that joyfully acknowledges its demise.

The Farrelly Brothers, Bobby and Peter, have made a living mocking the human condition. They’ve brought us films of varying degrees of offensiveness ("Kingpin," "Shallow Hal" and "Stuck on You") and apparently consider the Boston Red Sox roughly akin to a malady. And if you’ve ever lived in Boston—even if you’re not a baseball fan—you’ll understand both their obsession with and their addiction to the formerly hexed Sox.

"Fever Pitch" is a mostly charming tale of Ben (Jimmy Fallon), a rabid Sox fan, and Lindsey (Drew Barrymore), a perky workaholic, who meet and try very hard to fall in love.

As a romantic comedy, despite its charm, the plot is a bit on the light side. The romcom is a predictably formulaic beast, in which potential lovers usually face numerous obstacles (the bigger the better) before finding true happiness. In "Fever Pitch," however, Ben and Lindsey’s biggest obstacles are simply their own obsessive behaviors. Their resistance to compromise make neither appear to be an ultimate dream mate. Despite their undeniable cuteness quotient, she’s married to her cell phone and laptop and he to the boys of summer. Had their addictions been anything less innocuous, this could have been more "Panic in Needle Park" than flirtation in Fenway Park. Yet the biggest question we ever confront is: Can Ben and Lindsey compromise enough to fall in love?

Hey, can the Sox win the big one?

The Farrellys have restrained themselves considerably for "Fever Pitch." Their timidity may actually irk some die-hard fans; those who swooned to their breakout and grossly hilarious "There’s Something About Mary" may find "Fever Pitch" tame—and just too damn cute. There are a few moments of sexual innuendo and a little sophomoric guys-being-guys crudity, but "Fever Pitch" barely rattles the Offense-O-Meter. It’s a surprisingly sweet little romantic comedy, told against the backdrop of a town in the midst of their biggest year since the Tea Party.

If there’s a flaw in "Fever Pitch," it’s that the sports movie sometimes gets in the way of the romance, and the romance occasionally gets in the way of the sports flick. Had ’04 been a typical year for the Sox, the film’s baseball aura may have proven less important—but fate intervened. (The Farrellys and writers had anticipated the traditional Boston flameout, and the film’s ending had to be rewritten to reflect the Red Sox’ astonishing victory over rival New York and their ultimate sweep of the World Series.)

The Farrellys magically caught some of the momentum of Boston fans gone wild—and frankly, the hoopla helps stimulate the film. If there’s any divine providence at play here, it’s that the Sox’ fate mimics Ben and Lindsey’s tortured romantic journey. On the other hand, just when the Sox are poised for destiny, the film cuts the team loose to concentrate on the more immediate problem of Ben and Lindsey’s happiness. Sports fans—Boston fans in particular—may be squirming in their seats, instinctively reaching for their remote control to flip back to the game. Two outs, two on, bottom of the ninth and . . . what, they’re kissing?

I believe that this is one film that might have easily extended itself another 20 minutes—10 for those romantic fops in the

audience, and another ten for the sports nuts. "Fever Pitch" is about compromise, after all, and I suspect both fops and nuts may feel a little cheated as the curtain closes, having hoped to linger a bit longer on what really matters to them.

But, like love and baseball in Boston, sometimes compromise hurts too.

In a nutshell: "Fever Pitch" is a cute romantic comedy about two obsessive souls who fall in love and attempt to coexist. Despite its light-as-air story line, Drew Barrymore and Jimmy Fallon have good chemistry and I couldn’t help liking this one. It’s part sports movie and part romantic comedy and hopefully there’s enough of both (or either) to suit your taste.