It's a pretty amazing film. Just hit all the right notes-- and has one of the best opening voiceovers in the history of film.

I believe in the Church of Baseball. I've tried all the major religions, and most of the minor ones. I've worshipped Buddha, Allah, Brahma, Vishnu, Siva, trees, mushrooms, and Isadora Duncan. I know things. For instance, there are 108 beads in a Catholic rosary and there are 108 stitches in a baseball. When I heard that, I gave Jesus a chance. But it just didn't work out between us. The Lord laid too much guilt on me. I prefer metaphysics to theology. You see, there's no guilt in baseball, and it's never boring... which makes it like sex. There's never been a ballplayer slept with me who didn't have the best year of his career. Making love is like hitting a baseball: you just gotta relax and concentrate. Besides, I'd never sleep with a player hitting under .250... not unless he had a lot of RBIs and was a great glove man up the middle. You see, there's a certain amount of life wisdom I give these boys. I can expand their minds. Sometimes when I've got a ballplayer alone, I'll just read Emily Dickinson or Walt Whitman to him, and the guys are so sweet, they always stay and listen. 'Course, a guy'll listen to anything if he thinks it's foreplay. I make them feel confident, and they make me feel safe, and pretty. 'Course, what I give them lasts a lifetime; what they give me lasts 142 games. Sometimes it seems like a bad trade. But bad trades are part of baseball - now who can forget Frank Robinson for Milt Pappas, for God's sake? It's a long season and you gotta trust. I've tried 'em all, I really have, and the only church that truly feeds the soul, day in, day out, is the Church of Baseball.

I believe in the soul, the cock, the pussy, the small of a woman's back, the hanging curve ball, high fiber, good scotch, long foreplay, show tunes, and that the novels of Susan Sontag are self-indulgent, overrated crap. I believe that Lee Harvey Oswald acted alone, I believe that there oughtta be a constitutional amendment outlawing astro-turf and the designated hitter, I believe in the "sweet spot", voting every election, soft core pornography, chocolate chip cookies, opening your presents on Christmas morning rather than Christmas eve, and I believe in long, slow, deep, soft, wet kisses that last for 7 days.

I also believe we've discussed every one of those points here, except (unless I'm subscribed to the wrong threads) the bit about Lee Harvey Oswald.

and I believe in long, slow, deep, soft, wet kisses that last for 7 days.

"Oh my."

I thought Bull Durham was one of the most boring movies I had ever seen.

I thought Bull Durham was one of the most boring movies I had ever seen.

Heh. So does one of my best friends. She thinks I'm insane. S'okay, still love her.

I think a lot of it was the buildup to it - I'd been told by EVERY SINGLE PERSON ON THE PLANET for years that it was THE GREATEST MOVIE EVER IN THE WORLD and would CHANGE MY LIFE AND MAKE ME LAUGH AND CRY AND DO MY TAXES AND LAUNDRY AND CURE WORLD HUNGER, and...it was a romantic comedy about baseball? Really?

It was supposed to do my taxes? I was cheated!

(Nah, seriously -- I lurve it to a great and goofy degree, but nobody else has to. And I get the weirdness of the huge buildup for something you find... meh.)

and...it was a romantic comedy about baseball? Really?

You know, I think the thing about it, is the people who saw it when it first came out, in the theatres, it was so mind-bogglingly different from what had been coming out at that time. It was a sports movie, but it was a smart sports movie. But it wasn't a Big! Dramatic! Message! sports movie, it was just a fun, comedic sports movie that didn't rely on the pratfalls for the laughs, but on the dialogue and situations. Plus bonus! Romance movie as well.

The writer, Ron Shelton, definitely knew where he was coming from with the baseball and did a fine job with the romance, even though it was completely predictable.

Then thing I find most fascinating about it, from the romance side of things, is I think had a woman written that same screenplay or even a novel, with that plot, it would've gotten shot down in a New York minute because the heroine spends the majority of the film boinking (or wanting to boink) a character other than the hero, which is a huge no-no in the romance world. (Trust me, I KNOW this). But because it was written by a guy, it was "Awww... look, romance!"

Frustrating, but at least he did a fairly good job with it.

I suspect that Bull Durham's strength is that you can watch it with pink or blue glasses on, and get a roughly equal amount of enjoyment out of it.