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65 reviews in total

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27 out of 33 people found the following review useful:
Cover does not convey how great this movie is, 24 July 2004

Author: firthnluv from virginia

The cover of the Feverpitch DVD does not relay to the consumer what a really great movie this is. Whether it is about soccer or football, we can all sort of relate to the characters in this story. To be honest, I got this movie because Colin Firth is in it and after doing some research figured it couldn't hurt to watch it. I had just seen his Hope Springs which I had to turn off, just didn't like the story line and even his gorgeousness could not keep me there. But Feverpitch just had me laughing and I think I actually stopped breathing minutes at a time. It is so hilarious how serious his character, Paul, took "football" and how hard it seemed for his new girlfriend to relate to his seriousness. All you Firth fans out there beware, this movie will only increase your love for this man. And those who are just wondering if it is worth the rent, I'd say no. It is worth the buy!

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21 out of 24 people found the following review useful:
A most personal film, 25 May 2005

Author: malcolmgsw from london

For me this is one of the most personal films ever made.I was at all of the games at Highbury shown in the film.The celebrations take place outside the entrance to the West Stand where i have been entering for the past 45 years.The school at which Colin Firth is teaching was my school.I even saw it in the Odeon Muswell Hill which is just one minute from the school,and of course that night.who will ever forget that night.I remember it so vividly as if it happened yesterday.To me the sheer brilliance of the book and the film is that Hornby manages to bring to life the dreams we live together.It doesn't matter if you support Arsenal or any other team the dreams are just the same.I was in a local book shop the other day when i saw a later version of the book.I sat down and read the new pages and they were as real to me as if i had been sitting next to Hornby at the time that he wrote them.

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13 out of 14 people found the following review useful:
A Winner for Nick Hornby and Colin Firth, 8 April 2004
Author: avabetalon from New Hampshire, USA

Nick Hornby strikes again! I watched this movie for Colin Firth, and enjoyed it as a fan and as a discriminating viewer. The script is excellent, particularly the dialogue (particularly in one delightful restaurant scene). I found the acting and craftsmanship satisfactory - be warned that dialogue can be quiet, so listen hard through the accents. The film is delightfully British, so I highly recommend it for Anglophiles, and as Nick Hornby knows how to do, it is a nice mix of the ludicrous and the thoughtful. The relationship the movie centers around is really interesting to follow. We wonder what makes it tick, but Colin Firth and Ruth Gemmell seem comfortable together, so it isn't unbelievable at all. I wasn't expecting "Fever Pitch" to be so good, but I find that I recommend it highly.

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9 out of 10 people found the following review useful:
How to film a novel, 30 September 2007

Author: jshoaf from Florida

I am a middle-aged American woman who has never seen a soccer game and has never seen any kind of live sports game all the way through beyond Little League (3 brothers, 1 son). I live in a town where football is the main local religion. Nick Hornby's novel was a delight to read and really gave me some sense of the psychology as well as the anthropology of being a fan. I rented the movie because I wanted to SEE the novel: the stadium, the terraces, the colors, the craziness Hornby describes. Youtube and Wikipedia could tell me some about Alan Smith, Highbury, the Hillsborough tragedy, but not enough. The movie came through. Actual footage of games and scenes inside the stadium gave a powerful sense of what it's all about. The final sequence, in which various characters Paul's fandom has touched watch a championship game, was wonderfully moving. The plot has three characters--Paul the young fan, Paul the adult fan, and Sarah the outsider who is repelled by the irrationality, the loud and sweary masculinity of it all. The plot exists to allow Paul to expose, stubbornly as a child and articulately as an adult, what it means to be a fan. Sarah is there to force him into talking and thinking a bit about it. Both Pauls are marvelous. Colin Firth is amazing. His physical attractiveness is essential to the plot--it gets him into Sarah's bed so they can start talking about Arsenal-- and that simple fact leaves him huge amounts of room to be boyish, goofy, moody, clueless, innocent, and cruel.

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6 out of 6 people found the following review useful:
a surprisingly complex and compelling film, 10 September 2001

Author: Rachel Cobleigh

The cover of the video is COMPLETELY misleading. I must admit that I never expected a film about a football fan to be either interesting or in-depth. I was surprised to find its US release under "New Arrivals" at my video store, and being a fan of Firth, I decided to give it a try. It's a very human story, and it is well-done. Nick Hornby's script is excellent, and he actually managed to pull me, a non-rabid fan of football, into understanding a little of what his character was going through. The inclusion of the childhood scenes was great for setting up why the character is still human, though he initially appears insane when taken in the greater context of human existence. He was portrayed very effectively by Firth, whose previous stand-out performance as Mr. Darcy in "Pride and Prejudice" contrasts so sharply with the character that he plays in this film that I found myself almost cringing at the immaturity and madness portrayed by him...until the character grew on me and I felt more than just pity for him. Ruth Gemmell did a fine job of portraying Sarah, a woman who was frustratingly in love with a man who loved a sport. I liked watching the growth of both of their characters throughout the film. The thing that struck me about this film was the reality and "humanness" of it. I could see such a thing happening in actual life, and I appreciated the portrayal of the everyday struggles of learning to refocus your priorities and commit to loving someone.

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10 out of 14 people found the following review useful:
Gooner Glory, 7 May 2006

Author: charles gunn from United Kingdom

For those not familiar with English football, Arsenal is a very old, well-respected club with a proud tradition, and has done much to progress the game at all levels. They have enjoyed an unrivalled run of seasons in the top-flight, and because of this are envied by almost all other clubs. Outside of Manchester United, it has probably the largest fan base in the UK as well as a growing international following, following the success and attractive style of play brought about by manager Arsene Wenger. The club is shortly moving to a brand-new 60,000-seat, state-of-the-art stadium to help accommodate it's growing army of supporters. It is likely demand for tickets will still far exceed supply, although this depends to some extent on their ability to retain the world's greatest players, who bring with them a whole new, dedicated following.

So now you know a little about the club, you will understand why this movie was made. Hornby is a life-long fan (Arsenal fans are affectionately known as 'Gooners') and the season during which the film is based, is arguably one of the most dramatic the English Championship has ever witnessed. The film briefly touches on the tragedy of Hillsborough, which was a turning-point in the game. Because of the loss of so many innocent lives, all UK stadia were redeveloped to ensure they were the safest, most fan-friendly in the world. The club most deeply affected by the disaster was Liverpool - favourites to win the Championship that year. Liverpool are probably the second most famous club in the country, hugely successful in the 1980s. Arsenal - always unpredictable - could only take the title if they beat Liverpool 2-0 at Anfield, Liverpool's ground. Almost all neutrals were hoping Liverpool would win the title because of the tragic losses amongst their fans - generally regarded as being some of the most devoted in the game. Almost everyone believed they would win, and with less than a minute to play in the Championship-deciding game, Arsenal were a goal shy. It was at this point on the night that I turned off the TV and slunk off to the pub to drown my sorrows. When I arrived, the place was buzzing, and the rest is history. This is precisely what this movie is all about - anything else is just filler to broaden it's appeal. Anyone who is not a Gooner could not possibly understand this movie, but it does work on different levels for those not involved.

As I am involved, I can't possibly see beyond the facts. Enjoy the scenes, the drama, and the famous old Highbury stadium - which is as I write is hosting it's very last competitive match. The stadium is probably unique in location, surrounded by leafy north London back-streets. This film is more important historically than as a piece of dramatic art, but it's nice to know some people appreciate it as a movie. If some of those people learn to appreciate the club, it's history and - sadly doomed - stadium then that is a bonus. Those years can never be repeated, but they will never be forgotten.

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11 out of 17 people found the following review useful:
On the surface, a film about The Arsenals and their fans, but REALLY about clinging to the one thing that binds you to a lost parent., 28 May 2002

Author: countryway_48864 from United States

Fever Pitch may not be a great film, but it is certainly a wonderful, charming, pitch-perfect film.

On the surface, it is the story of a Peter/Pan who can't give up his obsession for a local Football Team.

The man in question, (an incredibly handsome Colin Firth), is a teacher of English at the high-school level. The teacher next door is a lovely young woman with the knick-name of "iron britches". Of course the predictable happens.

What is unpredictable is the painful growth of Colin's character, and his slow progress in being able to give up his team just enough to make room for an even greater and more important love, the teacher next door.

What I love best about this film is that Colin Firth here is NOT Mr. Darcy. Mr. Darcy would NEVER let his Lizzie see him in his Fire Engine RED and white Arsenal Boxer Shorts!

Here Mr. Firth is rough-edged and scruffy. A man who prefers to hang out with his mates drinking beer and holding a fatalistic view that his beloved Arsenal will NEVER win the Championship.

The charm of the film lies in the growth of this man/child and the patience and understanding of the woman who loves him and their slow but certain progress from attraction to real, lasting LOVE!

See it!! I happen to love soccer. All my children played it and now my grandchildren play it. I believe the rules are different for British Football, but those difference didn't take away from the thrill of watching Arsenal in action!

Any golf,football or baseball "widow" will understand and love this film!

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5 out of 6 people found the following review useful:
Perfect Sports Movie for the NON-sport fan, 17 January 2002

Author: Gale Carol Georgalas (DameK) from Clifton, New Jersey, US

I haven't been interested in sports since I was twelve but this film made me care about Arsenal, Paul and other sports enthusiasts. The acting was perfect. The film was funny and lovely. Colin Firth proves his versatility again. For those of you who can't tell, this is the same actor who wowed everyone in Pride and Prejudice as the reserved, haughty, unapproachable Mr. Darcy. Bravo. Brava. Thank you, Nick Hornby

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5 out of 7 people found the following review useful:
Insights into obsession, 19 January 1999
Author: Bede from Bendigo, Australia

This film explores the life, thoughts and relationships of an obsessive sports fan. It happens to be have been made in England about a particularly dramatic title win (Arsenal's 1989 victory was the stuff of legend), but applies to obsessives everywhere, who pin all of their happiness on some team over which they can exert no control. The writing is insightful, for example "I don't know whether life is s*** because Arsenal are s***, or the other way around" will be recognised by any fan of a sporting (or political) team, and the central character's long-term reaction to the long-sought victory is spot on. The acting and direction are also spot on. The mellifluous Colin Firth leads an excellent ensemble, from which Mark Strong (as Firth's buddy) stands out. Like the best British films (Brassed Off, for example), this one has real situations and real, recognisable characters you care about, spiced with gentle comedy. I recommend this one warmly.

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2 out of 2 people found the following review useful:
A classic movie about football, unless you support Spurs...., 18 April 2010

Author: hearsz from Australia

By now you would have read enough reviews to know enough about the story and the characters.

So here's my own opinion of Fever Pitch..

Like the DVD cover states for this movie, "Love footie, hate footie, you'll love Fever Pitch". Fever Pitch defines how hundreds of millions of football fans feel around the world, who are as passionate as Paul (Colin Firth) is about Arsenal FC. The relationship with his father, how we handles his classroom and the teacher next door at the school are all realistic, especially if you're living in an obsessive football supporters world, or any sport for that matter..

The fact that the Americans took this great script and tried to turn into a story of their own (See: The Perfect Catch) shows that it had great appeal on the otherside of the Atlantic.. The Americans sure have been lacking ideas lately and some have resorted to trying to remake old English classics, with somewhat less success.. e.g. The Italian Job, Alfie and now Fever Pitch

If anything, in Fever Pitch you could see Colin Firth's potential to be more than just an English character actor and we all know where his early efforts have gotten him today.

A funny film, well worth watching if you've ever been passionate about anything in life, regardless of what team you support..

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