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Title: Summer Catch (2001)
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| Cast overview, first billed only: | |||
| Freddie Prinze Jr. | ... | Ryan Dunne | |
| Jessica Biel | ... | Tenley Parrish | |
| Fred Ward | ... | Sean Dunne | |
| Matthew Lillard | ... | Billy Brubaker | |
| Brian Dennehy | ... | John Schiffner | |
| Jason Gedrick | ... | Mike Dunne | |
| Brittany Murphy | ... | Dede Mulligan | |
| Bruce Davison | ... | Rand Parrish | |
| Marc Blucas | ... | Miles Dalrymple | |
| Wilmer Valderrama | ... | Mickey Dominguez | |
| Corey Pearson | ... | Eric Van Leemer | |
| Christian Kane | ... | Dale Robin | |
| Cedric Pendleton | ... | Calvin Knight | |
| Gabriel Mann | ... | Auggie Mulligan | |
| Jed Rhein | ... | Pete (as Jed Robert Rhein) | |
Ryan Dunne, a nice high-school kid, who works hard mowing lawns for dad Sean's firm, is caught between loyalty to Sir, who cynically believes neither of his sons will even climb the social ladder, and big brother Mike, who scolds Ryan's lack of ambition to go all the way to be recruiter for for a baseball college scholarship, which Mike had to abandon due to a wound. To complicate matters, he falls in love with a snob client's daughter. Written by KGF Vissers
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`Summer Catch' gets points for trying hard, but it is saddled with so many liabilities that it crashes and burns without getting much altitude. The script is a mish mash of tired themes. Small town boy makes good meets boy from the wrong side of the tracks meets baseball underdog gets big break. The film tries to bill itself as another `Bull Durham' but it has none of the subtlety, comedy or insider perspective of that film. Mostly this is just another lightweight Freddie Prinze, Jr. romantic comedy where Jessica Biel is the catch of the day.
Prinze plays his standard romantic hero role and tries to throw in some baseball. He is fair at both but keeps getting outshined by his supporting cast. I've never really understood the big sensation over Jessica Biel. She shows in this film that her acting is far inferior to her looks. Biel and Prinze interact like marble statues, nice to look at but no chemistry whatever.
The best performances were given by supporting cast members. Fred Ward does a terrific job as Ryan's dad. Brian Dennehy is always fabulous in supporting roles and does not disappoint as the coach of the A's. Brittany Murphy does a fantastic wild thing, with a provocative earthiness that is simultaneously seductive and cute.
There is not much substance here. The baseball scenes are weak and the romance is tepid. The film has some endearing moments but fails to distinguish itself except that it gets goofy far too often. I rated it a 5/10. Fans of Prinze and Biel will enjoy seeing them look sexy for an hour and three quarters. Others might want to miss it.