The Bad News Bears
>Rated PG-13 for rude behavior, language throughout, some sexuality and thematic elements.
reviewed by Kevin D. Hendricks
Washed-up ex-major leaguer Morris Buttermaker shapes a rag-tag crew of baseball rejects into championship contenders. Crude jokes and profanity ensue.
The Story
You've seen the story a thousand times, from The Mighty Ducks to this year's Kicking and Screaming. It's the standard children's sports story, following a misfit team that overcomes incredible odds to make it to the top.
This time around it's one-time Mariners pitcher Buttermaker (Billy Bob Thorton) who has to lead the rejects. And with his exterminator job and blatant alcoholism, he's the king of rejects. He coaches a team of predictable kids, including the momma's boy, the fat kid, the quiet kid, the small feisty kid, a kid in a wheelchair, and racial diversity provided by an African American, an Armenian, an Indian, and two Hispanic boys. Throw in the team's requisite ringers, Buttermaker's neglected daughter and the local motorcycle-riding punk, and you've got yourself a baseball team.
The Verdict
In case you didn't know, Bad News Bears is a remake of the 1976 version that virtually launched the children's sports genre. While I haven't seen the original, I’m guessing the 2005 version must be a big step backwards. This tale of an underdog sports team is incredibly boring. We've seen it before, and this remake doesn't offer anything new.
Anything new that’s worthwhile, that is. It offers plenty of new crudeness, crossing every possible line, earning its PG-13 rating with litanies of profanity, sexual humor, and insults to offend every group imaginable.
And even if you can possibly get past all the cruel jokes and gratuitous swearing, the story can hardly stand on its own. The team makes their expected comeback, and in the championship game we see the ugly extremes of coaching and parenting in one rollercoaster of an ending. It's as if the movie can't decide whether it wants to be warm-hearted and endearing or raucous and bad--so it tries to do both to no avail.
Worldview
The “Bad News Bears’ ” take on life would make your mother blush. It might even make your grandfather faint. To put it mildly, it's a near-polar opposite of what the Bible says. Let's look at a few samples of what the movie says compared to what God says:
The Bears: Ridiculing people is fun! It's hilarious to mock someone's physical appearance, manner, race, ability—anything is fair game! The Bible: Um, no. Ragging on others just isn't something Jesus did. Instead we're supposed to build one another up. (Ephesians 4:29)
The Bears: Jazz up those insults with some @#&% profanity, and throw in some crude sexual humor! The Bible: Um, still no. Our lingo should be positive and uplifting, which is pretty much the opposite of the dirty jokes and PG-13 level swearing that dominate this script.
The Bears: A subtle but often repeated theme of the movie is that women are sex objects, nothing more. You see it in the team's sponsor, Bo Peep's Gentleman's Club (which results in a whole section of cheering strippers), and the location of their victory celebrations, Hooters. The only woman to break this stereotype is Buttermaker's daughter, but at times she falls for this line as well. The Bible: The Bible has a completely different view of women, one that honors, cherishes and respects them. Servanthood, rather than objectification, is what the Bible commands husbands. Women (and men) are to be virtuous, not vixens. Don't forget Jesus' statement in Matthew 5:8 equating a lustful glance with adultery.
The Bears: Physical prowess is everything. The Bible: Athletic ability is actually worth very little by the Bible's standards. Then again, so is intelligence. Instead, the Bible prizes sharp choices (wisdom), and it doesn't require a muscular bod or a 4.0 average.
The Bears: Alcohol is a great way to drown out your sorry life. The Bible: The Bible uses some tough words for those who abuse alcohol. It starts with calling them fools and ends with listing drunkards in some pretty sorry company. (Check out Romans 13:12-14; 1 Corinthians 6:9-11; Galatians 19-21.)
The Bears: Winning is everything! Oh, wait, no it's not. Losing rules! Winners drool! The Bible: The old sports adage (“It’s not whether you win or lose; it’s how you play the game.”) would line up well with biblical thinking. God seems to be much more interested in the choices we make than the trophies on our shelves.
C'mon, it's just a movie, right? It may seem like harmless entertainment, but how much of it are we swallowing? Laughter can become a stamp of approval. You may not be drooling over the waitress at Hooters and ragging on a wheelchair-bound kid, but how many flicks like this does it take to lower our standards for where our eyes roam or who our words hurt.
Discussion Questions
• Would you want to hang out with a group of guys like the Bears?
• How would you feel if your dad was Morris Buttermaker? Would you give him a second chance?
• How important is winning?
• What kind of jokes and insults do you share with your friends?
Let us know what you thought of this review!
