The Book is Better But Hard To Appreciate if You Are Not a Soccer Nut!
Added 8/10/2009
Full disclosure: I've been an Arsenal fan since 1979 and I remember just like the cliched JFK moment exactly what I was doing when my team pulled the equivalent of a sporting miracle by defeating the then mighty Liverpool at their home ground in 1989 to win the title. I doubt very much that I'd even care to watch this film adaptation of Nick Hornby's book if I wasn't already a fan although having watched this dvd with a non-fan recently I can understand why she thought this was pretty boring. Interestingly enough the screenplay was also written by Hornby himself and I think even he couldn't do much to save this film that would leave you in snores if you don't fit the right audience profile as described above. Hornby even picked the songs for the soundtrack which is pretty decent but otherwise the acting is pretty wooden and uninspired. I liked the way Hornby tried to explain why the protagonist behaves the way he does as an "adult" linking it to his emotional trauma at having an absent father being brought up by his mother and hence filling the gaping wound in his heart by loving Arsenal as deeply as he imagined he would have done a dad if he truly had one. His constant horrible fear of and expectation of being let down at the very end by the team mirrors the insecurity he's acquired as a child; if he couldn't trust his own father not to betray him he is constantly paranoid about his beloved Arsenal doing the same thing to him.
Happily, with the help of his love interest and Arsenal's finally winning the title after 18 years he eventually allows himself to trust others again and hence to move on to a less maniacical emotional attachment where happiness for him is not dependent upon the team's successes. Great screenplay but unfortunately the rest of what makes a film great is missing here and so unless you are a fan of the team this will be hard to sit all the way through. The sound quality is okay and is available in Dolby 5.1 Surround sound although the picture quality barely rises above VHS quality and the volume for the soundtrack of the songs is for some reason a lot louder than for the vocal track which is irritating as you almost feel you have to rush to reduce the volume the moment a song is played.
In summary, only for the die-hard fan.
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Fever Pitch - Enamored with Arsenal FC
Added 9/26/2007
First of all, I have to say up front that I am both a football (aka soccer) fan and an ardent Arsenal supporter, so this film was almost a must see, at least for me. That said, I will state that the film has its share of poignant moments, almost all of them revolving around the central character's obsession with all things Arsenal, and the level to which this frustrates his girlfriend as she attempts to build a meaningful relationship (with Arsenal always in the way). If you have more than a passing interest in football, and you want to get an English perspective on the subject, this is a good film. I would also recommend "Green Street Hooligans", a film that chronicles the adventures of a US college student (Elijah Wood) who moves to London and falls in with a group of football fanatics.
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Good- not great
Added 6/13/2007
I much prefered the book to the movie, and was especially disappointed by Colin Firth (who I normally love in movies!) I found the main character not charming and relatable, though a bit quirky like he was in the book- but completely annoying and a bit crazy. That said, anything with soccer fields in it makes me happy. And I definately prefered this version to the baseball american one.
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Horrible cover art for a great film
Added 5/13/2007
Although the cover art for "Fever Pitch" gives one the impression that the film is some kind of soccer sex comedy, the film is actually a touching and funny account of one man's obsession with an English soccer team and how that obsession can get in the way of real life. Adapted by Nick Hornby from his excellent memoir of the same name, the film has fine performances from an able cast that includes Colin Firth. If you are an English soccer fanatic like me, the film is a must see. An American remake was made later that uses baseball as the obsession rather than soccer, but who cares?
0 out of 0 people found this helpful.
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Fever Pitch Supreme
Added 8/29/2006
This is a funny and touching movie at times. I saw the American re-hash of it but it didn't traslate as well to baseball. As this is Nick Hornby's autobiography how could it. He's English and an Arsenal fan. It's a shame this movie will not be seen in the States. Whoever made the decision to change it to an American version did a gross mis-service to this film. I have found American audiences to be very receptive to British movies
5 out of 5 people found this helpful.
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The Book is Better But Hard To Appreciate if You Are Not a Soccer Nut!
Added 8/10/2009
Full disclosure: I've been an Arsenal fan since 1979 and I remember just like the cliched JFK moment exactly what I was doing when my team pulled the equivalent of a sporting miracle by defeating the then mighty Liverpool at their home ground in 1989 to win the title. I doubt very much that I'd even care to watch this film adaptation of Nick Hornby's book if I wasn't already a fan although having watched this dvd with a non-fan recently I can understand why she thought this was pretty boring. Interestingly enough the screenplay was also written by Hornby himself and I think even he couldn't do much to save this film that would leave you in snores if you don't fit the right audience profile as described above. Hornby even picked the songs for the soundtrack which is pretty decent but otherwise the acting is pretty wooden and uninspired. I liked the way Hornby tried to explain why the protagonist behaves the way he does as an "adult" linking it to his emotional trauma at having an absent father being brought up by his mother and hence filling the gaping wound in his heart by loving Arsenal as deeply as he imagined he would have done a dad if he truly had one. His constant horrible fear of and expectation of being let down at the very end by the team mirrors the insecurity he's acquired as a child; if he couldn't trust his own father not to betray him he is constantly paranoid about his beloved Arsenal doing the same thing to him.
Happily, with the help of his love interest and Arsenal's finally winning the title after 18 years he eventually allows himself to trust others again and hence to move on to a less maniacical emotional attachment where happiness for him is not dependent upon the team's successes. Great screenplay but unfortunately the rest of what makes a film great is missing here and so unless you are a fan of the team this will be hard to sit all the way through. The sound quality is okay and is available in Dolby 5.1 Surround sound although the picture quality barely rises above VHS quality and the volume for the soundtrack of the songs is for some reason a lot louder than for the vocal track which is irritating as you almost feel you have to rush to reduce the volume the moment a song is played.
In summary, only for the die-hard fan.
0 out of 0 people found this helpful.
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Fever Pitch - Enamored with Arsenal FC
Added 9/26/2007
First of all, I have to say up front that I am both a football (aka soccer) fan and an ardent Arsenal supporter, so this film was almost a must see, at least for me. That said, I will state that the film has its share of poignant moments, almost all of them revolving around the central character's obsession with all things Arsenal, and the level to which this frustrates his girlfriend as she attempts to build a meaningful relationship (with Arsenal always in the way). If you have more than a passing interest in football, and you want to get an English perspective on the subject, this is a good film. I would also recommend "Green Street Hooligans", a film that chronicles the adventures of a US college student (Elijah Wood) who moves to London and falls in with a group of football fanatics.
0 out of 0 people found this helpful.
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Good- not great
Added 6/13/2007
I much prefered the book to the movie, and was especially disappointed by Colin Firth (who I normally love in movies!) I found the main character not charming and relatable, though a bit quirky like he was in the book- but completely annoying and a bit crazy. That said, anything with soccer fields in it makes me happy. And I definately prefered this version to the baseball american one.
0 out of 0 people found this helpful.
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