Review: Undrafted

Synopsis:

When twelve ragtag teammates set out to play what should be a meaningless summer intramural baseball game, it ends up becoming the most important game of their lives.  This collection of characters – the reliever turned starting pitcher (Tyler Hoechlin), a hot dog power hitter (Chace Crawford), an outfielder with anger management issues (Joe Mazzello), a player coach with clipboard envy (Duke Davis Roberts), an over-eager catcher (Ryan Pinkston), the old guy who shouldn’t be playing anymore (Philip Winchester), and the guy everyone forgot was on the team (Matt Bush) – truly gives new meaning to the phrase “amateur status”.

As they struggle to transition away from baseball and towards an uncertain future, the best player among them (Aaron Tveit) – who they all felt should have gotten drafted – has to deal with the news that his big league dreams were dashed, leaving him grappling with why he should still play. One game can be just another box score, but when it’s played by a team galvanized around the love of the game, and for the pride they have in each other, it can define a lifetime.

Written and directed by Joe Mazzello (“Jurassic Park”, HBO’s “The Pacific”, “The Social Network”), UNDRAFTED is based on the real life experiences of Joe’s brother, a collegiate baseball star who was skipped over in the Major League Baseball draft.

What We Thought:

Undrafted is a pretty realistic look at the characters on a baseball team. If you’ve ever played sports, especially baseball, you’ll see guys in this movie that you know were teammates of yours.

It’s a smaller film with a pretty decent cast. Tyler Hoechlin (Teen Wolf, Superman in Supergirl), Chace Crawford (Gossip Girl), Aaron Tveit (Graceland), Joseph Mazzello (Jurassic Park) and others star as a ragtag group of ballplayers in a small league. Some are decent ballplayers who played college ball and Tveit’s character is so good they all think he will get drafted by a Major League team.

He doesn’t, hence its title. But the film is more about one game and how baseball is different for every player. The team is in the playoffs because every team makes it and they are playing a team with brand new players who are all prospects and drafted players.

It’s the characters and realism that make the movie good. The players who are bad or too small to be good know they are bad, but don’t care. You have the guy who’s a couple years older that got a taste of pro ball, but injuries ruined his career. You have the guys playing just for the love of the game. You have the undrafted player trying to decide if this should be his last game or if he should join an independent league and work his way up.

Plus the other team is full of characters as well. You really don’t get too much information about them, but they sing and do dance routines to “psych” out the lovable loser team. It’s baseball, you get sayings like “We need a pitcher, not a belly itcher”.

What I also liked is that the film has genuinely good ballplayers in it. Hoechlin played college ball in real life. Crawford was a high school athlete. The opposing team has Casey Bond who played pro ball and was also in Moneyball. It gives the film authenticity.

You can probably guess where the film is going, but I liked that it’s not the 100% cliche ending you expect. You expect a baseball movie to end on a grand slam for the super happy ending, but this doesn’t quite go that far.

Going into the film I hadn’t realized Undrafted was based on a true story. Joseph Mazzello directed and wrote the film because the film is about his brother. His brother went undrafted despite being a good player. The film even shows a highlight of his brother. The movie doesn’t change the face of sports flicks and isn’t a classic like other baseball films, but it’s realistic and authentic. I respect that. Because of that, it is…

RECOMMENDED!

Cast & Crew:

• Chace Crawford
• Tyler Hoechlin
• Joseph Mazzello
• Aaron Tveit
• James Belushi
• Billy Gardell

Recommended If You Like:

• Everybody Wants Some!!
• Baseball