What says “springtime” better than “baseball”? I’ll wait.
Nothing, the answer is nothing. But boy, is “Eephus” something. For starters, it is my favorite film so far this year. It is also the only one I have seen twice.
Opening in the Berkshires first at Images Cinema in Williamstown on April 5, the movie will strike Massachusetts audiences as a super relatable drama and a thoroughly charming comedy.
First, the whole film was shot in Douglas, Mass., making it a future contender for inclusion in a sequel to the documentary “Made in Massachusetts.” Second, this is a middle-aged men’s story, a group with whom I share cohort bonds. Third, these are alcoholically correct players who swill Narragansett lager from cans because they are in Blackstone Valley, which neighbors Rhode Island.
It doesn’t get much better than this—and that is why “Eephus” is 100 percent certified fresh on Rotten Tomatoes, too.
Directed by Carson Lund, this 98-minute film shows most of a baseball game, which is not just any game. The two teams, the River Dogs and Adler’s Paint, have been playing on this diamond for as long as anyone can remember. But now the tradition is threatened by local politics when the field must make way for a new school. Imagine that!
I reached out to Lund last week to ask why anyone should see his film. He wrote:
Eephus is a film that invites the audience members to reflect on the place of community and leisure in their own lives. It’s so vital to have gathering spaces to do things we love with others who love the same things, even if those passions don’t make sense to people outside that sphere. That’s what life is all about, and we only have so much time to pursue these passions. Eephus is a reminder to use our time mindfully and joyfully. It’s also a tribute to the great communal ritual of baseball, especially as it’s played far outside the stadium lights.
When I asked Lund why theaters should root for Eephus to go into extra innings, so to speak, he replied:
I encourage theaters to extend their runs of Eephus wherever possible because cinemagoing is exactly the kind of gathering space the film is about. Word of mouth buzz takes some time to grow when you don’t have a massive studio marketing budget, and I think the film is just starting to catch on. In my own experience touring different cities, I’ve spoken to countless people for whom watching Eephus has been a deeply personal and rewarding experience, and I want to make sure as many people as possible have a chance to connect with it in a theater.
I couldn’t have said it better. This slow-moving comedy is a comforting, anti-climactic counterweight to the mad, mad world we find ourselves in nowadays. And watching these ball players hang out together feels refreshing because they appreciate one another’s company.
I encourage everyone in and around Williamstown to see “Eephus” at Images Cinema when it opens next week. A representative from Music Box Films tells me “Eephus” opens also at The Triplex and The Moviehouse in Millerton on April 11. So get ready for “Eephus.”
Take yourself out to the ballgame and tell all your friends: It is a grand slam of a hangout movie.
