CHARMING SOFTBALL DOCUMENTARY
HAS PERFECT PITCH

By HANNAH BROWN
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FASTPITCH
3 Stars

A charming and affectionate portrait of the fascinating world of fast-pitch softball, directed by someone who has played the game.
Running time: 88 minutes. Not rated. At the Village East, 12th Street and Second Avenue.

THE documentary "Fastpitch" has the charm of a well-played baseball game on a lazy Sunday afternoon, without any of the forced sentimentality that has marred so many recent sports movies (think "For Love of the Game").

It presents an affectionate portrait of the fast-fading world of professional fast-pitch softball, a game that lasts only seven innings and is played on smaller diamonds than hardball.
But what sets "Fastpitch" apart from nearly every other sports film ever made is that its director, Jeremy Spear, is also a fast-pitch player himself.

Spear, a New York City-based artist, decided in his mid-30s to give professional sports one last shot and spent a season bouncing from team to team in the fast-pitch world.
Perhaps because Spear has been a participant in and not only a fan of the sport, "Fastpitch" has an unusual intimacy and lack of condescension.

Fast-pitch is truly a fascinating world, and the film is filled with comedy and drama. The sport is very popular in New Zealand, and many of those who play it here are Maori tribesmen from that country.

They're certainly a party-hearty group, as they crush full beer cans on camera and drink out of them sideways. The biggest star in the league is Shane Hunuhunu, who can barely keep his hands off his American girlfriend and has to contend with groupies.

Another ethnic group involved in the sport are Native Americans, who field a team called the North Americans made up entirely of recovering alcoholics and junkies.

While most teams in the tiny towns where the sport is played can barely afford to pay their players much more than enough to cover room and board, the Tampa Bay Smokers, backed by manic businessman Peter Porcelli, lure players from all over the country with lucrative contracts.
Porcelli tries to dazzle the competition by dressing his players in different color uniforms every day of the playoffs. "I have more talent than a human being really deserves," he says.

The last third of the film focuses on whether Porcelli's players will beat a more modestly paid team, in a cheerful microcosm of the kind of battle that is taking place everywhere in the sports world.
Perhaps the best compliment that anyone can pay to Spear and his movie is that he makes you want to run out and catch a fast-pitch game in person before it's too late.

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