Mr. 3000

Mr. 3000 - ***

Mr 3000 is a sports comedy from director Charles Stone III (Drumlime, Paid in Full) and more importantly starring Bernie Mac, an actor who has never really been given a chance to shine as a star before this. In it, Mac plays Stan Ross, a self centred hitsmith who upon reaching the coveted mark of 3000 hits abruptly quits baseball. He is certain that this will ensure him a spot in the hall of fame, although his lack of a relationship with the press repeatedly keeps him out. However, after a statistician reveals that he is in fact 3 hits short of the mark, Ross must come back to the game after nine years of retirement to get back his beloved title of "Mr 3000". Along the way he learns a lesson about selflessness, in both love and baseball. Now while my major source of disenchantment towards Wimbledon is the overemphasis on romance, the opposite could be argued for this film. Mr 3000 is clearly a baseball movie. While the trailers make no ellusion to anything different, it has to tread a line between straightforward and one dimensional. The movie certainly isn't perfect either. We see plenty of "same old, same old" with regards to the plot, and the characters are a bit jaded. However, the performances are strong, the direction is really good, and the overriding message is well presented. Plenty of good laughs and great looking shots here. Thumbs up.