{"id":2159,"date":"2007-01-25T12:25:10","date_gmt":"2007-01-25T19:25:10","guid":{"rendered":"http:\/\/filmfanatic.org\/?p=2159"},"modified":"2023-11-25T00:02:23","modified_gmt":"2023-11-25T07:02:23","slug":"bad-news-bears-the-1976","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/filmfanatic.org\/?p=2159","title":{"rendered":"Bad News Bears, The (1976)"},"content":{"rendered":"<p><strong>&#8220;All we got is a cruddy alky for a manager!&#8221;<\/strong><\/p>\n<table>\n<tr>\n<td>\n<p><a href=\"http:\/\/filmfanatic.org\/wp-content\/uploads\/2007\/01\/Bad-News-Bears-Poster.png\"><img loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" src=\"http:\/\/filmfanatic.org\/wp-content\/uploads\/2007\/01\/Bad-News-Bears-Poster-195x300.png\" alt=\"\" width=\"195\" height=\"300\" class=\"alignleft size-medium wp-image-64805\" srcset=\"https:\/\/filmfanatic.org\/wp-content\/uploads\/2007\/01\/Bad-News-Bears-Poster-195x300.png 195w, https:\/\/filmfanatic.org\/wp-content\/uploads\/2007\/01\/Bad-News-Bears-Poster-666x1024.png 666w, https:\/\/filmfanatic.org\/wp-content\/uploads\/2007\/01\/Bad-News-Bears-Poster-83x128.png 83w, https:\/\/filmfanatic.org\/wp-content\/uploads\/2007\/01\/Bad-News-Bears-Poster-176x270.png 176w, https:\/\/filmfanatic.org\/wp-content\/uploads\/2007\/01\/Bad-News-Bears-Poster.png 719w\" sizes=\"auto, (max-width: 195px) 100vw, 195px\" \/><\/a><\/p>\n<p><strong>Synopsis:<\/strong><br \/>\nFormer minor-league pitcher Morris Buttermaker (Walter Matthau) becomes the reluctant coach for a team of Little League misfits &#8212; including the 12-year-old daughter (Tatum O&#8217;Neal) of his ex-girlfriend.\n<\/p>\n<\/td>\n<\/tr>\n<tr>\n<td>\n<p>\n<strong>Genres, Themes, Actors, and Directors:<\/strong><\/p>\n<ul>\n<li>Baseball<\/li>\n<li>Comedy<\/li>\n<li>Has-Been<\/li>\n<li>Michael Ritchie Films<\/li>\n<li>Misfits<\/li>\n<li>Walter Matthau Films<\/li>\n<\/ul>\n<p><strong>Review: <\/strong><br \/>\nWalther Matthau is at his surly best in this classic &#8220;misfit kids make good&#8221; flick (which was followed by two sequels, turned into a T.V. series, and recently remade by Richard Linklater). Since I&#8217;m not a big fan of sports movies (or organized sports, for that matter), I put off watching this film for years; but  I&#8217;ll admit that once I finally gave it a chance, I was pleasantly surprised. In between many lengthy ball game sequences (hardcore fans won&#8217;t be disappointed), there&#8217;s plenty of zingy dialogue and countless hilarious moments amongst the motley crew of characters. <\/p>\n<p><a href=\"http:\/\/filmfanatic.org\/wp-content\/uploads\/2007\/01\/Bad-News-Bears-Still2.png\"><img loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" src=\"http:\/\/filmfanatic.org\/wp-content\/uploads\/2007\/01\/Bad-News-Bears-Still2-1024x563.png\" alt=\"\" width=\"640\" height=\"352\" class=\"alignnone size-large wp-image-64821\" srcset=\"https:\/\/filmfanatic.org\/wp-content\/uploads\/2007\/01\/Bad-News-Bears-Still2-1024x563.png 1024w, https:\/\/filmfanatic.org\/wp-content\/uploads\/2007\/01\/Bad-News-Bears-Still2-300x165.png 300w, https:\/\/filmfanatic.org\/wp-content\/uploads\/2007\/01\/Bad-News-Bears-Still2-128x70.png 128w, https:\/\/filmfanatic.org\/wp-content\/uploads\/2007\/01\/Bad-News-Bears-Still2-768x422.png 768w, https:\/\/filmfanatic.org\/wp-content\/uploads\/2007\/01\/Bad-News-Bears-Still2-1536x844.png 1536w, https:\/\/filmfanatic.org\/wp-content\/uploads\/2007\/01\/Bad-News-Bears-Still2-491x270.png 491w, https:\/\/filmfanatic.org\/wp-content\/uploads\/2007\/01\/Bad-News-Bears-Still2.png 1825w\" sizes=\"auto, (max-width: 640px) 100vw, 640px\" \/><\/a><\/p>\n<p>Most refreshing of all is watching how <em>un<\/em>-politically correct Matthau is with his young charges &#8212; he drinks in front of them, tosses them beer cans to celebrate a good game (!), and calls them every foul name under the planet. Also notable: his relationship with 12-year-old O&#8217;Neal never smacks of anything unsavory, even when he&#8217;s talking openly with her about her budding breasts; their friendship is allowed to develop without digressing into any unnecessary subplots about pedophilia. The fact that watching <em>The Bad News Bears<\/em> evokes such nostalgia says a lot about the degradation of children&#8217;s movies these days (most of which are sickly sweet in their attempt to shield kid-viewers from anything smacking of real-life). Morris Buttermaker may be a foul-mouthed, obnoxious &#8220;alky&#8221;, but there are plenty of people like him in the world &#8212; and kids know it.<\/p>\n<p><a href=\"http:\/\/filmfanatic.org\/wp-content\/uploads\/2007\/01\/Bad-News-Bears-Matthau.png\"><img loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" src=\"http:\/\/filmfanatic.org\/wp-content\/uploads\/2007\/01\/Bad-News-Bears-Matthau-1024x571.png\" alt=\"\" width=\"640\" height=\"357\" class=\"alignnone size-large wp-image-64819\" srcset=\"https:\/\/filmfanatic.org\/wp-content\/uploads\/2007\/01\/Bad-News-Bears-Matthau-1024x571.png 1024w, https:\/\/filmfanatic.org\/wp-content\/uploads\/2007\/01\/Bad-News-Bears-Matthau-300x167.png 300w, https:\/\/filmfanatic.org\/wp-content\/uploads\/2007\/01\/Bad-News-Bears-Matthau-128x71.png 128w, https:\/\/filmfanatic.org\/wp-content\/uploads\/2007\/01\/Bad-News-Bears-Matthau-768x428.png 768w, https:\/\/filmfanatic.org\/wp-content\/uploads\/2007\/01\/Bad-News-Bears-Matthau-1536x856.png 1536w, https:\/\/filmfanatic.org\/wp-content\/uploads\/2007\/01\/Bad-News-Bears-Matthau-485x270.png 485w, https:\/\/filmfanatic.org\/wp-content\/uploads\/2007\/01\/Bad-News-Bears-Matthau.png 1843w\" sizes=\"auto, (max-width: 640px) 100vw, 640px\" \/><\/a><\/p>\n<p><strong>Redeeming Qualities and Moments: <\/strong><\/p>\n<ul>\n<li>Walter Matthau as the grizzled, has-been, alcoholic coach<br \/>\n<a href=\"http:\/\/filmfanatic.org\/wp-content\/uploads\/2007\/01\/Bad-News-Bears-Matthau4.png\"><img loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" src=\"http:\/\/filmfanatic.org\/wp-content\/uploads\/2007\/01\/Bad-News-Bears-Matthau4-1024x571.png\" alt=\"\" width=\"640\" height=\"357\" class=\"alignnone size-large wp-image-64818\" srcset=\"https:\/\/filmfanatic.org\/wp-content\/uploads\/2007\/01\/Bad-News-Bears-Matthau4-1024x571.png 1024w, https:\/\/filmfanatic.org\/wp-content\/uploads\/2007\/01\/Bad-News-Bears-Matthau4-300x167.png 300w, https:\/\/filmfanatic.org\/wp-content\/uploads\/2007\/01\/Bad-News-Bears-Matthau4-128x71.png 128w, https:\/\/filmfanatic.org\/wp-content\/uploads\/2007\/01\/Bad-News-Bears-Matthau4-768x429.png 768w, https:\/\/filmfanatic.org\/wp-content\/uploads\/2007\/01\/Bad-News-Bears-Matthau4-1536x857.png 1536w, https:\/\/filmfanatic.org\/wp-content\/uploads\/2007\/01\/Bad-News-Bears-Matthau4-484x270.png 484w, https:\/\/filmfanatic.org\/wp-content\/uploads\/2007\/01\/Bad-News-Bears-Matthau4.png 1833w\" sizes=\"auto, (max-width: 640px) 100vw, 640px\" \/><\/a><\/li>\n<li>Tatum O&#8217;Neal in a worthy follow-up role to her award-winning performance in <em>Paper Moon<\/em><br \/>\n<a href=\"http:\/\/filmfanatic.org\/wp-content\/uploads\/2007\/01\/Bad-News-Bears-ONeal.png\"><img loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" src=\"http:\/\/filmfanatic.org\/wp-content\/uploads\/2007\/01\/Bad-News-Bears-ONeal-1024x565.png\" alt=\"\" width=\"640\" height=\"353\" class=\"alignnone size-large wp-image-64816\" srcset=\"https:\/\/filmfanatic.org\/wp-content\/uploads\/2007\/01\/Bad-News-Bears-ONeal-1024x565.png 1024w, https:\/\/filmfanatic.org\/wp-content\/uploads\/2007\/01\/Bad-News-Bears-ONeal-300x166.png 300w, https:\/\/filmfanatic.org\/wp-content\/uploads\/2007\/01\/Bad-News-Bears-ONeal-128x71.png 128w, https:\/\/filmfanatic.org\/wp-content\/uploads\/2007\/01\/Bad-News-Bears-ONeal-768x424.png 768w, https:\/\/filmfanatic.org\/wp-content\/uploads\/2007\/01\/Bad-News-Bears-ONeal-1536x848.png 1536w, https:\/\/filmfanatic.org\/wp-content\/uploads\/2007\/01\/Bad-News-Bears-ONeal-489x270.png 489w, https:\/\/filmfanatic.org\/wp-content\/uploads\/2007\/01\/Bad-News-Bears-ONeal.png 1831w\" sizes=\"auto, (max-width: 640px) 100vw, 640px\" \/><\/a><\/li>\n<li>Some incredible scenes of no-holds-barred parental pushiness<br \/>\n<a href=\"http:\/\/filmfanatic.org\/wp-content\/uploads\/2007\/01\/Bad-News-Bears-Parents2.png\"><img loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" src=\"http:\/\/filmfanatic.org\/wp-content\/uploads\/2007\/01\/Bad-News-Bears-Parents2-1024x570.png\" alt=\"\" width=\"640\" height=\"356\" class=\"alignnone size-large wp-image-64815\" srcset=\"https:\/\/filmfanatic.org\/wp-content\/uploads\/2007\/01\/Bad-News-Bears-Parents2-1024x570.png 1024w, https:\/\/filmfanatic.org\/wp-content\/uploads\/2007\/01\/Bad-News-Bears-Parents2-300x167.png 300w, https:\/\/filmfanatic.org\/wp-content\/uploads\/2007\/01\/Bad-News-Bears-Parents2-128x71.png 128w, https:\/\/filmfanatic.org\/wp-content\/uploads\/2007\/01\/Bad-News-Bears-Parents2-768x427.png 768w, https:\/\/filmfanatic.org\/wp-content\/uploads\/2007\/01\/Bad-News-Bears-Parents2-1536x854.png 1536w, https:\/\/filmfanatic.org\/wp-content\/uploads\/2007\/01\/Bad-News-Bears-Parents2-485x270.png 485w, https:\/\/filmfanatic.org\/wp-content\/uploads\/2007\/01\/Bad-News-Bears-Parents2-1038x576.png 1038w, https:\/\/filmfanatic.org\/wp-content\/uploads\/2007\/01\/Bad-News-Bears-Parents2.png 1839w\" sizes=\"auto, (max-width: 640px) 100vw, 640px\" \/><\/a><\/li>\n<li>Countless obnoxiously humorous quotes by Buttermaker:<br \/>\n<blockquote><p>&#8220;Now get back to the stands before I shave off half your mustache and shove it up your left nostril!&#8221;<\/p><\/blockquote>\n<\/li>\n<\/ul>\n<p><strong>Must See? <\/strong><br \/>\nYes. As the forerunner to all films good and bad (mostly bad) about misfit kids on sports teams, this remains must-see viewing.  <\/p>\n<p><strong>Categories<\/strong><\/p>\n<ul>\n<li>Historically Relevant<\/li>\n<\/ul>\n<p><strong>Links: <\/strong><\/p>\n<ul>\n<li><a href=\"http:\/\/imdb.com\/title\/tt0074174\/\">IMDb entry<\/a><\/li>\n<\/ul>\n<\/td>\n<\/tr>\n<\/table>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"<p>&#8220;All we got is a cruddy alky for a manager!&#8221; Synopsis: Former minor-league pitcher Morris Buttermaker (Walter Matthau) becomes the reluctant coach for a team of Little League misfits &#8212; including the 12-year-old daughter (Tatum O&#8217;Neal) of his ex-girlfriend. Genres, Themes, Actors, and Directors: Baseball Comedy Has-Been Michael Ritchie Films Misfits Walter Matthau Films Review: Walther Matthau is at his surly best in this classic &#8220;misfit kids make good&#8221; flick (which was followed by two sequels, turned into a T.V&#8230;.<\/p>\n<p class=\"read-more\"><a class=\"btn btn-default\" href=\"https:\/\/filmfanatic.org\/?p=2159\"> Read More<span class=\"screen-reader-text\">  Read More<\/span><\/a><\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":1,"featured_media":0,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"closed","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"jetpack_post_was_ever_published":false,"_jetpack_newsletter_access":"","_jetpack_dont_email_post_to_subs":false,"_jetpack_newsletter_tier_id":0,"_jetpack_memberships_contains_paywalled_content":false,"_jetpack_memberships_contains_paid_content":false,"footnotes":""},"categories":[1],"tags":[],"class_list":["post-2159","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","hentry","category-reviews"],"aioseo_notices":[],"jetpack_featured_media_url":"","jetpack_sharing_enabled":true,"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/filmfanatic.org\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/posts\/2159","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/filmfanatic.org\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/filmfanatic.org\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/filmfanatic.org\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/users\/1"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/filmfanatic.org\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Fcomments&post=2159"}],"version-history":[{"count":9,"href":"https:\/\/filmfanatic.org\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/posts\/2159\/revisions"}],"predecessor-version":[{"id":93481,"href":"https:\/\/filmfanatic.org\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/posts\/2159\/revisions\/93481"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/filmfanatic.org\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Fmedia&parent=2159"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/filmfanatic.org\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Fcategories&post=2159"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/filmfanatic.org\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Ftags&post=2159"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}