PalCinema Review: EEPHUS
A recreational baseball field is about to be torn up. It's time for one last game.
April 16, 2025
FILM: EEPHUS
DIRECTED BY: CARSON LUND
STARRING: JOHNNY TIRADO, TIM TAYLOR, ETHAN WARD
RATING: 2 ½ out 4 stars
By Dan Pal
It’s baseball season so how about a movie where the sport is the primary character in the film? EEPHUS comes from director/co-writer/producer/editor Carson Lund. It is essentially a love letter about people who find joy in a weekly recreational but competitive playing of the game. The setting is a suburban town somewhere in Massachusetts at the end of the season. The field where a group of middle aged guys regularly play is about to be ripped apart to build a new school on the same grounds. The entire film centers around their final game as they realize an era has ended.
The title comes from a rare baseball pitch which is delivered at a high angle with low velocity, thus often “tricking” the hitter. This may be the through line during the narrative. These players don’t move as fast as they used to. Some of them drink and others are clearly out of shape. Yet, they’ve kept up this weekly tradition perhaps to remain feeling young and active. Sadly, their animosity towards each other hasn’t exactly lightened up with age. There is a lot of angry, mean-spirited dialogue here. It’s hard for me to imagine the middle-aged guys who live in my neighborhood acting like they are still in high school as some of these guys do!
The thing is we really don’t know much about any of them. The script doesn’t allow for much character background or development. Sure, there are certain features like a guy with a long beard, another with a big stomach, etc. to make them more distinctive but we could be given a greater sense of why this game is so important to each of them. Perhaps that is Lund’s point: they’re team members rather than true individuals. Still, I went through most of the film not really caring about any of them because most weren’t given any depth.
The film takes place as one afternoon turns to night. Lund does a great job of making us feel that the entire film was shot in real time on that one day. (This reminded me of Richard Linklater’s Dazed and Confused, albeit with a much older cast and a different central premise.) However, there are some strange features to the general environment such as: If this is the last big game how come there aren’t more family members in attendance, other than one player’s wife and child, to watch what is apparently so important to these guys? Instead, there are some random spectators that show up at various points but then seem to disappear as the game goes on.
The one interesting person in attendance is a character named Franny who sits using a TV tray just outside the field carefully scoring the game. He’s certainly been doing this for his whole life and has a keen eye for balls and strikes. I’d love to see a movie just about him.
The film has some technical challenges too that are not always overcome. Clearly the production had a low budget. At times, the camera lingers on various shots without giving viewers a sense of the reverse action. This is especially true during some of the key plays. A ball is hit off screen but all we see is a player catching (or missing) the ball. Sometimes there are editing choices that confuse who is talking to who. There are also some sound bites from what appears to be a previously played game recorded on cassette. These are also randomly placed as are other ambient sounds that might be trains or some other nearby forms of transportation.
There’s also the question as to why this has to be their last game. Isn’t there anywhere else these guys can play? They also seem quite bothered that a school is going up on their field. Why not make it a corporate building or parking lot to make the shuttering of this setting less noble? A school must have been needed in the community... Might it not have a baseball diamond?
Viewers who love baseball or sportsman-like camaraderie though could really enjoy this film. It’s bittersweet and a reminder that all good things do end. Still, I’d have liked a bit more focus on the characters and some additional attention being given to some of the atmospheric and technical elements of the film.
EEPHUS is playing in limited theatrical release but is also available for rent or purchase on all major digital platforms, including Prime Video and AppleTV.
Are you a baseball fan? Would you see this film?
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I like how it's generally low-key and kind of a hangout movie. Sort of plays with the typical idea of a baseball movie. Some fun moments along with the way.
I am a baseball fan who — with a few notable exceptions — generally despises baseball films. Your review doesn't make it sound like Eephus will be one of those notable exceptions.