Metascore

Mixed or average reviews - based on 31 Critics What's this?

User Score

Generally favorable reviews- based on 11 Ratings

  • Starring: Kelly Preston, Kevin Costner
  • Summary: A provocative look into the professional and personal passions of a major league baseball player, who in the twilight of a successful career is forced to reconcile a lifetime of decisions that have been clouded by the trappings of fame. (Universal Pictures)
Score distribution:
  1. Positive: 8 out of 31
  2. Negative: 8 out of 31
  1. Reviewed by: Jay Carr
    88
    After revitalizing baseball movies with "Field of Dreams" and "Bull Durham," he's now three for three with the funny, quirky, rueful, and richly textured For Love of the Game.
  2. It is impossible to think of anyone but Costner in this role. His commitment and sincerity are never in doubt.
  3. The game is cool to watch, and the love story is assertive enough to hook even the stodgiest ESPN man.
  4. 38
    It's the most lugubrious and soppy love story in many a moon, a step backward for director Sam Raimi after "A Simple Plan."

See all 31 Critic Reviews

Score distribution:
  1. Positive: 2 out of 5
  2. Negative: 1 out of 5
  1. On the surface, this movie is a cheesy romance flick, but what makes it unique is it's backdrop. An aging pitcher, at the end of his career, looks back on how it all started, while in the middle of pitching what could be his final game. Along with the flashbacks of his baseball memories, come flashbacks of his romance, which are long and lame. The baseball part of it is what attracted me and is great. If this was strictly a sports movie, it would be 5 stars. The story of his career is much stronger than several other films dedicated to just the game. With this film you have to take the good with the bad. At times it seems like two entirely different movies and it really takes away from what is otherwise a great film. Collapse
  2. Sam Raimi n'aurait pas dû quitter l'horreur et le fantastique pour se lancer dans un film romantique. Parce que là, le réalisateur se retrouve sans imagination. En effet, il nous livre un film du genre, tout ce qu'il y a de plus banal, avec surdose de bons sentiments et de musiques appuyées. Bon, ce n'est quand même pas désagréable à regarder, d'autant plus que les acteurs ne s'en sortent pas trop mal et que les passages de base-ball se montrent plutôt intéressants. Mais bon Dieu que c'est mou du genou! Et il n'y a rien qui empêche d'ennuyer le spectateur : histoire d'amour sans intérêt, dialogues qui semblent bâclés, montage en flashes-back dispensable... Sans compter une VF des plus loupées, les doubleurs se faisant rarement comprendre ni même entendre (cela marmonne trop!). Pour l'amour du jeu n'est qu'une pure guimauve hollywoodienne comme il en existe déjà tant. Et comme les autres, il vaut mieux l'oublier rapidement. Expand

See all 5 User Reviews