source: Spaceman

This is a biopic of free thinking baseball pitcher Bill Lee (Josh Duhamel), who loved the game, but shared that love with pot and alcohol. His inability to follow authority cut his career short. He life is filled with wonderful baseball stories, none of which we saw because the film basically starts when he gets cut from the Montreal Expos. I tried to get into the film, hoping they would have flashbacks, but alas, we only get to see Bill play in Senior League and pitch batting practice, which he messed up too. Now I love quirky ball players from Bill Lee, to Jay Johnstone, to John Kruk, to Wild Thing. Unfortunately we get to see the uninteresting stuff in Lee's life like losing at pool to a woman in a wheelchair. Bill gets blackballed from baseball which would have been a great story of managerial collusion, but as it was the story started at the end of his career when Bill's life got boring. Guide: F-word. No sex or nudity.

Josh Duhamel gives an engaging and spirited performance as over the hill and down in the dumps Bill 'Spaceman' Lee, the Boston Red Sox and Montreal Expos left-handed pitcher whose antics for the wild life and marijuana gave him his trippy nickname. Bill is released by the Expos because he is bad business, despite his talent as a pitcher. Bill has earned a shoddy reputation with his wild living and now he is regarded as being too old. The word is out that no major baseball team should employ him. Pretty soon his personal life hits the skids as his wife divorces him and the only baseball he plays is with a local senior team the Longueuil Senators where he at least enjoys some camaraderie. The film has enough quirkiness to make it amiable, it has too much talking and by the end you think it also did not have too much plot to it.

You know, it's funny. I imagine that most of the people who watch this movie may not like it. It's not humorous, in fact it's quite sad. The only redeeming value that it should bring is that if you are really good at something it's important to realize that there are always going to be times when you just aren't allowed to be yourself. That's what Bill "Spaceman" Lee found out after pushing the limit one too many times. He was a good pitcher and I grew up in Boston and watched him often, while he was in the prime of his career. He has a great mind for this great game and yet he allowed his inner demons to take that away, albeit is was towards the end of a decent career. There are a lot of people who play this game and to get to the Pro level is not an easy thing to do, never mind win almost 120 games. He did that and I will say that he did it with style. That style is also what ended his career in the Professional level. Was he the worst of the offenders at that time, probably not, but he certainly was one of the most outspoken about it. Josh Duhamel did, what appears to be a fairly decent representation of the character that Bill Lee was and still is today. A man with an abundance of talent who really didn't like being told what to do or when to do it. It's not hard to figure out that at some point that will get you more than a slap on the wrist. With all of that said, if you like baseball and ever felt as if your life would end if you couldn't play anymore then it's possible you will enjoy film for what it is. It's just a story. A story of a guy who never wanted to do anything but play baseball. Inside the lines he followed the rules, outside the lines had a negative impact on his later years, as a Pro. Give it a shot. The acting is fine and the sadness is real. It's not a long time commitment, so I suggest checking it out. I liked it enough to write this review and although I still see Mr. Lee, once in a while in and around Boston, he has the same smile, he's always talking the game and he does hold one pretty impressive record you will see in the credits at the end of the movie. I love baseball and I wish I could be a kid all over again, whenever I watch it live or get to see it in a film. Just my thoughts!

I see that Spaceman is getting mostly negative reviews from critics, which is disappointing because the film is an admirable indie with a subject that many of those who love baseball, the counter culture movement from the 60s and 70s or both can appreciate. Bill Lee is a flawed, interesting, articulate character and Josh Duhamel plays him with aplomb. This is the best performance of Duhamel's career and, whether you like his previous performances or not, is one that everyone should check out. The film is beautifully shot, looks crisp in HD while still giving off that nostalgic, early 80s feel and features a good soundtrack. The only negative I would provide is that the film did leave me wanting to see more of Bill's life presented on screen as the period of his life portrayed is interesting but by no means the wackiest or most interesting part of his storied career and his life after baseball. Check out the documentary of the same name for his post-MLB career.

The movie itself is good, if you like baseball and know Bill Lee just a little, you'll like it. I found many problems with several scenes however which kind of drew my attention away from the story. For example, the "French" people they hired either don't speak French, which is fine for an American movie, or worse, a lot of them have French from France accent, which makes no sense at all. There are plenty of Quebecois in Hollywood who would have been happy to play the part. Next, the beer bottles go between generations during the same years... a bit strange, but no big deal. And those ugly Ericofons, did Bill's family really love them that much?! They probably had the Model 500 or 2500 like most people, or a fancy Princess for the ex-wife... And then Bill drives from Montreal to Phoenix, then back to Montreal in just a few days? No wonder we call him Spaceman. Like I said, it's just distracting. Except the end scene with the customs officers dressed like RCMP mounties dressed up for a parade... I know this is a low budget film but fixing these things to make it a little more historically accurate would have been simple and pretty much the same price.

Trailer—Spaceman

Spaceman