'Tin Cup': above par

August 16, 1996
Web posted at: 5:00 p.m. EDT

By CNN Movie Reviewer Carol Buckland

Writer-director Ron Shelton scored big with "Bull Durham" and "White Men Can't Jump" but tanked -- big-time -- with his baseball bio "Cobb." Now he's back in the game with "Tin Cup," a crowd-pleasing new flick about golf.

Kevin Costner stars as Roy McAvoy, a guy who has the strokes to be a lord of the links, but misses the cut in terms of emotional maturity. While a somewhat sleazy guy (Don Johnson) with whom he grew up playing golf has struck it pretty rich on the PGA tour, Roy's eking out a meager living as a driving-range pro in Salome, Texas.

Into his dusty, occasionally drunken existence comes a saucy psychologist played by Rene Russo, who wants to learn to play golf. Roy is smitten. He attempts to clean up his act and ends up as a genuine contender in the U.S. Open.

Does Roy win? This reviewer won't tell ... except to say that Shelton is too attuned to his characters' existential integrity to opt for a predictable Hollywood ending.

Costner is back in the acting groove, capturing Roy's goofball gallantry as well as his infuriating adherence to a pigheadedly macho code. It's a nice change from the joyless stiffness he's exhibited in several recent films.

While Russo's character is less well-drawn than Susan Sarandon's Baseball Annie in "Bull Durham," she proves herself an adept comedienne. She and Costner click nicely. There's also excellent work from Cheech Marin as Roy's long- suffering buddy, Romeo.

The script -- cowritten by Shelton and John Norville -- is smartly paced. It includes sharp romantic banter, a fair amount of boys-will-be-boys joking around, and several surprisingly poetic passages about the essence of the sport of golf.

Shelton's direction matches the script.

While "Tin Cup" isn't a hole in one, it is one of the most enjoyable movies of the summer season. It's great date fare.

"Tin Cup" is rated R. It includes plenty of salty language and several sexual situations. Costner's character's ex- girlfriend is a stripper, which allows for some gratuitous flesh-flashing.

Related site:

• Tin Cup

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