It's the Billy Bob 'Bad News Bears' review.

Got to see Bad News Bears tonight. Not much of a review I can give. It's a solid, fun film that's pretty much exactly what you'd expect it to be. Did you like School of Rock? Well, you're going to get the same thing here, except with Billy Bob Thornton and baseball. This is not a bad thing.

Nobody plays drunken asshole like Billy Bob, and he uses it to its fullest here. He's not quite as far into the abyss as he was in Bad Santa, but he gets close a few times. It's pretty much his movie, and you like him in spite of yourself. The kids are great also, and actually get something to do. The kids that play Tanner and Engleberg are great, and Hooper gets some of the best lines in the movie. Note to movie execs: when you need an ensemble cast of kids to star in your movie, you'd better be smart enough to hire Richard Linklater as your director. The dude knows how to get great performances out of kids. Well, at least the ones who are trained actors. You can tell right away the ones that were hired simply for their baseball skills. But still, they're minimized enough that it doesn't matter or detract from the film too much.

Speaking of kids, I'm not sure I'd recommend taking yours to see it. There's a lot more swearing than you'd probably expect in a PG-13 movie, if that sort of thing bugs you. Don't say that I never warned you.

This is the part where I'd make my comparison to the original film and see how the new one stacks up, but I only vaguely remember the first film. I'd guess it's been close to 20 years since I've seen it. So no, I can't tell you if it's better or worse. You'll see the same characters in the same setting, but I did notice that the ending isn't quite the same. So don't expect it to be an exact remake of the original. It does feel a little predictable, but this is one of those movies where the destination isn't what's important, it's more about enjoying the ride you take to get there. And this is an enjoyable ride with an enjoyable cast. I did feel like I should have a beer in my hand the entire time, though. I guess watching Billy Bob drink nonstop has that effect on me.

3 stars out of 4. Nothing life-changing, but you won't be asking for your money back, either.