Susan Granger’s review of ‘THE LEGEND OF BAGGER VANCE” (DreamWorks)
From the opening shot of (uncredited) Jack Lemmon reaching for a club, muttering, “Why do I play a game that’s destined to kill me?,” you know you’re in for a magical, mystical golf metaphor. Through flashbacks and Lemmon’s narration, the story of his childhood idol, Rannulph Junuh, unfolds. Junuh was the greatest golfer in Savannah, Georgia, until he went off to W.W.I and returned home, disillusioned and depressed. The golden boy had lost his “authentic swing.” After that, it took a high-stakes exhibition tournament with Bobby Jones and Walter Hagen, the two greatest pros of the Depression-era, and a dose of reality from a philosophical caddie, Bagger Vance, to help him find redemption and get back in the groove, not to mention back in the arms of his spunky fiancŽe. As the guardian angel Bagger, Will Smith steals the picture, ruminating wisely on overcoming adversity. Originally, director Robert Redford was to play Junuh, opposite Morgan Freeman. Too bad he didn’t. Damon’s a charming if bland, young Redford clone, and an original is always preferable to an imitator. On the other hand, Charlize Theron is beguiling, as is young J. Michael Moncrief. The problem: Jeremy Leven’s screenplay, based on Steven Pressfield’s novel, has too little backstory to evoke an emotional investment in the characters. But the production values are admirable: credit cinematographer Michael Ballhaus, designer Stuart Craig, costumer Judianna Makovsky, visual effects supervisor Richard Chuang and editor Hank Corwin. Too bad composer Rachel Portman’s music goes over-the-top, as when a religious choir heralds a hole-in-one in the 3rd round. On the Granger Movie Gauge of 1 to 10, “The Legend of Bagger Vance” is a spiritual 7. Like life, golf “is a game that can’t be won, only played.”
