Million Dollar Arm

After Los Angeles sports agent J.B. Bernstein (Jon Hamm) loses a major client, he grows desperate. One night, while flipping channels between a cricket game and Susan Boyle's Britain's Got Talent audition, Bernstein hits on a crazy idea: namely, to travel to India and hold a talent contest to find cricket players who can throw a baseball. Depending on a retired, narcoleptic baseball scout (Alan Arkin), Bernstein embarks on a chaotic, three-month search, departing from Mumbai—with stops in picturesque Jaipur, Agra, Calcutta, Bangalore, and New Delhi—along with an enthusiastic Hindi interpreter (Bollywood star Pitobash Tripathy). Backed by wealthy investor Mr. Chang (Tzi Ma), Bernstein brings back two pitching prospects: Rinku Singh (Suraj Sharma) and Dinesh Patel (Madhur Mittel). Experiencing culture shock and baffled by American technology, the lonely, disoriented boys wind up living with Bernstein—where they're befriended by a compassionate medical student (Lake Bell) who rents Bernstein's guest bungalow—while also training with visionary USC pitching coach Tom House (Bill Paxton) and preparing for Major League tryouts. Directed by Craig Gillespie, Million Dollar Arm—based on a true story—benefits greatly from strong performances by Hamm and the young Indian actors, along with a delightful score by Oscar-winning composer A.R. Rahman. While somewhat rambling, it's also a sincere (as opposed to schmaltzy) feel-good family film. Recommended. [Note: DVD/Blu-ray extras include a “Training Camp” pitching segment (6 min.), and trailers. Exclusive to the Blu-ray release is “Their Story” on the real-life inspiration for the film (3 min.), a music segment with composer A.R. Rahman (3 min.), deleted scenes (3 min.), outtakes (2 min.), a brief alternate ending, and a bonus digital copy of the film. Bottom line: a solid extras package for a winning film.] (S. Granger)