Tin Cup

Ron Shelton likes to mix sport and comedy in his films. Tin Cup is very reminiscent of "Bull Durham", one of Shelton's earlier films, for in both films two rivals compete for a woman's favour, and they do so by means of their sport. In "Bull Durham" it was baseball, while in Tin Cup everything revolves around golf. In addition, Kevin Costner plays one of the male leads in both films.

Roy 'Tin Cup' McAvoy is a washed-up golfer who makes his living as a coach in the back of beyond. Roy has never made his mark in the big tournaments, for his devil-may-care golf has not suited his competitors' carefully considered, often cautious play.

When Roy meets the gorgeous psychologist Molly Griswold, he falls seriously in love for the first time, but it is a bitter pill when he learns that his charming pupil is the girlfriend of his old rival, the slick David Simms, who manages to hide a secret: that deep down he is thoroughly unpleasant. In terms of money, status and self-confidence Roy cannot compete with David in any way, but if he can resume serious golf and show what he is made of, there may be a chance after all.

Tin Cup is convincing at the end, where it refrains from turning the film into a sickly fairy tale. Roy may get the girl, but he does not win the tournament, even though it is close. It is odd that the love triangle carries so little weight in the story. One does not get the impression that David Simms sees it as a humiliation that Roy snatches his girl. That would otherwise provide extra fuel for the enmity.

For a comedy, Tin Cup is rather long, but there evidently has to be room for all the golf scenes. That may be precisely the problem with films that focus so single-mindedly on one sport. What if you are not familiar with the terminology? What if you do not care a jot about golf - would you then bother going to the cinema to see the film?