Rookie of the Year

It was a magic bat in The Natural, and a magic park in Field of Dreams; now it's a magic arm. The 100 mph pitch which propels 12-year-old Henry Rowengartner (Nicholas) into major league baseball is not, however, manna from heaven, but the surprising result of a fall. For this is not an enchanting, mystical film, but an exhaustingly physical one. Surrounded by such stock characters as the single mum and her slimy boyfriend, the conniving pitcher and his has-been employer, Henry inspires the goodies, foils the baddies. First-time director Stern - Macaulay Culkin's punching bag in the Home Alone films - gives a broad performance as the pitching coach who knows nothing about baseball. Approach with aspirin.