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Tin Cup Blu-ray Review

“Tin Cup” is not a hole in one.

In 1996’s “Tin Cup,” the story revolves around Roy (whose nickname is the title)- a broke, cocky, booze loving golf expert who runs a run down golf range in Texas. One day, a wealthy psychologist (Molly) shows up at the range for golf lessons. Roy finds himself smitten by her, but he soon learns she’s dating a pro golfer/former friend of Roy’s named David Simms. To make a long story short, Roy tries to win her heart and prove his skills to David by attempting to reach the U.S. Open. Along the way, however, Roy begins to have a bit of a mental block due to his feelings for Molly.

Having worked together on “Bull Durham,” Kevin Costner and director Ron Shelton (who co-wrote the script alongside John Norville) reteamed for another sports movie in “Tin Cup.” Instead of baseball though, this is a golf centric romantic comedy. Unlike the beloved “Bull Durham,” “Tin Cup” never quite gathered the same sort of following and it’s not hard to see why. Sure, the cast is excellent (I’ll get to that shortly) and the film itself is a refreshingly adult comedy (which you don’t see much of nowadays), but it suffers from a needlessly wordy script, more golf metaphors than you’d ever care to hear, music montages, and endless amount of betting sequences, a predictable climax that will have you muttering “oh brother,” and a sluggish romantic tale. Did I mention this movie clocks in at 135 minutes? No romantic comedy should ever be this long.

As mentioned above, it’s the ensemble cast that salvages the viewing experience. Kevin Costner has done all manner of parts over the years, but his more comedic roles are among his best and most underrated. He’s clearly having a blast here playing a flawed, talented, lovesick character. He also has superb chemistry with Rene Russo who shines here despite having a character that gets a bit watered down in the end. Cheech Marin steals numerous scenes as Roy’s friend and confidant Romero. Lastly, Don Johnson (who is having quite the career renaissance at the moment) seems to revel in playing the smug pro golfer David. 

Video/Audio:

Presentation: 2.40:1 1080p. How does it look? Another crisp and clean transfer courtesy of Warner Archive.  

Audio Track: 5.1 DTS-HD MA. How does it sound? This 5.1 does the job.

The lone extra is a “Tin Cup” trailer.

May 23, 2020 - Posted by nicklyons1 | Blu-Ray review | Cheech Marin, Don Johnson, Golf, Golf Movie, Kevin Costner, Rene Russo, Tin Cup Blu-ray Review, Warner Archive